""You have to stand up and be counted and we didn't do it well enough," Newcastle head coach Eddie Howe said following the 2-2 draw in the Champions League. "That's a team thing the whole group realising the importance of defending our goal.""
""It all comes back to mentality," goalscorer Anthony Gordon told TNT Sports. "We have to hold out in these games because that is what top teams do.""
""We're not doing it well enough," Gordon said. "Again it comes back to mentality. We need to be stronger, we need to be better. "Ultimately, it's consistency. We need to be a consistent team in every phase of the game.""
Newcastle surrendered an 88th-minute equaliser from Alex Grimaldo to draw 2-2 with Bayer Leverkusen at the BayArena after fighting back to take the lead. The late goal continued a trend of conceding in closing stages, with nine goals allowed in the final 10 minutes across the season. Eddie Howe blamed collective responsibility and defensive focus, while Anthony Gordon pointed to mentality and the need for consistency. Howe named a strong side including Lewis Hall, Joelinton, Sandro Tonali and Harvey Barnes. Leverkusen had opened the scoring when Robert Andrich nodded in from a corner that Newcastle failed to clear.
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