Appointed earlier this month after Newcastle’s new owners sacked Steve Bruce, Howe missed the 3-3 draw with Brentford after testing positive for Covid-19.
Arsenal earned a well-deserved victory, a superior performance that paid off with two fine second-half goals from Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli.
‘Difficult call’
Under the chairmanship of Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, PIF owns 80% of the club’s shares, with the remainder divided between RB Sports & Media and PCP Capital Partners, whose chief executive officer has taken over.
Between Arsenal’s goals, Newcastle were awarded a penalty after striker Callum Wilson came down from inside the box after a foul from Nuno Tavares but play continued.
“The game was decided in the incident with Callum Wilson and the penalty – a tough call against us – then they scored,” Howe told BT Sport.
“Motivation in football is very important. We need to win as quickly as possible.”
