By Karl MatchettThe two-legged hammering of Qarabağ meant Newcastle made light work of reaching the round of 16 in the Champions League, and there’s no immediate reason to think the St. James’ Park club will stop there.Light at the end of the Euro tunnelIn the bottom half of the draw, they’ll face Barcelona next – tough opponents but one that Newcastle have held their own against this term already. They lost to the Spanish champions 2-1 in the league phase but it was a close-fought game until final-third quality told after the break.Over two legs, they’ll fancy their chances of being able to out-muscle and out-tactic Barca if a majority of players are fit and, should they triumph, neither Atlético Madrid (13 points behind Barca in LaLiga) nor Tottenham would hold further fears. Overall, the draw is a decent one: it’s far from unthinkable that Newcastle, at the very least, have a reasonable possibility to reach the Champions League semi-finals.Where’s the consistency, Eddie?If that’s what the north east side could aim for over the last three months of the season, it also brings another question: How can the last four in Europe be a possibility, if the top ten in England still isn’t assured? Newcastle are 11th in the Premier League, as close by points to Nottingham Forest, who are just outside the relegation zone, as they are to Liverpool, who are just outside the Champions League spots.It has been an infuriating campaign of inconsistency where the Magpies are concerned, only managing back-to-back league wins twice, in November and across the new year, when they managed three in a row. They’ve been both four unbeaten and four without victory. Those runs actually criss-crossed each other: three wins, a draw, three defeats in a seven-game span, highlighting the fickle nature of a side which won a cup and looked on the up only a year ago.Howe’s points per game average is down this seasonManagement and supporters alike will point to injuries, and that’s fair to an extent, but every big club has a similar tale to tell. Analysis in January showed Newcastle had lost the most days to player absences, but each of Spurs, Arsenal, Chelsea and Leeds had suffered more individual injuries.Results also show that’s far from the full story. Only four teams have won fewer points away from home this term than Eddie Howe’s side, and that dismal stat started right at the beginning of the season – they didn’t win away until late November. The Guimarães–Tonali–Joelinton midfield trio was in-situ for all three defeats at Brighton, West Ham and Brentford; only Yoane Wissa was missing from the attack options for most of the first six on the road, which yielded three points and three goals.Newcastle’s home and away record this seasonSt. James’ is meant to be a fortress, but they’ve won three of the last seven and lost the last two. Newcastle are very much middle of the pack overall: 11th place in a “home games only” league table, seventh for possession, ninth for clean sheets, ninth for xG, eighth for big chances created, 12th for possession won in the final third. They are top four for xG conceded (32.5), so credit is more due there – but it’s somewhat spoiled by being only 12th for actual goals conceded (39), with Nick Pope conceding 2.7 more than he might have and his understudy, Aaron Ramsdale, almost matching that tally (2.4), conceding ten goals and making ten saves this term.Backwards numbers don’t tell all but they’re on course for around a 51-point season, good for 13th last term – and recent form points down, not up.Howe to reinvent yourselfThere was a train of thought which suggested Eddie Howe might look to England for his next job, with Thomas Tuchel only contracted to the World Cup – but that’s now no longer an option, whether Howe, as a rare trophy-winning English manager, is good enough to warrant a turn or not.As such, his immediate future may be dictated by what Newcastle’s ownership expect and are willing to back – a £98m net spend last summer was equal to or less than eight other top-flight English clubs.Given the relentless competition from at least six teams now for four or five Champions League spots – and probably eight who think they are capable in any given year – it’s more often than not going to be a question of how much you back your coach, your teambuilding plan and your style of play.As for considering what a manager might do next, it’s important to have the context of what he’s done before. And Howe, for certain, deserves credit here: his Bournemouth side were full of possession, playing out, idealism and rapid wingers.Newcastle under the same manager have been both a battling outfit with set plays and height, and a free-flowing swarm with magnificent central creativity. He hasn’t stuck to one way of playing regardless of what the context of the league demands – that will likely set him up for future success, at Newcastle or elsewhere, but it might be that this particular journey has run out of road come the summer.(Cover image from IMAGO)You can follow every game from the Premier League with FotMob this season – featuring deep stats coverage, xG, and player ratings. Download the free app here.