Eddie Howe, Manager of Newcastle United, smiles as he speaks with Sandro Tonali (Image: 2025 Getty Images)

Eddie Howe hooked both Anthony Elanga and Joelinton in a brutal double change at the Amex Stadium as both stars looked out of sorts on the South Coast.

Howe has spoken of a half-time "shake up" and seemed more content with the response of his players after a poor start to the game. The head coach had spent much of the opening period pacing around in the technical area as the initial tactics did not go to plan.

It was a move that saw £95m worth of talent taken off and replaced for fresh legs as Newcastle made a sluggish start to the game in certain areas of the field. Howe was candid with his assessment after the match in his post-match media duties, albeit in his usual measured way.

The players were told at the break that it had been far from good enough with Howe keen to get fresh legs on. The United boss said: "We are disappointed with the first half performance really.

"We faded...