Sunderland host Newcastle United in the Wear-Tyne Derby on December 14th.

Newcastle United boss Eddie Howe has admitted that his side’s inability to see out matches is a “failing” - with the first Wear-Tyne Derby of the season against Sunderland just around the corner.

The Magpies travel to Wearside on December 14th for a first Premier League clash between the two bitter local rivals since 2016. At the time of writing, the North East pair are separated by seven spots and three points in the top flight table, with Howe’s side squandering an opportunity to narrow that gap against Tottenham Hotspur on Tuesday night.

Newcastle were 2-1 up at St. James’ Park heading into added time at the end of the contest, only to conceded 95th-minute equaliser courtesy of a Cristian Romero bicycle kick. The late strike means that the Tynesiders have shipped five goals in the 90th minute or after this season, while also dropping a league high 11 points from winning positions. By contrast, Sunderland have secured a league high 12 points from losing positions, while their four stoppage time goals scored rank among the highest in the division.

What has Newcastle United boss Eddie Howe said about his side’s propensity for conceding late goals?

And in a post-match press conference, Howe admitted that Newcastle’s tendency to throw away leads in the latter stages of contests was a real concern. When it was pointed out to him that drawing against Spurs was the difference between finishing the evening in seventh or in 13th, the Toon boss said: “Not sure I needed to hear that!

“The league is so tight, we know that and that's why three consecutive wins was our target tonight and we were a few minutes from getting it but I suppose that's the Premier League, that's what makes it the league that it is, that's what makes football so dramatic and why we're all obsessed by it so you have to take the rough with the smooth. We've felt a bit of pain in these moments before this season, we've got to try and get on the right side of them.”

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Prior to Tuesday’s setback, Newcastle had also conceded late winners against Arsenal and Liverpool on home soil, with Howe adding: “Well, I think you can look back at each moment and sort of identify a mistake or a part of the team not doing its job.

“So the job for us is to obviously coach the team to be better in those situations and that's what we'll endeavour to do but sometimes it becomes psychological, sometimes it becomes a fear of conceding and then you do concede, there's so much that goes into it but we've got to find ways when we're in front to be better and usually our best form of defence is to attack and I encourage us to do that all the time. Sometimes you have to accept that you're not in that position in the game to do it and you just have to see it out and defend better. I think today was one of those moments and we didn't do it.”

To make matters worse from a Geordie perspective, Newcastle have not scored a single goal in stoppage time this season, or picked up a single point from a losing position. Addressing the flaw, Howe continued: “I think it's definitely a failing, you can't sit here and go, I can't sit here and go, everything's okay in that respect, it's happened too many times this season, that doesn't mean we can't figure it out and put it right very quickly.

“Today's really a set piece, it's a moment and those moments happen in football, they've been on the other end of it at times and individual errors usually from set plays hurt you and that's what happened.”

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