🔗 Share this article

The Newcastle manager is not given to histrionics or sweeping media statements. So by his usual demeanor, his press conference after the weekend's loss to West Ham qualifies as a angry tirade. His side scored first but the opposition were ahead by the interval, while also striking the woodwork and seeing a spot-kick revoked by VAR, leading Howe to execute a three substitutions at the break.

“That was the frustrating thing about the first half,” Howe stated. “Virtually any player could have been substituted and I think that was a reflection of our performance level in that moment in the game and it's extremely uncommon for me to feel that way. Actually, I cannot recall I have since I’ve been head coach of the club, so I felt the team needed some shaking up at the break. That’s why I did those decisions.”

Three key players were substituted at half-time and the team managed to steady somewhat in the latter period, but never appearing like they could get back into the game against a side that had secured just a single victory of their previous nine league matches. Given the congestion the middle of the table is, with a mere three-point gap dividing third from 11th, and nine points between second and 17th, a sequence of 12 points from ten matches has not left Newcastle adrift but, similarly, they cannot end the campaign in thirteenth place.

The Issue of Perception

The challenge to an extent is one of public view. With the Saudi PIF, Newcastle possess the wealthiest owners in the globe. The expectation at the time the PIF bought a majority stake 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 the City Group did at the Etihad. The distinction is that those two owners took over before the advent of financial fair play regulations (and the ongoing allegations against City concern whether they breached those regulations once they were implemented).

Financial restrictions limit the ability of owners, however rich, to invest funds on their squads and therefore probably would have hindered every Middle Eastern effort to elevate the team to the level of City. However there is no need for the club's spending to have been quite as cautious as it has been; they might have spent more and stayed inside the threshold – or simply taken a fairly minor European penalty since their major problem is primarily with the continental than the Premier League regulation.

Infrastructure Investment and Financial Rules

Additionally, infrastructure spending is exempted from Profit and Sustainability assessments; the simplest method to raise income to create more financial headroom would be to expand or redevelop the arena. Considering the site of the home ground, with listed buildings on two sides, in reality that likely implies building an entirely new venue. There was talk in spring of potentially making the short move to Leazes Park – resistance from local groups could surely have been surmounted with a promise to create a new park on the current ground location – but there has not been any progress on that plan. There has occurred substantial retrenchment from the Saudi fund on a range of initiatives as it shifts focus on domestic affairs; the attitude to Newcastle seems entirely in alignment with that change of approach.

The Alexander Isak Saga

The Alexander Isak saga was arose from that conflict. A more confident leadership might have framed his transfer as essential to release funds for additional investment; instead there was a unsuccessful effort to keep him. That meant Newcastle started the campaign amidst a sense of disappointment despite the signings of several new players. The start was mixed: a single victory in their first six games.

Yet it seemed a turning point was reached. They had won five in six before Sunday, a run that featured convincing wins of Union Saint-Gilloise and Benfica in the European competition. This explains the display against West Ham was such a shock. The issue maybe is that Newcastle’s approach is very aggressive, high-energy; a minor decrease in intensity can have profound consequences. Perhaps the pressure of Premier League, Champions League and cup matches, five games in a fortnight, had taken its toll. The German forward featured in all five matches and appeared especially fatigued.

The Nature of Modern Soccer

That’s the reality of modern football. Coaches must be ready to make changes. The manager has been unlucky that Wissa’s injury has meant he is lacking forward choices but, no matter how reasonable the explanations, the weekend's showing was inexcusable –particularly after scoring first at a stadium primed to turn on its own side.

Howe will hope it was just a blip, one of those days when all players is off-colour at once, but if Newcastle are to secure the Champions League in the future, not to mention eventually mount an actual championship bid, they must not be as unreliable as this.