Newcastle fell 2-1 at the Stade Velodrome on Tuesday, a result Howe admitted felt “very disappointing” given the performance level.
He said the players have shown “some very positive signs” in Europe but stressed that their midweek frustrations cannot carry into their trip to Hill Dickinson Stadium.
“We have to take advantage of every opportunity we have to learn,” Howe said. “It was a very high-level match and we defended well in a very intense atmosphere. But at the start of the second half we didn’t react properly to the equaliser, and that cost us dearly.”
Howe adjusted his line-up in France, mindful of how much football Nick Woltemade has played as Newcastle continue without a recognized back-up striker. Lewis Hall and Tino Livramento were also managed carefully after recent injuries, neither expected to complete ninety minutes at this stage of their recovery.
The head coach confirmed that Newcastle will “shake things up again” on Merseyside as they look to avoid any lingering European hangover. Newcastle have played eleven Champions League matches across the last two seasons, and Howe acknowledged supporters’ questions over how long the learning curve can last.
“It is frustrating,” Howe said. “We felt we deserved more from Marseille. But it is the most prestigious European competition and we are still growing in it. There are other matches to play and anything can happen in football.”
Howe also stressed that the performance, despite the defeat, was far from the flat display Newcastle produced recently at Brentford.
“It is a tough defeat to swallow, but we’ll see how things develop,” he added. “We have to learn from it and use it to drive us on. Now the focus is Everton and making sure we turn that frustration into a positive result.”
