Newcastle’s October standouts analysed
Miguel Almiron took the Premier League by storm in October, scoring 6 goals.
The thrashing of Aston Villa rounded off an extraordinary month for Newcastle United, as they picked up five wins from six games and scored 16 goals in the process as the Magpies climbed up to fourth in the Premier League.
Newcastle provided yet another excellent defensive display to secure their sixth clean sheet of the season so far, with summer signing Sven Botman particularly impressing the Geordie fanbase.
The £35m man has proved exactly why the club spent so much time and money battling for his signature, the 22-year-old has also impressed his national team manager as he has been called up to Holland’s provisional squad for the upcoming World Cup.
In Newcastle’s six October games, in which Botman started all, only 3 goals were conceded and he helped to keep 3 clean sheets, contributing to the club currently having, statistically, the best defence in the league.
Botman’s presence at the back is certainly felt, with the Dutchman winning 100% of his aerial duels in three of the six games and only being dribbled past once in 520 minutes. As well as this, he made 13 tackles and interceptions and 18 clearances as he proves to be a nightmare for Premier League forwards.
His ability on the ball is evident as he completed 84.5% of his attempted passes, allowing Eddie Howe’s style of play to be executed to perfection.
Whilst Howe has been extremely shrewd in the transfer market, he has also done a fantastic job of improving the players already at the club, one of those being the in-form Miguel Almiron.
The Paraguayan was a revelation in October, scoring 6 goals and and sat as high as fifth top scorer in the Premier League, up there with the likes of Erling Haaland, Harry Kane, Aleksandar Mitrovic and Ivan Toney.
As well as banging in the goals, Almiron’s all round play has drastically improved as he exudes confidence on the ball and is constantly taking up dangerous positions, causing all sorts of problems for the league’s defenders.
Before this run of games, Almiron’s scoring record has been quite sporadic but the high quality of his goals was surprising, including last season's winner against Crystal Palace winning Premier League Goal of the Month for April.
His goals in October followed that exact trend with the 28-year-old scoring a range of goals, some from 25 yards out, some were mazy runs through opposition defences, and there was a venomous volley to add to his impressive collection.
Almiron’s willingness to take on these shots in the first place comes from his evidently improved confidence that has allowed him to play without fear and become the player he has been this season.
His calmness and composure when in a goal scoring opportunity has developed dramatically under Howe as he scored his 6 October goals from only 9 shots, also displaying his newfound confidence on the pitch.
This confidence is also clear to see as he attempted 12 dribbles in the month of October, showing his eagerness to take on his man and create an opportunity for his side, especially in the absence of Allan Saint Maximin.
This is perhaps what is most impressive as throughout October, Newcastle were without Saint Maximin as well as Alexander Isak and when the attacking pair are back from injury, the success Toon fans have longed for could come sooner than anyone would’ve thought.