Howe talks up Pope's ability as criticism grows

NEWCASTLE boss Eddie Howe has praised keeper Nick Pope's ability as a shot-stopper as he faces a difficult decision over whether to drop him amid a series of highprofile errors.

- By DAMIAN SPELLMAN

A clamour among fans for loanee Aaron Ramsdale to be given a chance has grown in intensity since the misjudgement by Pope which handed Marseille an equaliser just seconds after halftime in Tuesday night's 2-1 Champions League defeat in the south of France.

However head coach Howe, who backed the England international in the immediate aftermath of the game at the Stade Velodrome, renewed his support as he prepared for the Premier League trip to Everton.

He said: "There's always two sides, isn't there? I actually think his goalkeeping has been very good. His shot-stopping has been incredible.

"He has made some great saves and a lot of those saves are underrated and go under the radar. Because he delivers so many of them, it's almost expected.