“They play well”: £8m man Eddie Howe tried to sign in the summer praises Newcastle

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Bernd Leno has been speaking to the media ahead of the Premier League clash between Newcastle and Fulham on Saturday at Craven Cottage.

What Bernd Leno said about Newcastle

Well, the Germany international was full of praise for the Magpies, and revealed he thinks they should have more than just eight points on the board at this stage of the season.

As quoted by Football Daily, Leno said: “Newcastle deserve more points, in my opinion. It will be a very tough game, they play well as a team, they have (good) individual players.”

It comes after 90min claimed that Eddie Howe actually wanted to sign the 30-year-old as a key target before he eventually completed a £8m move to Fulham instead, and Newcastle turned their attention to Nick Pope.

Leno clearly admires Newcastle despite his decision to join Fulham – according to The Athletic, his preference to stay in London, where he has lived since joining Arsenal from Bayer Leverkusen in 2018, was a key factor.

The German has done well since swapping north London for west London.

Leno has helped Fulham record three wins from his five Premier League appearances so far this season, with the Cottagers sitting comfortably in sixth place after an outstanding start to the campaign.

Bernd Leno could frustrate Newcastle further

If his decision to stay in London didn’t already frustrate Newcastle enough, Leno and his shot-stopping ability could cause Howe further woe this weekend.

It has been a season of fine margins for the Magpies so far, with five draws from their opening seven games.

Most of those draws may have turned out to be wins had Newcastle not encountered a few goalkeepers on top of their game, such as Vicente Guaita in the 0-0 draw against Crystal Palace.

In our view, Leno could easily be the next glovesman to annoy Newcastle.

The Fulham No.17 boasts fantastic reflexes, and with a place in Germany’s World Cup squad up for grabs, Newcastle will have a job on their hands to beat him on Saturday.