With Howe and the non-International players back from Dubai and their warm-weather training, we have 10 league games left in which we will try to qualify for European competition for next season.
At the moment, we are 10th in the league, but Newcastle will need to perform well in the final 10 games and get some wins to move up to at least 7th place, which should guarantee Newcastle European football for next season.
Premier League Table 2023-2024
| Position | Team | Played | Won | Lost | Drawn | GD | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | Tottenham | 38 | 20 | 12 | 6 | 13 | 66 |
| 6 | Chelsea | 38 | 18 | 11 | 9 | 14 | 63 |
| 7 | Newcastle | 38 | 18 | 14 | 6 | 23 | 60 |
| 8 | Man United | 38 | 18 | 14 | 6 | -1 | 60 |
| 9 | West Ham | 38 | 14 | 13 | 10 | -14 | 52 |
If we are to get European competition it is games like West Ham at home that we must win – let’s hope we can do that tomorrow in the early kickoff game and get an excellent start to the 10-game run-in to the league.
Loading ...Comments welcome.
166 comments so far
Toon Irish
Mar 29, 2024 at 2:28 PM
Comment #41Magic
Afternoon gentleman.yeah I heard it was the daughter.shes recently got married then confessed everything to the husband then he’s whent to the police.anyways it’ll all come out over time.hows the orchard men doing this year.
magscar
Mar 29, 2024 at 2:28 PM
Comment #42Magic
Bus delayed so slight wait 🙁
Won’t stop me getting there though !
Have a good Good Friday mate
lochinvar
Mar 29, 2024 at 2:30 PM
Comment #43Now forgive me for straying off the footie but I have a question, daft as it may seem !
I’ve just popped the CD of the new version of Mark Knopfler’s Coming Home to play in the car.
The display described the CD as being ‘Stairway to Heaven” not “Coming Home’ with the added messages of “Led Zeppelin Rip off”.
Have I entered another dimension or is it a piss take ?
Asking for a friend of course who’s puzzled by this.
Essex Geordie Bill
Mar 29, 2024 at 2:30 PM
Comment #44Eddie handled all the Tonali questions really well, the press lads were really after their pound of flesh.
magscar
Mar 29, 2024 at 2:32 PM
Comment #45Loch
Maybe you’ve stepped into a time warp and bought a “dodgy ” CD from a market stall like back in the day 🙂
lochinvar
Mar 29, 2024 at 2:33 PM
Comment #46Clearly this is an Irish blog today.
Can anyone join in ?
All set for tomorrow, hope Isak and Gordon get plenty of space to run at the West Ham defence and get some early scores. Hope Miggy gets back on the score sheet, we need some magic from him.
lochinvar
Mar 29, 2024 at 2:36 PM
Comment #47Magscar
It’s defo playing Going Home by Knoplfer and came from the official supplier Townsend Music.
Must be a piss take or some beggar has hacked my CD player !
Raj of Hailsley
Mar 29, 2024 at 2:43 PM
Comment #48It was firstly the medical teams fault, now it’s the club’s and player’s fault. Look, the findings were inconclusive, there was a chance he could have got through and decided not to sit out for nine months. So many bloody experts on here.
Essex Geordie Bill
Mar 29, 2024 at 2:49 PM
Comment #49As Eddie said the final choice is down to the player, however you would hope that the players takes seriously into consideration what the experts say and no I don’t mean the ones on the fans media platforms! 🙂
martoon
Mar 29, 2024 at 2:49 PM
Comment #50Just watched Eddie’s press conference – I think Jail has mentioned this before but it is really annoying that you can’t hear the questions clearly. You would think with all the money in football we could afford to have a few microphones spread around the press room. Also as NaDJ mentioned you could hear Lee Marshall sniffing which was really irritating – get that man some Lemsip 😀
Essex Geordie Bill
Mar 29, 2024 at 2:51 PM
Comment #51Loch
it’s the AIs taking control, sneaky little buggars! 🙂
Not another deJong
Mar 29, 2024 at 2:53 PM
Comment #52Following her PC question:
Howe may profit from back-three experiment
Eddie Howe turned radical as Newcastle lost their FA Cup quarter-final at Manchester City earlier this month, deploying a back three. For a confirmed four-at-the-back manager, it represented quite a departure but retaining it might just suit Newcastle’s personnel – particularly against West Ham at St James’ Park this Saturday. Given that Sven Botman is sidelined for nine months following ACL surgery – and with hindsight the Dutch defender should have had that operation when he first damaged his knee in September – the best back three would surely be Jamaal Lascelles, Fabian Schär and Dan Burn flanked by Kieran Trippier, if fit, or Tino Livramento and Lewis Hall. Hall has disappointed following his summer loan from Chelsea but a left wing-back position might finally enable him to demonstrate why many once believed he was an England player in the making. With Schär showing off his ball skills at sweeper, 3-5-2 might yet propel Newcastle into Europa League combat next season.
Louise Taylor – Guardian
Essex Geordie Bill
Mar 29, 2024 at 2:54 PM
Comment #53martoon
I think they were all sniffing around trying to get a reaction re. Tonali.
He just skillfully batted them all away!
Not another deJong
Mar 29, 2024 at 2:59 PM
Comment #54Whilst I am not against the idea, I do not believe Howe will persist with a back 3. After all he only implemented it in for one game, rather than bedding it in over a series of games prior to playing ManCity. Which implies to me it was more of a needs must approach.
However, it is somewhat of a shame if Hall does not get the benefit of more game time. Reverting to the standard 433 would indicate this is less likely and also continue making the team reliant on a seriously overplayed midfield. Thankfully Anderson will be ble to step in with some starts and hopefully Longstaff’s foot may have recovered, was that even asked about?
SlickInCo
Mar 29, 2024 at 3:00 PM
Comment #55I think we grab 6 points between Saturday and Tuesday and make a big jump in the table!! E I E I O up the table we go. 2 games at SJP should be 2 wins.
Fat Basta*d
Mar 29, 2024 at 3:01 PM
Comment #56Shit face mickey g has an addiction of wiping shit on his face
Fat Basta*d
Mar 29, 2024 at 3:02 PM
Comment #57MHFA = Mother Harassing Fat Asswipe 😀
magicmac54
Mar 29, 2024 at 3:03 PM
Comment #58Toon Irish
The allegations against him are already very serious on their own, but if what you are speculating are true then he is looking at a lengthy spell in prison i would assume mate.
How are things going for you in Craigavon at the moment marra?
As for the Orchard, it couldn`t be better, promotion back to division one,
and playing Donegal at Croke Park in the division two league final play off on sunday, proceeding the Dublin v Derry league one final!!
If the Toon can beat West Ham tomorrow, and Armagh beat Donegal on Sunday, it will be a very happy and special Easter mate
HWTL
Fat Basta*d
Mar 29, 2024 at 3:04 PM
Comment #59Brilliant again by the Bard. Think you should put up the original before blog shuts down for good
magicmac54
Mar 29, 2024 at 3:12 PM
Comment #60Martoon
Hi Martin mate, if it`s any help to you, i also had great difficulty hearing the questions in Eddie`s pressers, so i bought headphones and it made a vast difference mate, i even use the headphones when listening to music on my laptop.
Not another deJong
Mar 29, 2024 at 3:20 PM
Comment #61Comments about the manager:
When it comes to Howe, as a neutral just interested to hear from Newcastle supporters if he has enough credit in the bank to survive a season of non-European qualification (or Europa Conference League at best)? Howe is a likeable chap, but I guess he’ll be judged by results like every other manager?
—-
He’s got a ton of credit in the bank and most fans recognise that Newcastle have suffered from a totally unprecedented level of significant injuries to key players this season.
I’d be very disappointed if he leaves. Whether the club owners feel the same is another matter
—–
As a long time season ticket holder at St James Park I’d say Eddie Howe has plenty of credit it the bank. He’s earned a good summer transfer window and ideally an injury free start to next season.
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As the others have mentioned the fact that Howe’s position I being questioned is surreal. I do hear grumblings from some fans but what he achieved last season was amazing.
We seem determined to stick to FFP guidelines (as we should) so our owners’ wealth is relatively meaningless despite what some BTL would have you believe.
The injuries and extra cup games have decimated the squad. The only questioning I’d have of Howe is how many of those injuries could have been down to controllable factors eg. training methods and not signing a 3rd striker when Woods left for Forest (although I appreciate FFP)
—–
If, at the moment of the takeover, you had to predict where Newcastle United should be now, where do you think they ‘should’ be?
Two years on from being relegation certainties and after one summer transfer window, I think having qualified for the Champions League and played the group stages with a team that is still 3/4 full of the players from that original relegation side is probably way above what anyone would have predicted. I think based on how Aston Villa and Brighton have been doing, then being up and around the European positions would have been considered a great success. And I think where they are now, flirting with either Europe or not-Europe next season would have been seen as realistic.
Howe has outdone himself and everyone’s expectations. Newcastle United are in the first minor dip of his career there, which is impressive. If you consider that he’s entirely removed the club from the spectre of relegation, massively improved many of the players he inherited, integrated his new players really well, developed his European experience and shown that his Newcastle United can beat even Europe’s best teams on their day, then I’d say he’s probably got a bit of credit in the bank. Imagine what he could do with even more, better players. Because I can imagine some teams that might be bigger than Newcastle United looking at the job he’s done there and wondering if he couldn’t do an equally impressive job for them.
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It’s good to hear that he still has the majority of supporters on side by the sound of it. I’m sure it’ll go a long way when the season is reviewed by the powers-that-be. He definitely exceeded expectations last season, so hopefully won’t be judged accordingly on falling below that this time round. It will be interesting to see how the club develops over the next few seasons as recent developments have shown how important it really is now to keep within the FFP guidelines and not just pay them lip service. Newcastle are probably the first clear example of how even having unlimited petrodollars may not necessarily propel you to immediate success.
—–
And those results really have not been too bad all in all. I think Howe over reached by a long way last season to get us into 4th and then didn’t prioritise the right games and wore out what was a fairly thin squad. Add on loosing your summer marquee signing to something out of your control or knowledge and we still nearly nearly made it to the knock out stages of the UCL or the Europa league, were 1 minute away from making a second LC final and drew MC away in the 1/4 finals of the FA cup. The final table has yet to be drawn, they have been away for a week in the sun and the last 10 games will be good to see if we’re showing progress or whether the infamous on the beach already comments start flying.
So Howe I think is safe for at least one more season. He needs to be a bit mnore flexible and perhaps again a season without Europe might not be the worst thing and allow our first team really good squad to increase a bit. A year ago it was about 10, this season about 15 and next season needs to be closer to 18. And if he wins anything he would never need to leave Newcastle again.
—–
He’s doing a great job. In hindsight he massively overachieved last season. At the start of the season, I was hoping for top five, but that didn’t factor in Spurs and Villa doing so well, and the number of injuries Newcastle have had. I keep having to remind myself that it’s not long ago that people were saying we’d be the richest club in the Championship.
Given FFP rules, Newcastle can’t simply replace all the players who not long ago were part of a team battling relegation. If they could, then perhaps the owners might be looking at alternative coaches. I think he’s more than good for next season, and then see where the club is at, on and off the field.
IrishRob
Mar 29, 2024 at 3:36 PM
Comment #62Thanks Magic!
I might do it on the bbq wirh some fire roasted corn on the cob and a baked potato or maybe a bit of Colcannon.
IrishRob
Mar 29, 2024 at 3:38 PM
Comment #63Magscar yes. I am. The drs felt it needed surgery, botman wanted to try rest it. They shpuld be listening to the professionals over the players with big injuries like this. Even small injuries tbh.
Essex Geordie Bill
Mar 29, 2024 at 3:57 PM
Comment #64Why are so many games on BT now! 🙁
Essex Geordie Bill
Mar 29, 2024 at 4:00 PM
Comment #65Sphag Bol!
Hibbit
Mar 29, 2024 at 4:00 PM
Comment #66IrishRob
aren’t the NUFC medical team a bunch of unqualified morons, that need moving on asp, according to one of your fellow country man ❓
Toon Irish
Mar 29, 2024 at 4:22 PM
Comment #67Magicmac
U mean up in antrim lol.but all good we remained in div 3 which is a success for antrim.good to see armagh back up in div1 they had some team back in kernans day,them and Tyrone had some cracking games.ohh the Toon will beat west ham tomorrow we’ll b back to r best tomorrow full of energy and the press will b back to its best after that 2weeks rest.as for the armagh game,I think donegal r going threw a newcastle moment with loads of injuries so it’s armaghs game for the taken.ive a feeling ur going to have a good easter lol.
Not another deJong
Mar 29, 2024 at 4:45 PM
Comment #68This seasons teams with the highest number of substitutions; goal involvements (total goals for)
Liverpool 122; 22 (65)
Arsenal 116; 18 (70)
Newcastle 106; 18 (59)
Brighton have made by far the most substitutions, more than 128 with just 16 goal involvements.
With our injury record I was surprised that we had made such a high number of subs (or maybe that is the reason). But with more players coming back into the squad, it should be beneficial to us rising a few places.
JohnJ
Mar 29, 2024 at 4:47 PM
Comment #69RIP Larry Lloyd (Aged 75)
Not another deJong
Mar 29, 2024 at 4:53 PM
Comment #70Reading this article I wondered how throwing in a goalkeeping change also effects the stats.
https://theanalyst.com/eu/2024/03/premier-league-centre-back-partnerships-arsenal-manchester-united/
Also, the use of a back three in decline, which may be an indication of teams throughout the league attempting to play their way out.
JohnJ
Mar 29, 2024 at 4:54 PM
Comment #71West Ham team news
While Aguerd’s potential absence in defence could be managed by the Hammers due to available alternatives, Paqueta’s potential unavailability poses a more significant concern.
The Brazilian’s absence would deprive the Hammers of his crucial contributions in midfield and attack.
lochinvar
Mar 29, 2024 at 5:08 PM
Comment #72If Paqueta is missing then he won’t be kicking Gordon like he did in the International.
If Bruno schools West Ham he’ll have bragging rights and persuade him to sign for us next season.
As we’ve been linked with some other Brazilians that would be 4 Brazilians in our midfield.
Is it a plan ?
Raj of Hailsley
Mar 29, 2024 at 5:10 PM
Comment #73lochinvar,
Could that not leave our MF seriously imbalanced should there be a WC played in Brazil three days before a PL game.
IrishRob
Mar 29, 2024 at 5:32 PM
Comment #74Hibbit why are u bringing me into this? Leave me out of it thanks!
Raj of Hailsley
Mar 29, 2024 at 6:16 PM
Comment #75Any admission of being wrong about the medical team or a hands up to say, oops got it wrong there 😮
The Bard of Bensham Bank
Mar 29, 2024 at 6:28 PM
Comment #76Catching up, I’ve just seen that Fenners is a MHFA !!
Gotta pity the poor sap who considers his best option in attempting to escape from his own personal darkness is to open his heart and soul to Fenners.
Jeez!!
Davas
Mar 29, 2024 at 6:51 PM
Comment #77Seen a lot of comments in different places where people think these are new allegations, about Tonali, since the ones he was banned for. They aren’t and Tonali self reported them in October when the others were being investigated:
https://football-italia.net/tonali-agent-update-on-fa-charges/
magscar
Mar 29, 2024 at 7:09 PM
Comment #78Toon Irish
My point was – Botman didn’t want an operation at that point -forgetting this is a sport injury do you really think that a doctor ( in a non-life threatening situation) should be able to overide that and insist he has one?
It was and should have been his decision after receivng professional medical advice – he’s an intelligent lad and capable of feeling his own body and determining what he feels is in his own interests at that time
OK the club could have said that he won’t be picked but that is different to saying you HAVE to have an operation
magicmac54
Mar 29, 2024 at 7:11 PM
Comment #79Toon Irish
Apologies mate, for some reason i thought you lived in Craigavon, perhaps you told me you had relatives in Craigavon in the past? Great to see Antrim retain their division 3 status, always had a soft spot for the geals of Antrim, probably because i had several ex girlfriends from Antrim and Belfast in the past 😀 😀
You lads really need that new stadium at Casement Park to be rebuilt to really kick on, no doubt it would really be transformative to the future success of all geals in Antrim if that were to happen mate.
Up the Toon
Up Antrim
Up Armagh 😀 😀
Fat Basta*d
Mar 29, 2024 at 7:12 PM
Comment #80No wonder suicide rate is high after talking to fatty fenners 😀