Two successive defeats to Chelsea and Everton ahead of the recent international break ended Newcastle ’s impressive nine-game unbeaten run and gave them a reality check on their current situation in the Premier League.
But that reality check continued further, even after the two week lay-off, as the Magpies suffered a third straight defeat at Tottenham on Sunday, in which they suffered a second half collapse to lose 5-1.
And manager Eddie Howe admits that he took a “very careful” approach with his players in the dressing room after the match, believing that saying the wrong things wouldn’t have helped anybody in a time where they need picking up.
Speaking to reporters following the game, Howe revealed that he did not feel it was necessary to “go hard or negative in any direction”. He said: "I think you've got to be very careful because everyone's very emotional and things can be said that maybe aren't helpful.
"I spoke. I think that's the way it should be. I'll always encourage the players if they want to speak to each other. The minute I leave the dressing room, that can happen. I think it's important my message got through."
The 5-1 hammering would have brought back memories of similar performances during the first half of the campaign in which the Magpies were struggling at the very bottom of the table, and Howe took a sensible approach in not dwelling on things for too long.
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The Magpies had endured a recent nine-game unbeaten run from mid-January to lift themselves, at one point, up to 14th in the league and 10 points clear of the bottom three, as the relegation battle looked like it would become an outside chance of a top half finish.
But three successive defeats have proved that there is still a lot to work on for Howe and his side, as well as the fact that they still need to mathematically secure their survival, despite remaining nine points above the dreaded drop zone, with plenty of tough fixtures still to come.
Three successive away games, with two coming at Chelsea and Spurs, hasn’t been easy and Howe recognised that, and he is now calling on his side to turn this around when they get back on home soil against Wolves on Friday, as they look to rediscover their good form.
He said: "It's a massive period coming up for us. We're aware this run of games we've just exited out of was difficult for us, a lot of away games. I'll be pleased to return home where form has been good.
“We need the crowd and stadium united to make the atmosphere as intense as we can for our opponents. This is going to be a massive spell which will go a long way to dictate our fate this season."
Newcastle are now 15th and nine points above the relegation zone. However, with nine games left to play, they still have plenty of opportunity to get the job done and that begins with another tricky test on Friday with the visit of European football-chasing Wolves.
