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Newcastle United have been a mixed bag so far this season.

There have been moments to admire Eddie Howe‘s side, while there is also a lot of room for improvement.

Newcastle United need to get more out of their star players, with Alexander Isak only scoring once this season. There have also been concerns over Anthony Gordon, but he is looking much sharper after a slow start to the campaign.

Overall, it has been a positive start. Newcastle United are seventh after seven games, and have 12 points on the board. They have only lost one game, which shows real resiliency.

Nick Pope has been key for Newcastle United

Newcastle’s ability to avoid defeat has been boosted by Nick Pope‘s return.

The 32-year-old missed the second half of last season with a shoulder injury, but is now back to full fitness. And it is like Pope has never been away, with the England international making some stunning saves.

Pope produced a match-winning stop against Wolves, while Pep Guardiola praised the Newcastle goalkeeper after the 1-1 draw with Manchester City.

The £10million man is playing really well, with Ben Foster comparing Pope to Erling Haaland, insisting that he perhaps does not get the credit he deserves.

Stat proves how important Pope is for Newcastle

Pope’s performances come on the back of a season in which the Magpies had to heavily rely on Martin Dubravka in between the sticks.

While the Slovakian was once an excellent goalkeeper at St James’ Park, he really struggled to shine in the absence of Pope. Had the former Burnley man avoided injury, you would like to think Newcastle would have enjoyed a better campaign – they may even have qualified for Europe.

Dubravka hindered the way in which Newcastle defended, which is why it is so good to have Pope back. He has made a massive difference, and the stats back that up.

After seven games, only three Premier League goalkeepers have made more saves than Pope. He has got 31 so far, with Mark Flekken, Robert Sanchez and Mads Hermansen ahead of him with 33.

Pope has also showcased his ability as a sweeper keeper, rushing out to make seven clearances so far. Only Robert Sanchez (13), Jordan Pickford (10) and Guglielmo Vicario (8) have recorded more.

That ability to rush out and clean up danger has been a big positive, as it was something that Dubravka was not comfortable doing last season.

Why that stat may concern Newcastle

But while the stats look favourable for Pope, they will surely concern Eddie Howe to some extent.

While he will be delighted that Pope is playing so well, the concern from Howe will be that his goalkeeper is having to play so well.

Pope is making a lot of saves, showing off his shot-stopping ability. That is great, but it is also reflective of the amount of shots that Newcastle are conceding. So far this season, Newcastle have faced 113 shots. That is the eighth highest in the Premier League, and it is the most out of any of the top half clubs that are chasing European qualification.

That will alarm Howe, who will know that he simply cannot rely on his goalkeeper to keep bailing Newcastle United out. The Magpies need to improve defensively and give Pope more protection, as there are no guarantees that he will be able to maintain this level of performance.

And if Pope begins to struggle or suffers another injury, it could prove to be a major problem.

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