Why Eddie Howe and Newcastle coaches were really angry with £27m Arsenal star in first half

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Arsenal and Newcastle United have been involved in some feisty battles in recent years.

The game at St James’ Park in the 2023/24 season gave rise to a lot of controversy, and that has resulted in some animosity between the two sets of fans.

Arsenal travelled to Tyneside to take on Newcastle at lunchtime on Saturday, and the atmosphere at St James’ Park, unsurprisingly, was excellent.

The home fans did everything to put Arsenal under pressure, and people on the Newcastle bench joined in too very early in the game.

Eddie Howe and Newcastle coaches were annoyed by Arsenal star David Raya

David Raya is one of Arsenal’s most important players.

The Spaniard is not just an incredible shot-stopper, but he has the ability to start many of Arsenal’s attacks from the back as well.

In the first few minutes of the game on Saturday, Arsenal won a free kick in their own half, and after a bit of deliberation, the Arsenal goalkeeper decided to take it.

Raya, who Arsenal signed for £27 million, took his time to run up to the ball and then used up a few more seconds looking up the pitch to find a teammate.

The home fans were furious and began whistling and booing Raya.

Jon Champion, who was on commentary duty on Premier League Productions, noticed that Eddie Howe and his coaches on the Newcastle bench were far from happy too.

He claimed all of them expressed their frustration about Raya wasting time that early in the game.

Newcastle complaining about time wasting is ironic

Time wasting has been a big topic of conversation in games between Arsenal and Newcastle United in recent years.

The Gunners came under a lot of criticism for slowing the game down when the two sides met at the end of the 2022/23 season.

That was ironic at the time because Newcastle did the exact same thing at the Emirates Stadium in the reverse fixture of the same season.

Now, Howe and co complaining about time wasting in the first few minutes of the game is once again very, very ironic.