Will derby be downfall for Eddie Howe at Newcastle or can he save the season?

Newcastle United are reeling, losers of two to hated newly-promoted rivals Sunderland in the same week they exited Europe with seven goals conceded to Barcelona, and Eddie Howe saw another great plan turn into more dropped points from a winning position. Is this it for the League Cup-winning boss on Tyneside? Or can a strong finish to the season and an increasingly-unlikely return to Europe save his spot?

MORE — Howe, Gordon react to derby loss To be clear, the Magpies had played a lot more matches than Sunderland and were without star midfielders Bruno Guimaraes and Sandro Tonali (and growing star Lewis Miley). But they showed their superiority to their rivals in the first half, producing many more chances and taking a lead to the break before falling apart under Regis Le Bris' tweaks and having zero answers the rest of the way. MORE —  Newcastle v Sunderland recap, video highlights Managerial consistency is huge for a club and Howe ended Newcastle's long wait for a trophy.

He's been very good for the club but this season has been very poor outside of the Champions League group stage and the club's summer transfers have been a mixed bag at best with Howe reportedly a big part of those decisions. About six weeks ago we questioned whether Howe should be on the hot seat or if this was a prolonged spell of bad luck — we asked whether his Newcastle were in a rut of a crevasse. Right now, it looks like the latter.

Is change on the cards? Should it be? Will derby be downfall for Eddie Howe at Newcastle or can he save the season?