Newcastle held to 0-0 at Bournemouth amid scoring drought

Newcastle United were held to a goalless draw at Bournemouth on Sunday, leaving Eddie Howe’s side still searching for an attacking spark after a 0-0 stalemate at the Vitality Stadium that followed Wednesday’s midweek trip to Barcelona. The Magpies managed only four shots and a paltry expected goals total, extending a frustrating pattern of away matches without scoring.

Howe acknowledged his team struggled to create clear chances, saying after the match, "It is not good. You want to create chances and clearcut chances. It did not feel that in our performance." Match reports recorded Newcastle’s xG at just 0.1 from their four attempts and a combined xG for the game of 0.7, figures described as the lowest in the Premier League this season to date. It was Newcastle’s third consecutive 0-0 away draw of the campaign and their fifth match overall, with the club already recording four clean sheets in the league, a total matched only twice previously in the club’s history after five fixtures.

The performance underlined a wider attacking malaise that has persisted since the departure of Alexander Isak to Liverpool at the end of the transfer window. Howe has tried to reshape the frontline...