Eddie Howe’s birthday falls on 29 November but, in a professional context, a couple of his best presents have arrived a day later. By happy coincidence, two of the most productive tactical gambles of the Newcastle manager’s tenure centred on 1-1 draws staged on 30 November. Although the first was enforced and the second voluntary, both experiments involved midfielders and would prove watershed moments in Newcastle’s evolution into one of England’s most feared teams.
Like his predecessor, Steve Bruce, Howe struggled to transform Joelinton from a £40m flop into a free-scoring centre-forward but when Ciaran Clark was sent-off against Norwich everything changed. To widespread amazement, the Brazilian responded to moving into midfield by discovering his inner Patrick Vieira and playing a key part in securing a creditable draw. Since then there has been no turning back.
Joelinton’s importance to Newcastle is emphasised by fears that securing a second Champions League qualification in three seasons might be scuppered by a knee injury that could sideline the Brazil international for a month. Yet if much hinges on how able a deputy Joe Willock proves on the left of the midfield three, any renewed optimism on the part of Premier League rivals will be tempered by Sandro Tonali’s transformative presence at the heart of that trinity.
There cannot be many, if any, better No 6s in Europe than the 24-year-old. It is easy to forget that, either side of the10-month worldwide banTonali received last year for breaches of betting rules, the former Milan playmaker struggled to impose himself in a No 8 role to the right of Bruno Guimarães in Newcastle’s 4-3-3 formation.
Howe probably sensed the Italy international would be better deployed in a deeper role but managers need to be diplomats as well as tactical choreographers. Perhaps an awareness that Guimarães desperately wanted to serve as a South American Pirlo explains why he resisted handing Tonali the No 6 job until 30 November last year at Selhurst Park.
As technically brilliant as Guimarães is, he is much better at drawing fouls, destabilising opponents and creating chances than controlling the tempo. Unlike Tonali, he is not really about slowing play down when necessary and cannot always resist the temptation to pursue the ball at the potential expense of team shape. Superior positional discipline aside, Tonali’s passing range and vision – that priceless knack of seeing situations open up a millisecond before everyone else – dictated the Italian was always better suited to the role.
Joelinton, Guimarães and Tonali have always bonded well off the pitch but, until they swapped stations, it looked as if the latter pair might not be able to play together. Now their on-field chemistry is almost palpable. It is perhaps no coincidence that Newcastle no longer indulge in quite so many of the time-wasting ploys that once so incensed rivals’ managers, Mikel Arteta especially.
Tonali, though, is no mere quasi-sweeper, intercepting opposition advances before delivering defence-splitting passes from deep. The 24-year-old has become significantly more athletic and aggressive. Always willing to interchange positions with midfield partners, he moves the ball quickly and incisively and also scores important goals, with volleys a speciality. Tonali habitually strikes the ball so hard that Howe has voiced fears for his goalkeepers’ wrists in training.
Before Sunday’s trip to Brighton, Howe agreed that adjusting Tonali’s position had been his “single most important decision” this season. “The balance of the team is hugely important,” said Newcastle’s manager, whose side have won 20 of their past 26 matches in all competitions. “That helped us find a better balance.”
Tonali and Howe have, in different ways, evolved considerably. While as a No 8 the former appeared an elegant luxury, Howe’s early philosophy as Bournemouth manager was influenced by a deep admiration of Arsène Wenger’s Arsenal during their Cesc Fàbregas-led incarnation. “My thinking about football is unrecognisable from when I first started managing,” Howe says. “It’s always changing. It has to change because the game’s changing so quickly. I’m sure in 10 years’ time it will doubtless be different again.”
Although Howe still likes his team to control possession – and Tonali’s ability to do so is a reason why Newcastle have improved so much – he is unrecognisable from the manager whose Bournemouth team were invariably wonderful to watch going forward but defensively flawed.
Depending on the opposition, Newcastle variously mix high, hard, full-throttle pressing with slower, more considered passing sequences and operating on the counterattack. Unafraid to turn direct, the team’s height, physicality and pace provide a robust framework ideally suited to showcasing the subtleties of Tonali’s skill set.
“It’s a sort of mixture,” Howe says. “But I do believe in core principles. You have to be adaptable and flexible but also strong about the things you really believe in.”