Eddie Howe – Middle Age Fanclub

NUFC: Making the case for creativity.

So, it’s the understatement of the year to say that things aren’t going as well as we’d like for Newcastle United at the moment. Three wins in 11 games in the league, 5 defeats, no win away from home, only 11 goals scored and 14 conceded, 6 of which have come in the past two games. Not exactly going to plan.

Clearly, there’s lots to discuss as barely anyone is producing the goods at the moment. However, I’d like to make the case for a bit more creativity in the team and squad.

Firstly, let me say that I fully understand that the likes of Bruno, Tonali, Murphy et al are all capable of unlocking defences. So, this isn’t a criticism of anyone in particular. But in the last two games we have amassed a whole 5 shots on target, showing that either chances aren’t being created or players aren’t backing themselves to shoot.

It seems clear enough to me that we lack flair and the ability to unlock stubborn defences, especially away from home. Someone capable of a moment of magic who can carry the ball and either beat defenders or commit them so that space is freed up elsewhere.

On Sunday afternoon I watched the second half of the City v Liverpool game and was fairly mesmerised by the performance of City winger Jeremy Doku, who time after time ran with the ball and made things happen. I thought of our wingers; Gordon, Barnes, Elanga and Murphy. In the league, especially away from home, they look scared of flying at a full back. Elanga especially looks like he’s struggling, short of confidence and a fish out of water, but the other three seem to prefer cutting back and laying the ball off rather than hitting the byline or dribbling on the inside and heading towards goal. Yes, Jacob Murphy is likely to bag an assist now and again, but he’s also likely to pass back the way too and take the sting out of attacks.

And it’s not just City and Doku either. West Ham have Bowen, Brentford’s Ouattara scared the life out of us at the weekend and the likes of N’Diaye and Grealish at Everton simply want to make things happen. Manchester United have M’Buemo, Palace have Sarr, Villa can choose from Rogers and Buendia, while Bournemouth have a few and even the likes of Leeds have someone like Dan James who will try to run at defenders.

Meanwhile, we seem to have lost our bravery, our creativity and our intensity. Five shots on target in the last two games tells its own story.

As a younger man, I watched Newcastle teams featuring the likes of Hibbitt, Beardsley, Gazza, Ginola and Robert; players with the gift for unlocking defences. Fast forward to 2025 and we don’t have that in our locker. Yes, Bruno and Tonali are both capable of a cute pass and have shown that at times this season. But where is the equivelant of those players mentioned above? Where is the breathtaking piece of skill? Where is the pinpoint delivery from corners or free kicks? And who is there that might just bend a free kick around a wall?

And what of Nick Woltemade? For me, with 6 goals he’s started well, but he’s looked lost in the last two league games. It’s okay to drop into spaces between the midfield and defence, but when the opposition see it coming and there’s no one running beyond you then it seems like a sure fire way to give them the ball back. Howe needs to find a better way to use the big German and perhaps that comes when Yoane Wissa is fit, but until then, we’re not creating chances at one end and struggling at the other.

For me, we need another striker in January. And I don’t mean chasing a £70m bundle of hype like Sesko. Surely, with the network of scouts available there is a young, quick, hungry striker worth taking a punt on somewhere.

Options like this can maybe free up Big Nick to play more of his natural game. He’s a player I really like; someone who seems to read the game well and a player who gives us that little bit of the unexpected that maybe we’re missing. But without support from a winger or midfielder running beyond him then it seems like all too often he’s getting caught on the ball in crowded areas.

With the January transfer window a while away yet – and let’s face it, we’re not good at getting people in quickly – short term solutions might come from the youth ranks. After all, we’re looking for something different to help solve the problems that have left us looking up at the majority of the table and there are young, keen hungry players within the ranks that are worth a seat on the bench.

Sean Neave gets better every time I see him and looks to be a player with both a bit of skill and an eye for goal. His strength might be an issue in the Premier League, but that said he’s done well when I’ve watched him in the Football League trophy against men’s teams.

There’s been a bit of a clamour to see more of Park Seung-Soo since he impressed with cameos in pre-season. A wide player who looks brave and creative and runs with the ball really well, he might just be capable of unlocking defences in the latter part of games as we search for something.

Alfie Harrison is another one who carries the ball well and has an eye for a pass. After arriving with quite a bit of hype around him in February 2024, opportunities have been limited, but on the occasions that I’ve seen him, he’s looked to be someone who’s buzzing with creativity and could well be worth a place on the bench with such a crowded fixture list.

One thing’s for sure; something has to change in order to break the cycle of away defeats. That may come from existing squad members such as Jacob Ramsey or Lewis Miley, but away from the glare of St. James’ Park, maybe it’s time to give youth a bit of a chance.

‘We Are Newcastle United’; Episode 3 Changing The Toon

I must admit to a tiny bit of a crisis of confidence before writing this latest article. I mean, who wants to read my ramblings about a programme they’ve inevitably already watched? But then I remembered that there are shed loads of grown adults out there who video themselves watching live football, swearing their heads off and acting like babies for all the world to see. So with so little to lose, I wrote the article!

If ever there was a collection of images that sums up the change in Newcastle United since October 2021 it’s there for all to see in episode 3. Granted, one side of the images isn’t here, but is undoubtedly etched in the mind of all of us. I talk of course of the players taking ice baths in wheelie bins and paddling pools during Mike Ashley’s reign. In this episode though we see the enormous changes in recovery technology brought to Newcastle by the new regime with a glimpse of the new hydro therapy pool. The difference is massive and the progress is there for all to see. Professional athletes being treated like professional athletes; who knew that this might help?

Later in the episode, while visiting Atlanta ahead of the Premier League Summer Series, Darren Eales refers to Newcastle as ‘a 130 year old start up’ creating a stark image of what the new owners must have found when they first arrived. Graeme Robson of Wor Flags later talks candidly about the fact that the new money can’t be ignored, but really all we wanted was for the club to be run properly. Not very convenient for the narrative touted by a lot of the media, but the truth all the same and a truth that ‘We Are Newcastle United’ needed to convey.

In this episode the players and the fans move more into focus. We start with Alexander Isak’s brace against Forest away and are reminded of the karate kick finish for the first. A hell of a goal and a hell of a start to what I must say has been my favourite episode so far.

As we move on to the build up to the home game against Manchester United it’s hugely positive. For me, the insight into the small touches by Eddie Howe are really interesting. Just things like greeting every player as they arrive at the training ground – ‘How’s that knee, Joe?’ – and then the enthusiasm on the training pitch and the encouragement – ‘Yes Cal…love that Callum’ are just lovely. I’m not naïve enough to think it’s anything special either, but you get the feeling that this is relentless from Howe and his staff. I, for one, would thrive hearing that type of thing every day.

Later in the show, when asked about the Carabao Cup Final defeat, Eddie tells the interviewer that ‘Any defeat you have is always in there, somewhere.’ Again, it’s the attention to detail and the steely determination that we all love, especially when defeats under the last regime were greeted with unwanted days off for the players and impromptu holidays for the manager. Not every time – no one can afford that many holidays – but enough so that every time that Eddie speaks you admire him just a little bit more. Although after a while, I’d have to tell him that my name’s not actually Callum…

Next there’s a focus on the lads and lasses at Wor Flags with an insight into their work and the preparation that went into the huge surfer flag that covered the bottom tier of the Leazes. Firstly, this serves to show the dedication of the fans – from those that donate money to make it all possible to the volunteers who put everything in place and organise the whole thing. Secondly though, it confirms that I’d be absolutely no use to them. While they’re unfolding, hauling and precisely positioning flags that cover almost an entire stand and weigh half a tonne, I still have to have my wife guide me through the folding up of a picnic blanket. I guess there are levels to this kind of thing, but it serves to illustrate the passion and dedication that is felt around Newcastle United.

As episode 3 rolls on to the Manchester United match, it’s hard to imagine the stadium looking any better and while some of the camera work is very much reminiscent of shows like The Apprentice, it’s very much appreciated. St. James’ Park is always an impressive sight and a thing of beauty but the documentary really celebrates the place here. The surfer flag looks incredible, but Wor Flags member Graeme’s excitement and pride is arguably even better.

This was by far the most emotional episode so far for me personally. I know lots of people said that the cup final footage brought them to tears, but not me. However, seeing the scenes in the dressing room both before the Manchester United game and at half time almost makes me crack.

Callum Wilson’s story later on, adds to the raw emotion and gives us an intriguing insight into not just the player, but the man and what makes him tick. The smile is infectious and instant, almost making it hard to imagine what he has gone through to get to this stage. But then key words like ‘turmoil’ and ‘adversity’ dominate during the visit to his old school and for me it serves to show that Callum Wilson found not just a football club, but a home when he joined Newcastle United. Wilson has played a massive part in its upturn, yet even in these more positive times he’s quick to flag up the importance of hunger and anger in achieving his goals. And I think it’s quite a neat parallel to the anger and determination of the fans in almost forcing change a couple of years ago.

And then, alongside some beautiful sweeping shots of the stadium and the odd bridge, we hear from some of the fans about the importance of Newcastle United. Again, there’s a big contrast here. Firstly, a Hindu fan speaks beautifully about the club being ‘the great equaliser in the city’ and how, when the time comes, he wants to be reincarnated as a Newcastle fan. Then we hear from 4 primary age kids, perched on a wall and one of them reflects about his sadness at the season ending soon, but that ‘summer’ll be good…wi’ hot tubs and that’. I’d like to think that they both speak for us all in their own way!

Speaking of speaking for us all, I’m sure I’ll be doing just that when I say that Anthony Gordon’s enquiries about pillows had us all on the edge of our seats. After already packing in quite a bit of drama, Gordon’s sleepy time enquiries promise to ramp it up another notch. Pillowgate turns out to be a bit of a let down though, with no one bar Anthony himself giving a shit. Even Nick Pope’s revelation that he sleeps with a pillow between his legs falls strangely flat. Still, if anyone was ever curious about how many pillows the likes of Gordon and Tripps sleep with, they got their answer.

At the end of the episode we get to re-live the remarkable events of the Spurs game. An extraordinary performance that will live long in the memory of every fan. As the goals flow and a rival is thoroughly humiliated the voiceover states, ‘What a time to be a Newcastle United fan’. I’ll drink to that and look forward to episode 4, but before I do, I have a question.

Has anybody else noticed the woman in the opening credits – and she’s there at the Spurs game too – arms aloft in celebration just shouting ‘No…no’? See, some of us are so wrapped up in the joy of this club that we forget how to celebrate. Newcastle United, that.

NUFC: James Maddison – fatal error or near miss?

So, depending on what version of the news you pay attention to, we’ve either lost out on signing James Maddison or never actually made a bid this summer. Reading tweets from some Spurs fans, it’s no wonder we’ve missed out on Maddison, given that last season was a flash in the pan and that Newcastle is evidently a terrible place to live. Apparently the player himself ‘begged’ Spurs to sign him, after all.

But is there anything for us to feel too concerned about?

In one sense, yes there is. Maddison is undoubtedly a very talented footballer, an experienced Premier League and an England international and he would have almost certainly improved our team. He’s also quite a versatile player, having operated right across the midfield for Leicester last season. With 10 goals and 9 assists in a team that were relegated, his talent is there for all to see and anyone who has watched him with any regularity will have been able to spot just how good a player he is.

However, for me he wasn’t ever quite the right fit for us. Don’t get me wrong, when I heard about the links and realised that we were serious I was quite excited. But, I’d like to think that missing out on him won’t actually prove too costly.

Firstly, I’d argue that he doesn’t quite fit the profile of player we look for. We’re an energetic, fairly physical side who play a high pressing game and while I don’t profess to be any kind of tactical expert, I don’t think that style suits Maddison. I certainly don’t picture him making any lung-busting runs back the way to track back and make defensive tackles a la Joelinton or Sean Longstaff. So, while Maddison would undoubtedly improve our attacking game and be sure to create the chances that could convert draws into wins, I think we’d be in danger of suffering defensively with him in the side. And we’re not short on players who can create chances either.

One area that really concerned me about the prospect of singing Maddison was the all round cost. The fee – if reports of to be believed – of £40m is a good deal, if a little hard to believe given that he was in the final year of his contract at Leicester. However, reports of wages of £170k per week didn’t sit well with me. I understand that this is the reality of modern day football, but it still doesn’t feel right. I understand that we already have high earners in the squad too. I also understand that if we continue with our upward trajectory – and you’d expect we would – it may well become the norm. But not yet, please. Not for me.

We are a club situated in a traditionally working class area and probably one of the most deprived cities in Britain. There’s a highly publicised stall raising funds for a food bank outside the ground for home games, highlighting the deprivation as well as the caring side of the community. So, while I expect that these type of wages may well become the norm, I don’t feel like we should be taking that particular plunge just yet.

My final query about Maddison would be around his injury record. He seems to have suffered with knee problems throughout his career and given the cost, I’m again not sure he’s worth the risk. Our midfield is strong and we’ve already added Sandro Tonali to the quality of players like Bruno, Willock, Longstaff and Joelinton, so unless we’re bringing in a more defensive midfielder, I don’t think there’s a priority there, especially if it’s a player that we may well end up being without for a chunk of games. Next season will be incredibly demanding on our squad, so we can’t take risks on highly played luxury players that may not be able to play a full part.

Just to be clear, there are no sour grapes here. If Tottenham fans want to believe that Maddison has signed because they’re a bigger club or a better bet for success or even because of the London factor, then so be it. I don’t see the rivalry that seems to be being set up and I don’t begrudge them the player. For the record, I believe they’ve got a very, very good player in James Maddison and one that I’m sure I would have enjoyed watching. It’s simply that the fact that he hasn’t signed for us doesn’t worry me that much because I’m happy to simply trust Eddie, the owners and the process.

NUFC: We only went and did it!

The morning after the night before was never going to be the time to write this blog. No doubt we were all fizzing with much the same excitement and glow of happiness as we head towards the end of one of the most successful seasons in the clubs recent history. I sat down to write, but what came out was nonsense, so I left it and tried to sleep instead. I couldn’t do that either!

After years and years of heartache and underachievement, we can finally lay claim to some whiff of tangible success. Still no silverware, but a lot of other things to grab on to. Where before hope was confined to being all about survival, now it’s taken a very different direction. And while I think it’s in the DNA of any Newcastle fan, any football fan in actual fact to allow themselves to dream, now we can begin to dream a lot bigger than before.

It’s fair to say that the ‘evolution not revolution’ plan for NUFC is ahead of schedule. If you’d asked at the start of the season about what we – fans, players, management and owners – wanted out of the season, I think the consensus of opinion would have just been somewhere in the top 10. Top 4 felt like a leap too far, given some of the other clubs that we’d have expected to challenge for those spots.

Monday night changed all that though. An unusually nerve-wracking 100 minutes or so of football saw us grab the point we needed to qualify for the Champions League next year and prompted huge celebrations for Mags everywhere.

I think the highlight for me was seeing Jacob Murphy’s interview. His reaction was part fan, part player and part child who’s wanted a puppy for years and has finally had one revealed to them in the living room when they’ve got back from school. And that’s not me being cruel. I thought it was lovely to see the sense of wonder written all over his face. The lad was just blown away by what we’ve achieved and I guess by the possibilities that it brings.

As fans, we share that sense of wonder. There’s something brilliantly special about European football and those nights under the lights, especially at St. James’ Park. I still remember the Champions League campaign of 02/03. The Juventus game sticks out in my mind, even though I was at all of our home games. The atmosphere was electric as we’d lost our first 3 group games and needed to win this one to stay alive in the competition. We won and I believe I’m right in saying, would go on to be the first side to qualify from the group stage having lost their first three games.

I was in my seat in the Leazes, but alongside total strangers. It turned out there were three Italians sat next to me and I wondered if they were Juve fans. When Andy Griffin scored our winner it became very clear that they weren’t!

It’s been amusing to see the reactions of fans of other clubs. Many seem to be questioning our value to the competition, but rather than doing that, perhaps they should just be questioning why their own illustrious clubs didn’t make it.

I think we’ll hold our own. We’ll undoubtedly add to the squad before then, but we’ll still have the coaching and tactical brilliance of Eddie Howe and his staff on our side too. During the Ashley years, playing in the Champions’ League again was nothing more than a pipedream. Well, now we’ve got it, there’s no point in half measures. I want to see us tested against the best that our continent has to offer. Not only that though, I have faith in our management and players.

Of course there are questions marks over various aspects of the squad and even the management. Let’s not forget that many of our squad and staff will be entering unknown territory at this level of European football. But, let’s see this as a challenge, an adventure, rather than something to fear.

I couldn’t think about the Champions’ League without thinking of the music. Zadok the Priest they call it and it’s one of those pieces of music that makes the hair on the back of your neck stand up. King Charles even chose it for his coronation and I’d like to think he’d have it as his walk on music if he ever turned those massive fingers to darts.*

Now we all know the tune, but how many of us know the lyrics? Not many I’m guessing. So, I looked them up as part of writing this and it turns out that they’re much more relevant than you’d have first imagined. To cut a long story short, it’s all about being joyful and happy. One line in particular stands out – “and all the people rejoiced, rejoiced, rejoiced”. It’s not exactly the genius of Lennon and McCartney or Morrisey and Marr, but it made me thnik again about those scenes at full time on Monday night. But, perhaps we ought to think about that line in terms of next season too. We’ve dreamed of having hope for such a long time. Now, we have it. Rejoice, rejoice, rejoice.

Enjoy the Champions’ League, Toon fans!

Just so we’re clear, I do know the relevance of Zadok the Priest to a king and I also don’t expect King Charles to be having a go at darts any time soon. It was just a daft joke.

NUFC: Can we talk about the other night?

I used to write these pieces every so often during the Steve Bruce era. They became a good way of getting my anger and frustration out there without harming myself or anyone else. A good test of my imagination thinking of news ways to insult Steve Bruce as well. People seemed to like them too.

This one obviously has a much more positive feeling to it. Apart from anything else, we’re closing in on the end of a magnificent season and some kind of European football next season, although I’m far too superstitious to even speculate about the name. As well as that though, Thursday night was our victory against Brighton and Hove Albion and I think there’s a lot to talk about.

I wasn’t there; I watched on telly. And that’s part of the problem, really. After leaving work, I spent quite a long time taking in various media perspectives about the game, as you do. Big mistake. Listening to the radio, reading stuff on the internet and watching the Sky coverage tainted my night because it made me so angry. You’d have thought we were somehow playing Brazil ’70 from the tone of the national media, such were the glowing Brighton tributes and vague predictions made. Eventually it really got my back up.

There’s been a lot of bias this season. A lot of the national media seem to be against us and I don’t mind that so much, having gotten used to it over the years. It becomes hard to ignore though, when it’s the dominant factor in the coverage.

Brighton are a good side. Their league position suggests as much and I’ve watched enough of them to realise that they play lovely football. But, away from home against a side higher in the table? I couldn’t get my head around the praise that was being thrown their way. Recent losses seemed to be ignored in favour of talking up their win against Arsenal at the weekend, while our recent losses and the draw at Leeds were mentioned with a sense of doom. All very odd, if you ask me and really disrespectful when you think of the brilliance of Eddie’s Mags this season. But a lot of the media seemed to see a Brighton win as some kind of inevitability.

I turned off Talksport’s coverage after approximately four minutes after they’d got the name of the stadium wrong and then talked about something at the Gallowgate End that was clearly the Leazes. I know that the answer is just not to listen to that particular station, but I was away from the telly and just wanted a bit of pre-match build up. Bigger fool me.

The Sky coverage felt no better and there was a sense of doom about the whole thing. It didn’t seem to matter how well we were playing; Brighton had made four changes, there were a lot of young players playing and did you know they’d beaten Arsenal at the weekend? Call me paranoid, but it felt like the two clowns on commentary wanted Brighton to win, more than anything. The quality of our performance didn’t get that much airtime because Brighton played out from the back – largely unsuccessfully – and passed the ball round making nice patterns on the pitch. Personally, I’ll take our four goals any day of the week.

Which brings me on to a more positive note about last night. I thought we were excellent. Better than when we hammered Spurs, even though we didn’t score as many. As good as Brighton might be – and they are a good side – we were simply a lot better.

I felt that we bullied them. The Sky commentators seemed to think it was some kind of moral victory that Brighton stuck to their principles and kept on trying to play out from the back. Yet, our press was incredible and on another day, given the amount of times Brighton panicked and tied themselves in knots, we could have gone in 5-0 up at the break, just from chances created while pressing high.

It’s said that in the pre-match huddle Kieran Trippier tells the lads the same thing, every time; pressure is a privilege. And Thursday night must have brought with it a fair amount of pressure for those players. Unlike some former Newcastle United teams however, we didn’t fold. Instead, we rose to the challenge, reveled in the pressure and imposed our game on Brighton to great effect and a Brighton side that have outplayed both Arsenal ad Man Utd recently didn’t really have a kick in that first half.

Eddie’s tactics were spot on and I particularly liked the ploy of using Miggy to close down their keeper quickly. We obviously felt he had an error in him and he did. Sadly, we just couldn’t capitalise on them. Callum Wilson was excellent here too and Lewis Dunk was repeatedly forced to go back to the keeper for a way out of the holes he was digging.

Eventually, we succeeded in breaking them down with Trippier’s delivery proving too much for Brighton. Before that though, we’d harassed the life out of both full backs and I actually felt a bit sorry for Estupinan at left back as Miggy went past him time and again. The poor lad looked totally befuddled by it all. I’m guessing the atmosphere didn’t help either.

Funnily, having mentioned the commentary earlier, I initially thought that the bloke had called out ‘Oh God’ when we scored, rather than ‘Own goal’. It wouldn’t have been a surprise!

Later on, when Brighton managed to see a bit of the ball and pulled a goal back, we never looked panicked and it was a thoroughly professional display. Definitely one of Nick Pope’s easier nights.

As we went 3 and then 4-1 up, I allowed myself to think a bit about Europe. We shouldn’t be afraid, whatever competition we end up in. The media will talk of us being tested by the big boys, but I wonder what the big boys will make of the bear pit atmosphere of a midweek game under the lights at St. James’ Park?

A year ago we were fighting relegation. Two years back and we were in the depths of despair watching a team with no confidence play for a manager with no tactics and suffering transfer window after transfer window of disappointment. The balance sheet champions.

Now, we’re Eddie Howe’s black and white army. Bring on the European adventure, I say!

NUFC: Come on, let’s stick together.

I had no intention of writing about Newcastle United at this moment in time. Too many other things taking up my time. But then, as far as Newcastle United is concerned stuff just seems to happen, doesn’t it? And sometimes, when it does, we feel forced to speak up.

I wanted to remind anyone who reads this of the fantastic season we’ve had as supporters of Newcastle United. Because at the moment, from an ever increasing number of sources, you’d think we were fighting relegation again. We seem to have got to a point in time where despite the obvious facts of the matter – we’re an incredible football team and a massive club again – Newcastle United might still be a bit too divided at times.

Following the defeat against Arsenal, some fans couldn’t help but react. The finger of blame was pointed – via social media of course – at some of our players, when in reality it was a combination of factors that led to the loss. Essentially we weren’t as good as we have been, we got a bit unlucky, didn’t quite take our chances and Arsenal did. A lenient ref and a questionable VAR call didn’t help either.

Yet, it felt like quite a few people decided it was the fault of players like Bruno or Joelinton. And while I’m not averse to giving a bit of constructive criticism, I don’t think anyone was to blame for that defeat. Certain players could have done better, of course, but no one handed Arsenal the points. On another day, Botman blocks the first as he’s done all season and we defend the second better.

I think, given what he’s done at the club in little over a year, Bruno Guimaraes should just be praised to the rafters. The lad’s a star and he clearly loves our club. I didn’t think he had a great game against Arsenal, but he certainly wasn’t at fault either. He was clearly targeted from the word go and so it was always going to be a tough game. He’ll be back to his best in no time at all. No need for the keyboard critics to have their often overly emotive say.

The same can be said for Joelinton too. He’s a player transformed and we are without doubt a better side for him being there. As the song says, “we think he’s f***ing brilliant”.

We’re at a stage in the season where the abuse is coming at us from all sides. To be fair, we’ve had it all season, but it seems to be intensifying at the moment. Success breeds contempt, I suppose. It also makes fans of other clubs jealous. So, right now we’ve got the regular baiting coming from Everton and Villa fans in the ‘my dad’s bigger than your dad’ debate. We’re being labelled cheats where others are praised for their game management. Stories of our star players heading to other ‘bigger’ clubs have even started up. Football fans across the country have suddenly grown a social conscience in order to have a go at us for selling our souls too. And there’s even a Twitter account dedicated to criticising our assistant manager. I mean, you know you’ve gotten under someone’s skin when that type of thing happens! For the record though football fans, wind your necks in where Mad Dog’s concerned!

This negativity comes from jealousy. It’s as simple as that. So, we’re subjected to negative judgements of our support, our ownership and our players from certain corners of the media and all corners of social media. It’s the kind of stuff we need to be laughing off. You might say that this is the future for Newcastle United, because in our country, we don’t like success. Build them up to knock them down, that’s what they say in Britain, isn’t it? Team photos after a win? If it was other clubs doing it, their fans would love it too. Drink it in, I say! They also never tire of telling us how much money has been spent, usually inaccurately. And yet, fans of most other clubs would love to have a Miggy, a Sean Longstaff, a Fabian Schar or a Joelinton, all of whom were here before the takeover. But that’s a fact they conveniently ignore.

Rather than criticising our own or squabbling with fans of other clubs desperate to see us fail, why don’t we just focus ourselves? Whatever happens now, there’s European football at the end of it. I get superstitious about predictions, so I won’t make one, but even I can’t ignore the fact that we’re in 3rd place in the league. So instead of negativity and worry, try to remember your season highlights. The 6-1 v Spurs, the grit showed in the 3-3 v Man City at home, Isak’s run against Everton or Maxi’s volley against Wolves. Face it, there are too many to ignore. So take a moment, relax and have a think about the sheer number of amazing moments, results and performances we’ve had this season. I’m sure you’ll have more than the one!

There are four games left now and as a fanbase we have a job to do. We focus on Newcastle United. We support in whatever way we can. Sing your hearts out, wave your flags, wear your lucky pants or say a silent prayer to the footballing gods, but help get this team ‘over the line’ as they say. And if that line leads to the Champions’ League, then that’s amazing. We’ll have deserved it. And we’re perfectly capable of getting the points that we need.

Trust in Eddie and Mad Dog, trust in these players, trust in the process. Whatever these next four games bring though, remember: we’ve come a hell of a long way in the last 18 months. Enjoy it!

Eddie Howe and his staff are always positive. So much so that they’ve transformed some of our players. I wrote in my last article about Jacob Murphy getting ‘Eddied’. Well my friends, let’s stay positive; let’s get ‘Eddied’ ourselves.

Newcastle United: we’ll never be defeated!

NUFC: Just Trust the Process.

There’s a lot said about opinions. These days, everybody seems ready to offer you theirs, on any subject regardless of their ignorance.

John F Kennedy once said that “we enjoy the comfort of opinion without the discomfort of thought”, while my dad often used to quote the old saying that “opinions are like arseholes; everybody’s got one”. While both are – as far as I know – true, I think I prefer JFK’s.

I got to thinking about this when the story about Newcastle wanting to sign Scott McTominay surfaced. As an avid user of social media I was immediately made aware of the fact that this was a player that we shouldn’t sign. The only grounds for this opinion seemed to be either that fans like Keith from Gateshead didn’t like him or that, under the new ownership, we could afford to go out and buy ‘better’. The internet seems to mean that every other football fans thinks they’re ‘in the know’. I’m not sure they are though.

Misguided opinions have been around in football for a long, long time. In my own experience one of the first that springs to mind is when we signed Mick Quinn in 1989. Not good enough, came the cry from many, while a banner at a fan protest about sacking the board read ‘Who the f*** is Micky Quinn?’ Many were unhappy that, in their opinion, our new number 9 just wasn’t good enough.

Those of us old enough to remember know that Quinny scored four on his debut in a 5-2 home win against Leeds. He’d certainly answered the question from the banner pretty quickly and he went on to score 57 goals in 110 appearances. It’s safe to say that anyone who had a problem with his signing was guilty of what JFK was talking about – quick to shout up, but with no thought whatsoever.

In more recent times we’ve probably all been guilty of questioning some of our signings. Possibly none more so than the signing of Joelinton. Whatever way you look at it, we were wrong. Yes, there were times when it looked like we had a real point as he became guilty of miss after miss or tripped over his own feet once again. But what did we really know? I for one, hadn’t even heard of him before he signed and I knew very little even about the club we signed him from, Hoffenheim. Put simply, I hadn’t seen him play. Not even on every amateur scout’s favourite place, YouTube.

I think I’d be fairly accurate in saying that Big Joe wasn’t Steve Bruce’s signing. But Bruce was happy to work with him. And work with him he did, sadly almost ruining him in the process. Face it, Bruce would have made Messi look like a carthorse, so Joelinton didn’t exactly have the easiest of starts. But still we were happy to put forward nothing but negative opinions. While I was desperate for him to be a success, I just couldn’t see a player there.

When Eddie Howe came in as manager he was quick to stress the importance of Joelinton to his team. He was very vocal about the fact that they’d identified him as a major player from very early on in their time at the club. And while it took a sending off and a hasty re-arranging of the formation to put Big Joe back in midfield, it worked. Again, what did us fans really know?

“He’s Brazilian…” – The Remarkable Rise of Joelinton.

Being a club with rich owners means that we’ll be linked with a whole host of players, many of whom you or I won’t have heard of. Yet still people offer negative opinions. Not good enough, doesn’t score enough goals, lazy etc. If nothing else it proves that the internet, especially Twitter, is the maddest place on the planet. I simply don’t believe that 99% of the people who offer their expert opinion on the players that we get linked to know the first thing about them. I mean, how can you know? I have a family and a full time job; I just don’t have time for that many scouting trips. None, in fact. I’m sure most of you are the same.

Which brings me on to McTominay. I quite like him. He’s strong, physical, quite quick and has a good deal of Premier and Champions League experience. I’m not sure whether he’d be a signing that would excite me that much or where he’d fit in, but I quite like him. I’m of the opinion, like lots of others, that we’re in need of a defensive midfielder and he’s not it. I’m sure there are much sexier names out there too. But what do I really know?

Football has become a squad game, so McTominay fits in, whether we like it or not. The point is though, I don’t have the luxury of regular chats with Eddie Howe, Jason Tindall, Steve Nickson or Dan Ashworth, so I haven’t the first clue what the plan is. What I do know is that in the last week, McTominay has scored four international goals for Scotland, so he might just be proving himself to someone.

I trust the process and I don’t think I should be part of it. I don’t think you should either, with the greatest of respect. Eddie and his team are doing an incredible job. Personally, I’m just basking in the glow of not having to think about relegation for once and I’ve got Eddie and the team to thank for that.

So, while we’re all on social media offering scattergun negative opinions on 90% of the players we’re linked to, maybe we should all just sit back and allow ourselves ‘the discomfort of thought’. I wouldn’t want Eddie Howe or Dan Ashworth coming in to my classroom and telling me how to teach Macbeth to a room full of disinterested Year 11s. They’re happy to leave the Shakespeare to me. So, maybe I’ll leave the transfers to them.

NUFC: A few things about last night.

I hadn’t planned to write a Newcastle United flavoured post today. But then last night’s performance was so pleasing & there were so many points that occurred to me that I thought I would get a few things down.

It’s an obvious place to start, but Elliot Anderson was robbed. I won’t go into the details simply because I don’t think anyone could possibly understand the decision. But it’s safe to say that it was a ludicrous, baffling piece of refereeing and VAR completely outdid it’s own ridiculousness. Imagine that even being contemplated as a decision against Man It’d, Liverpool or Chelsea! It’s neither wonder we’re a bit paranoid about this whole Big 6 thing!

Elliot Anderson was just excellent when he came on. He suddenly looked like a much more mature pro and helped to keep the game going in our favour after the late first half goal. His goal showed that maturity as he not only read Isak’s ball over but then out-muscled the defender at the back post and planted a superb header back across the keeper into the net.

His reaction to the decision to disallow the goal was an absolute credit to him as well. Despite being robbed of a proper moment of glory, he was there visibly urging his team mates on. It would have been easy to sulk, but instead he carried on being heavily involved in the game, taking defenders back towards goal again and again and involving himself in every aspect of our play. While I wouldn’t say that he came of age, it was still a cameo performance of real quality and proof if needed that we’ve definitely got a player on our hands.

2. We are UNITED! It’s been evident all season, but what stood out for me last night was just how united we are. Team, management, fans and owners all pulling in the same direction for once is a joy to see. Against Forest we had various players including Bruno, Isak and Anderson all involved with the crowd, all imploring them for even more noise. And of course, the away following did everything they could to oblige. To a man, woman and child, Newcastle are united are pulling in the same direction for once.

The famous banner from the Ashley era proclaimed that we wanted a team that tried. Well, we got one. At the same time though, we got a squad of players that truly cares as well. And thanks to Eddie, we get that winners photo after every 3 points…to the delight of Mags everywhere!

3. We’ve been experts in game management – or shithousery, whichever term you prefer – since very early in Eddie Howe’s time as manager. It was in evidence, as usual, on Friday night with delayed throws and goal kicks and players making the most of their ‘injuries’. But Kieran Trippier holding the ball and pretending he was going to take the penalty in order to take the heat off Alexander Isak was moment of genius. He’d convinced me that he was going to take it so much that I was frantically trying to cast my mind back to penalty shoot-outs for England to work out the likelihood of him scoring! I’ve seen it lots of times since, but that grin as he holds the ball is just absolutely brilliant.

4. The referee, Paul Tierney, had an absolute shocker. Within about 10 minutes Forest had committed at least 4 bad fouls and could very easily have had a player sent off. Yet, Tierney and ignored them all and not long after was booking Dan Burn for asking what the f*** was going on. His inconsistency with Forest’s constant assaults carried on for much of the game. The fact that he’d freshly shaved his head for the occasion put me in mind of Travis Bickle from Taxi Driver and we all know how that ended. Suffice to say, the fact that he overturned a perfectly good goal for the reason he did shouldn’t have come as any surprise. And if you think back to our last league visit to the City Ground, when referee Steve Martin sent two of our players off and then proceeded to just make the rules up as he went along, last night wasn’t a shock at all.

5. Our former player, Jonjo Shelvey, gave a pretty stupid interview after the match. I wasn’t his biggest fan when he played for us, but what he said last night sent him further down in my estimation. If the irony police existed they’d have been inundated with calls last night after Jonjo told a reporter that our players were whingers. The bloke barely cracked a smile in his entire time of Tyneside and never looked too far away from a good whinge himself, particularly when Rafa Benitez asked him to run a bit more. Don’t forget, this was the same Jonjo Shelvey who was chuffed to bits with Steve Bruce because he didn’t want him to track back so much. Considering his attempts to break Bruno in half during the first 15 minutes he was very, very lucky to still be on the pitch, let alone giving a bad loser’s interview afterwards.

Last night’s result felt a little bit like another turning point in our season. It felt important, like we’d taken the three points against all odds. With the international break to come and a few results going our way today, let’s hope we can get a few more players fit and really kick on again when we return to the Premier League.

The Curious Case of the Newcastle United Academy.

There are thousands of legendary, unfathomable mysteries across our planet that stretch back as far as time itself. Big Foot; allegedly photographed stalking through a forest in Northern California many years ago, but neither hide nor hair seen since. The Loch Ness Monster; sonar deployed across the loch, grown adults upping sticks and living there glued to a pair of high powered binoculars hoping to catch a glimpse of what might well be some big tyres. And the Bermuda Triangle; so mysterious and fascinating that Barry Manilow wrote a song about it.

None of these make me wrack my brain for answers as much as Newcastle United academy system. Here is an organisation where every year a series of adolescents and grown adults go into work and seem to either stop functioning or disappear altogether and nobody seems to be able to figure out why.

As a supporter of some 40 odd years, I’ve seen many an academy product fall by the wayside. A succession of young men, thought to be among the best footballers the region, who then pull on the black and white shirt only to descend into non league football at best within a matter of a couple of years.

However, I’ve also even seen a relatively small number play for the first team before moving on to global stardom. That’s how old I am!

For as long as I can remember our academy system has puzzled and disappointed me. I don’t mean to speak ill of people who I respect – Steve Harper, Ben Dawson for instance – but something isn’t working. It hasn’t really worked for years, which clearly isn’t the fault of the two individuals mentioned above. Sure, there have been some successes over the years with appearances in an FA Youth Cup semi final as well as a smattering of players who’ve made the step up to the first team. But Sir John Hall’s dream of a team full of Geordies is around thirty years old now and it’s not been anywhere near happening. To put it simply, we don’t seem to be handling young footballers very well and with the greatest of respect, for every Sean there’s a Matty.

Our owners seem to be taking the academy very seriously indeed and are clearly intent on building the club from the ground up with investment in youth. Recent social media posts show that the club are advertising for emerging talent scouts across Europe and South America, so they’re clearly working hard to change our fortunes. The work of Dan Ashworth will hopefully ensure that there’s a positive change going forward, but at the moment, from the outside looking in, you almost couldn’t argue with the view that things are as bad as they’ve been in a very long time.

It’s easy to lay the blame at the door of Mike Ashley for the lack of success within our youth system. What he initially seemed to view as a priority very quickly became just another area of the club where he’d gladly cut corners.

Every season seemed to bring new faces to Newcastle who’d simply been released by other Premier League clubs on top of a succession of local lads deemed good enough to wear the shirt. It seemed to be that we might just be hoping to spot something that another club had missed in a kid that had been at said club for over a decade. So, we can probably assume that here Ashley and his cronies were treating the academy as just another gamble. A scattergun approach that showed no patience or planning whatsoever. Who knew?

Look past the Ashley years though and nothing really changes. Our last FA Youth Cup final appearance was when we won it in 84/85. I was there to watch the likes of Gazza, Joe Allon, Gary Kelly and Brian Tinnion draw the first leg 0-0 at a packed St. James’ Park, before winning the second leg 4-1. Four of the starting eleven on those nights went on to make a decent number of appearances for the first team. One, Gazza, would go on to become possibly the most naturally gifted footballer that these shores would ever produce. We’ve produced players of first team calibre only sporadically since and there’s been nothing remotely like a Gazza. Instead, players like Lewis Gibson and Bobby Clark have been allowed to leave for other Premier League clubs.

Historically, we seem to have missed out on many of the best players that the region would produce. Bobby and Jack Charlton, Bryan Robson, Ray Kennedy, Michael Carrick and Alan Shearer all slipped the net over the years. And that’s just a list of some of the very best – there have been plenty others who should have been picked up by scouts, but instead went elsewhere. Three of those would go on to captain England and only Shearer ever played for the Toon.

Nowadays, it continues to happen with wonderkid and alleged transfer target, 15 year old Chris Rigg signing for Sunderland, despite reports of the emotional pull of Newcastle United, who his entire family apparently support. Whether we sign him or not, it’s a failure of the system that he was missed in the first place.

What strikes me about our academy nowadays is that there seem to be regular changes in coaching and directorship. With a little bit of thought and 5 minutes worth of googling I can name Ben Dawson, Joe Joyce, Steve Harper, Peter Ramage, Elliot Dickman, Neil Redfearn, Alan Irvine, Neil Winskill, Kevin Richardson, Richard Money, Gary Caldwell, Peter Beardsley, Tony Caig and Graeme Carrick. All have been involved in the academy over the last 15-20 years, some for what felt like 5 minutes. And I’m sure that there will have been a lot more that I couldn’t name. I’m sure that some have done a great job too, but we still aren’t producing players as regularly as we should be. Now, I don’t pretend to have an in-depth knowledge of how academies work, but I’m guessing that the better ones have a much smaller turnover of staff than we seem to have.

Our system has also been subject to much controversy over the years, with alleged bullying, mistreatment and racism making the headlines. It can’t make good reading for potential recruits and their families. Certainly, if either of my children were good enough to attract the attention of professional clubs – sadly they’re not – then I’d be looking at how they’d be looked after pretty closely. Allegations of racist abuse and bullying would make me look elsewhere, whatever my allegiance. As a fan, it’s definitely something about the system that alarms me and it cannot be helpful for the progress of players.

In terms of other successful academies, it’s not just the obvious places like Chelsea and Manchester City where we might cast an envious eye. Southampton’s system has been superb for years, while Leeds United continue to produce a steady stream of players for the first team, as they have for decades now. Even teams like Charlton, Sheffield United and Crewe have academies that make ours look like a waste of time.

Further afield, enormously successful clubs like Bayern Munich and Barcelona may well splash the cash on superstars, but their academies produce them too with the likes of Thomas Muller, Jamal Musiala, Gavi and Ansu Fati playing now as well as countless others from the past. Lionel Messi, anyone? Whichever end of the spectrum you look, we seem to be lagging behind.

This season has been strangely familiar for our youth teams in terms of results. Our Under 18 team currently sit in 10th place in the their 14 team league, having won just 4 league games all season. Meanwhile, our Under 23 team are 8th in their eleven team league, again having won only 4 games out of 15. While I understand that it’s not simply about winning at that level and that we do seem to have some talented young players in the set up, surely we should be aiming for better results than we’re getting? The fact that Elliot Dickman was relieved of his duties just over a year after taking the job says a great deal about where our youth system seems to have been heading.

Eddie Howe has been proactive with the youth set up from the start, bringing various players up to train with the first team, talking them up in the press and taking them in match day squads. Still though, only Elliot Anderson seems even remotely close to making the step up on a permanent basis. Others have been sent out on loan, but this is a route that sadly just doesn’t seem to work at all.

It’s to be hoped that Dan Ashworth, Eddie Howe and his staff can start to make progress with this side of the club and that we can start to see more young players coming through in the not too distant future.

I was reading an article on the BBC website about the approach to homegrown players that is taken at Real Sociedad recently. Sixteen of their current squad are homegrown and over the years they’ve had a hand in the careers of Mikel Arteta, Martin Odergaard, our ex player Mikel Merino, Alexander Isak, as well as current Premier League managers Javi Gracia, Julien Lopetegui and Unai Emery. Their sporting director, Roberto Olabe stressed the importance of patience and perseverance, saying “At 14, 15, 18, 20 I know of no architects or musicians that are outstanding, so it is very difficult to discover a football player at that age too. A player needs time.” He spoke about not sitting back and waiting to see how a player develops, but of moulding young players and offering professional and emotional guidance and of course of giving them the right amount of time and experience in order to develop.

It struck me that the attitude I was reading about sounded like the attitude I’d read about from Eddie Howe and what I expect from a figure like Dan Ashworth. So, maybe there is hope.

Clearly, Newcastle United have a problem to solve with the academy and it does seem that the new owners are being proactive in finding solutions. It would be wonderful to be seeing a good number of local lads in the first team squad, able to hold their own. But, like the message we get about the development of the first team – evolution not revolution – this will not be an overnight change. Hopefully though, the foundations are being laid and if we can just be patient for a little while longer, the young players of the future won’t be lost like Shearer, Robson and the Charltons, so badly let down like Matty Longstaff or allowed to go backwards like Sean Longstaff under the previous regime.

Here’s to the future of NUFC. Hopefully it’s in safe hands at long last!

Ed & Jase’s Sunday Night Takeaway!

Five things we can take away from the Carabao Cup Final.

It didn’t end the way that we all wanted it to, but last Sunday, however you watched the game, was a one that will live long in the memory. Once I’d stopped sulking I wrote a few things down about what we might take away from our Carabao Cup final. So, for what it’s worth, here you go.

We’ve arrived. If we didn’t know it already, we’re kind of a big deal nowadays. It’s not that we haven’t been a big club before Sunday and it’s not like we weren’t getting noticed. But Sunday’s Carabao Cup Final appearance will have made a big difference. It’s not because of the performance on the pitch because while we were OK, we didn’t pull up any trees and certainly didn’t play to our potential. What will have made people sit up and take a bit of notice is first of all, the fact that we made it to a final. We were there. The effort put in by our fans will have been difficult to ignore too and I imagine that images of the black and white flags around Wembley, as well as the events around Trafalgar Square on Saturday night, will have gone right around the world. I mean, who could ignore a gazebo in a sea of black and white at a major London landmark? Sunday at Wembley will have been noted by potential sponsors, by kids around the world and by potential transfer targets and who knows; maybe some time in the next 10 years or so, when we sign some superstar wonderkid, they’ll be telling reporters about not about watching ‘Goal’ but about watching Twitter videos of fans coming off trains at Kings’ Cross singing about ‘that team we call United’ and thinking, I’d love to be a part of that some day.
Our city has pride again. I’m no longer a resident of Newcastle, haven’t been for years. But it’ll always be home, always be my home town. And watching fans at Wembley, listening to players speak of their desire and their pride had me close to tears. Make no mistake about it, Sunday was a big deal despite what some will tell you about a Mickey Mouse cup, and we can be proud of every last minute. We’ve gone from being the laughing stock of football during the Ashley years to being a team, a club and a city that absolutely matters. We’re a talking point again and we’re competing in meaningful games at the top level of English football. Even the stupidest of mackems can’t deny that.
The team have gained vital big game experience. It’s an obvious thing to say, but this team has come a long way in a very short space of time. And while the likes of Kieran Trippier have been there and done it, when you have a look around the squad there’s not a lot of that kind of thing knocking about. Some have made appearances at World Cups and Euros, but in terms of club football, big game experience is lacking. While the game itself clearly didn’t go to plan, the all round experience will be invaluable to our players. From young kids being around the squad for the week of build up to those players who got minutes at Wembley, it’s money in the bank so to speak. Let’s not forget the management team too, the majority of whom haven’t had such unique experience before. Eddie Howe’s notebooks will be like the complete works of Shakespeare after that one! There should be no doubt whatsoever that we’ll be back playing in big games in the near future. Now though, we’ll be armed with a bit more knowledge and a bit more experience and I feel sure that it will be vital in making a difference.
The squad needs investment. Manchester United boasted game changers with genuine quality in their eleven. De Gea, Martinez, Casemiro, Varane, Fernandes and Rashford all just had a little bit too much for us on Sunday. Even their bench had real quality sat there watching. And Harry Maguire. Meanwhile, we might well have ‘Bruno in the middle’ but genuine star quality is a little thin on the ground. What we have is a good Premier League eleven that are overperforming. Don’t get me wrong, we have some fantastic footballers in Tripps, Maxi, Miggy, Isak etc, but six of our starters were at the club during the Ashley years. Some of the squad were part of our Championship winning squad. These are players that have been outstanding for the club and they’re players that we love. And while I still don’t wish to deviate from the ‘evolution not revolution’ stance and have no problem with what Eddie Howe and the ownership are doing, it’s clear that more quality is needed.
We have to move on. For what it’s worth I thought we played reasonably well on Sunday. There were chances missed, blocks made and a little bit of bad luck going the other way. I mean, I think the better side won, but you’ll never convince that first goal was onside. You could make the VAR screen look like a child’s Etch-a-Sketch and I still wouldn’t say it was onside. Nor was it a free kick in the first place. What’s important now is that we move on quickly. There can be no hangover. Not with the likes of Fulham, Brighton and Liverpool chasing us and Spurs within touching distance in fourth place. Personally, I don’t want to settle for finishing 6th or 7th having also had a cup final appearance. I happen to think we’re better than that. I don’t think the players will sulk, but I hope some of our bigger hitters start grabbing games by the scruff of the neck now and pushing for one of those Champions’ League places. I hope that days like Sunday have whetted a few appetites.
Can someone have a word with Loris Karius about those gloves please? I wasn’t concerned about his past mistakes. I didn’t dwell on the fact that it looked like he could have saved their second goal. But sweet Jesus, I couldn’t get those gloves out of my head. It looked like he was playing in the kind of driving gloves last seen in the 70s or on the hands of present day octogenarians as they drive incredibly slowly to the shops. Brown bloody gloves? We might have got beat, but Manchester United should hang their heads in shame at the fact that only scored twice against a bloke that looked like he’d borrowed his gloves from Alan Partridge.

Let’s hope that we get Sunday out of our systems as quickly and that we can and end the season as strongly as possible. It’s been a hell of a season so far and I really hope we can keep on putting noses out of joint!

Howay The Lads!

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