🔗 Share this article

Eddie Howe is not prone to dramatics or sweeping media statements. Based on his standards, his media briefing after Sunday’s 3-1 defeat counts as a angry outburst. Newcastle took an early lead but the opposition took the lead by the interval, as well as striking the woodwork and seeing a spot-kick revoked by VAR, leading Howe to make a three substitutions at the half-time.

“The opening period was particularly irritating,” the coach stated. “Virtually any player could have been substituted and I think this indicated of where we were in that moment in the game and it's extremely uncommon for me to have that impression. In fact, I don’t think having done so during my tenure as head coach of the club, therefore I believed the squad required a significant change at half-time. This explains why I made what I did.”

Three key players were substituted at half-time and Newcastle did stabilise to an extent in the latter period, but never really looking like they might fight back into the contest against an opponent that had won only one of their last nine league matches. Given the congestion the centre of the table is, with a mere three-point gap separating the top spots from mid-table, and nine points between the upper and lower ranks, a run of twelve points from ten matches has not left Newcastle stranded but, equally, they cannot end the campaign in thirteenth place.

The Issue of Expectations

The problem partially is one of perception. With the Saudi PIF, Newcastle possess the richest owners in the globe. The expectation at the time the PIF acquired 80% of the team in recent years was that it would bring a game-changing impact, similar to the former Chelsea owner had at Chelsea or Sheikh Mansour had at Manchester City. The distinction is that those two investors took over before the advent of FFP rules (and the current allegations against Manchester City relate to whether they breached those regulations after they were implemented).

Financial restrictions restrict the ability of owners, no matter how wealthy, to spend money on their teams and so in that sense probably might have hindered every Saudi attempt to elevate the team to the level of City. However it wasn't necessary for Newcastle’s expenditure to have been quite as cautious as it has; they might have spent more and stayed inside the threshold – or simply taken a relatively meagre Uefa fine since their major problem is more with the continental than the domestic regulation.

Stadium Spending and PSR Rules

Additionally, stadium development is exempted from Profit and Sustainability calculations; the simplest method to raise income to generate additional PSR flexibility would be to expand or renovate the arena. Considering the site of the home ground, with listed buildings on two sides, in reality that probably means constructing an completely new venue. Rumors circulated in spring of possibly undertaking the short move to a local park – opposition from community organizations might have been surmounted with a promise to build a new park on the existing ground location – but there has not been any progress on that proposal. There has been significant retrenchment from the PIF on a variety of initiatives as it shifts focus on domestic affairs; the attitude to Newcastle appears completely in keeping with that strategic shift.

The Alexander Isak Saga

The Alexander Isak episode was born of that tension. A more confident management might have portrayed his sale as necessary to release funds for further spending; rather there was a unsuccessful attempt to keep him. This resulted in the team began the season amidst a feeling of disappointment despite the acquisitions of Woltemade, Yoane Wissa, Jacob Ramsey, Malick Thiaw and Anthony Elanga. The start was indifferent: a single victory in their initial six fixtures.

But it seemed a turning point had been turned. They had won five in six before the weekend, a streak that featured demolitions of Union Saint-Gilloise and a Portuguese club in the Champions League. That’s why the performance against the Hammers was such a shock. The issue maybe is that Newcastle’s style is extremely intense, high-energy; a slight drop-off in intensity can have profound consequences. Maybe the strain of domestic, European and Carabao Cup competition, five games in a fortnight, had got to them. Woltemade featured in each of those matches and appeared particularly fatigued.

The Nature of Contemporary Football

That’s the nature of modern football. Managers must be ready to rotate. The manager has been unfortunate that the forward's fitness issue has meant he is short of forward choices but, no matter how valid the reasons, Sunday’s performance was inexcusable –especially following taking the lead at a ground ready to turn on its home team.

The Newcastle boss will wish it was merely a temporary setback, one of those days when everybody is below par simultaneously, but if Newcastle are to qualify for the Champions League in the future, not to mention eventually mount an actual championship bid, they must not be as unreliable as they have been.