Without a hint of irony, Eddie Howe complained about time-wasting and breaks in play after Arsenal’s win over Newcastle United on Sunday.

Arsenal kept their thin Premier League title hopes alive with a win over Newcastle United at the weekend, and there’s no denying the Gunners used every trick in the book to slow the game down and see it out.

After the match, a frustrated Eddie Howe complained that the match wasn’t more free-flowing.

“They managed the game well from their perspective,” Howe said. “They slowed it down, lots of breaks in play, frustrating for us.

“Naturally, we wanted the ball in play more, especially when you’re chasing the game.

“We can’t control that. That’s the referee’s job.”

Anyone familiar with Newcastle United’s style of play will probably enjoy those quotes from Howe, with many of the stats suggesting his team are one of the very worst in the entire league for time-wasting tactics.

Recent analysis from Opta Analyst revealed that Newcastle United matches generally only have the ball in play for 51 minutes and 15 seconds, the lowest average in the league.

Only Brentford have a greater average delay time before restarting play than Newcastle’s 29.9 seconds, and no one takes longer over goal kicks than Newcastle’s 36.8 seconds.

Even if we focus purely on Newcastle’s matches against Arsenal, the ball was in play for three minutes longer at St. James’ Park than when Newcastle came to the Emirates Stadium to waste time in January.

Not to mention the fact that Arsenal were at least protecting a lead, not trying to grind out a 0-0 draw.

It’s no surprise to see a manager complaining about the very thing his team is known for when the shoe is on the other foot. But it’s certainly vindicating to hear Howe admit how frustrating that style of football is.