Newcastle United have had few alternatives to change things up for months.
Eddie Howe would be permitted to rotate his starting lineup during the regular season. However, this has barely happened throughout the current campaign.
Newcastle began the season with a somewhat deep team, but it was rapidly destroyed by injuries. The main concern is in midfield, where Howe just has three fit options: Bruno Guimaraes, Sean Longstaff, and Lewis Miley.
And, while Miley has performed admirably, he is still only 17 years old and is forced to play far more than he should.
Joelinton and Sandro Tonali are gone for the remainder of the season, and it’s unknown when Joe Willock and Elliot Anderson will return. The January transfer window ended with no senior additions.
Eddie Howe thought about putting Fabian Schar in midfield
On the most recent episode of Pod On The Tyne, Caulkin discussed Howe’s consideration of different strategies to spice things up in light of the club’s injury woes.
“He had been toying in recent weeks with going to a back five in matches,” he went on to say.
“We saw this happen at Villa.
“He had considered putting Fabian Schar in midfield at several occasions.
“It will be very interesting to see what happens next, because at the moment they are way too open.”
Fabian Schar in midfield is a risk not worth taking
Switching to a back five worked wonderfully against Aston Villa. Tino Livramento was brought on to play on the left side of defense, while Dan Burn moved inside. It hampered Villa’s ability to damage Newcastle as they attempted to get back into the game. In the end, the Magpies prevailed 3-1.
Caulkin also mentioned putting Fabian Schar in midfield. Given how good the £3 million man is on the ball, it’s not surprising that Howe is considering this option. Some Newcastle fans have clearly been pushing for it in light of the club’s chronic midfield woes.
However, it would be a significant risk, since it failed to work when Steve Bruce was manager at St James’ Park. He moved Schar up the pitch at least three times during his tenure, but each game ended in defeat.
While Howe may have thought about it, nothing has happened yet. And, with Willock expected to return soon, Schar’s move into midfield should be over.
