Eddie Howe says Newcastle were "really good" in the EFL Cup quarterfinal - Really?!

Within the last couple of weeks, we have been eliminated from two different competitions. I hate to put a damper on the situation but this is not great and to be honest, it is inexcusable given that Eddie Howe was brought in to win trophies. Don't get me wrong, Eddie Howe is still the perfect guy for the job and I won't deny that but to lose the EFL Cup quarter final in the manner we did last night is not good enough.

Eddie Howe says Newcastle were "really good" in the EFL Cup quarterfinal - Really?!

While I am struggling to see any positives from the display in which we essentially lost our heads and let Chelsea take advantage of our weaknesses, Eddie Howe has pointed out one thing we did well. Speaking to NUFCTV after the game, Howe had the following to say about our strengths:

"“Our defensive positioning first, covering space, and individual duals, battles, I thought we were really good. I thought we were a real counter threat in the first half, which was great to see, we lost that threat in the second half.""

- Eddie Howe

As much as I agree with Eddie Howe that in the first half, we were really good at dealing with the pressure, it seems redundant now given how the game went. Football is a game of two halves and last night, those two halves were decided by additional time after the two halves. To say that we won one of the halves is something a loser would say when trying to find excuses.

Last night just wasn't our best day at the office. This would have been a better and more respectable response. We have to accept that we just weren't good but that it doesn't define us as a football club since we have been terrific against all the odds this season. We go again at the weekend.

What did you make of Newcastle's display in the EFL Cup quarterfinal?