Eddie Howe hits back at Erik ten Hag comments after beating Manchester United

Eddie Howe has hit back at claims from Erik ten Hag that his side has been guilty of 'time-wasting' this season after their 2-0 win at St. James' Park.

Joe Willock and Callum Wilson grabbed the goals for Newcastle as they deservedly won to leapfrog United and strengthen their case for Champions League qualification.

In fact, it was United who were guilty of time-wasting on Sunday afternoon, as they struggled to match their opponents and get any sort of grip on the game.

Read next: How the United players rated vs Newcastle

Earlier in the season, Ten Hag labelled Howe's side as 'annoying' and warned his players about facing a team that he believes has been guilty of running down the clock.

“The referees want to play effective time," he said. [Newcastle] have the lowest in the league and they are quite successful with it. So, it’s up to us that we get speed in the game but also we are then dependent on the refereeing as well.”

It was a role reversal on Sunday afternoon, as United looked to run down the clock wherever possible, with David de Gea taking his time over goal-kicks and his teammates in no rush to take other set-pieces.

After the game, Howe was asked about the time-wasting comments, and took his chance to hit back at the United boss.

“I want to make one thing very clear,” he said in his post-match press conference. “We want the ball in play. We play a quick game. I don’t get where this time-wasting nonsense has come from, because it’s not us.

“You saw today, we wanted the ball back in play as quickly as possible. We want to play with high energy and a high tempo.

“I’ll always stand up for my team and what I believe is right. If something is not accurate, then naturally you want to put the right point across. We