Gary Neville believes Eddie Howe will want a 'little bit more' in attack as he delivered a hugely positive assessment of Newcastle United at the halfway point of their season. The Magpies moved back into third spot on Sunday courtesy of a dramatic late winner from Alexander Isak to earn a narrow home victory over Fulham.
Howe's side have lost just once in the Premier League so far, and face relegation battlers Southampton later this month for a place in the Carabao Cup final. Manchester United sit level on points with the Magpies with a game in hand, but the latter now hold a five-point cushion over Tottenham in the race for the top four.
Neville has regularly praised Newcastle this term, and has praised the team's resilience following their recent goalless draw at league leaders Arsenal. The pundit feels the club will 'count their lucky stars' following Aleksandar Mitrovic's disallowed penalty in the latest victory, and puts the Magpies down as one of the stories of the season so far.
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He told the Gary Neville Podcast: "Newcastle have done fantastically well. The last game I watched against Arsenal, they weren't brilliant in that game from a football perspective but what they showed was a spirit and a compactness in defence. They were tough to beat.
"A clean sheet, another clean sheet today although the penalty, they'll count their lucky stars for that. They're a tough team to beat, they'll want a little bit more in attack but where they're at in this moment in time...I think Arsenal are the story because they're eight points clear from where they were at the end of last season.
"But there is no doubt Newcastle are right behind it, and then Brentford and what they're doing is absolutely brilliant. In terms of punching above their weight, those three teams and I'll probably put a mention in there for Erik ten Hag and the start that he had.
"Although you would expect Manchester United to be in the top four, but those three teams with Brentford, Newcastle and Arsenal have been outstanding in this first-half of the season. Brighton as well, sorry I should mention Brighton."
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