Eddie Howe being under pressure is 'ridiculous' - Paul Merson

We waited three long weeks for club football to return after Newcastle United's shocking defeat at home to Sunderland, and here we are, the morning after the night before, wishing we had more time to wait.

Newcastle threw away another lead to lose on Sunday as Crystal Palace were the latest beneficiaries of the Magpies' inability to see out a game.

The Toon Army may have just about calmed down after the derby defeat, which quickly followed a humiliating night in Barcelona. Unsurprisingly, three weeks ago, there was a lot of talk about EddieHowe being for the sack, and that debate rumbled on right up until kick-off on Sunday.

We had all hoped, however, that three weeks off and some time on the training pitch would have given Howe and his players time to work on some new ideas, but that didn't seem to be the case, and we witnessed a similar story play out again.

Paul Merson gives Eddie Howe his backing

As you can imagine, social media was a rotten place on Sunday night and hasn't improved much on Monday either. The debate over whether Eddie Howe is the right man for the job continues to rage online, but Sky Sports' Paul Merson believes that the idea that Howe is under pressure is 'ridiculous' and Newcastle fans should be grateful.

"It's hard at the moment because Newcastle have been playing for so much over the last few years, won a cup for the first time, playing in the Champions League, and now they are drifting around mid-table. They are almost in nothing territory, and it's quite hard after the highs they have had.

"When I hear about Eddie Howe under pressure, it makes me laugh. He brought them their first trophy in what felt like a million years. It's ridiculous any talk of pressure. The real problem is that it looks like Sandro Tonali and Bruno Guimaraes might leave - those are the things that should worry Newcastle fans. But they are still a good team.

"It's a bit like Liverpool, the high of winning the league last season, now look at them. The demands are taking their toll. Last year, they had a much more settled team; injuries have meant they don't have that this year. You couldn't pick Newcastle's best team. I would give them a bit of leeway.

"I expect Newcastle to always be around the five, six, seven mark in the Premier League. When they have a full team, all on it, they give anyone a game."

Eddie Howe still has credit, but it's running out

While we're still Howe In at the Blog, we don't dismiss the views of those fans who want him out, and honestly, it's getting harder and harder to defend the gaffer after some of the mistakes he's made of late.

We still believe that there has been a lot going on above him that has contributed to this nightmare of a season, and he's earned enough credit to be given the chance to turn it around with all of those issues now hopefully ironed out.

What Paul Merson said was right for the most part, although we certainly don't agree with his claims that Bruno Guimaraes could leave this summer. We absolutely don't see Bruno walking away right now. Having said that, if Howe goes, that could weaken Bruno's resolve.