Are the Players Now Turning Against the Club's Recruitment Strategy?

According to an exclusive report in The Telegraph, Newcastle players believe the club's summer recruitment has left them struggling to compete in the Premier League.

That echoes the concerns that many fans expressed before the season kicked off that signing young players was a risk and those concerns are now being widely acknowledged not only on this blog and elsewhere... but also by senior players.

£263 Million Spent – But Are Newcastle Any Better?

Newcastle spent approximately £263 million on eight new signings after losing Bruno Guimarães, Sandro Tonali and Anthony Gordon.

But instead of replacing proven quality with established players, the club gambled heavily on young talent with no Premier League experience.

Aladji Bamba, Bazoumana Touré and Sean Steur have barely featured, while Amar Dedic and goalkeeper Lukas Hornicek have made costly mistakes.

These players may eventually prove excellent investments, but Newcastle need results now, not in two or three years.

Does Jaissle Trust His Squad?

Perhaps the most revealing aspect of the report is that Jaissle himself appears reluctant to trust several of the summer signings.

Meanwhile, his insistence on playing with two central midfielders and a number 10 continues to leave Newcastle exposed.

Opponents have repeatedly exploited that weakness, yet little seems to change.

Who Is Really Responsible?

Sporting director Ross Wilson will inevitably face criticism, but the bigger questions concern Newcastle's entire recruitment strategy.

Who decided that replacing three established stars with largely unproven youngsters was the right approach?

And who ensured those players would suit the new manager's football philosophy?

The players themselves cannot escape responsibility.

Too many experienced players have performed well below expectations.

But, after spending £263 million, Newcastle shouldn't be in a position where a large chunk of that is sitting on the bench with, as it stands, little hope of getting a regular start.

Players Still Behind Jaissle

The Telegraph reports that Newcastle's players are not actively seeking a managerial change.

In the aftermath of the two Everton defeats there has been some sensationalist reporting - "Jaissle throws players under the bus in press interview" "Schar throws Jaissle instructions away" "Out of depth Jaissle clinging to his job".

Some fans believe Jaissle might not be helping his cause by appearing to be arrogant, stubborn and critical of anything but himself in interviews.

His demeanour and frankness is in sharp contrast to Eddie Howe who came across as a very likeable, modest guy, who deftly swerved the difficult questions and rarely involved the players in any criticism after a poor performance and result.

However, fans aren't daft, we know the reasons for a bad performance and the simple fact is that whilst Jaissle's formations and team selections have been rightly criticised, individual player errors in game after game have also hugely affected results.

And, it must also be hugely frustrating for Jaissle that after drilling playing patterns in training the players do the opposite on the pitch; as they did by playing far too many long balls on Monday night when the manager had called for anything but.

Player Support Is Critical

After four defeats in five games added to earlier formation concerns even when results were better, the pressure is now piling on Jaissle from fans and the media.

Rumours that our manager has lost the dressing room are inevitable in these situations, the critical issue is whether that is pure hype or has a basis in fact.

However, it would appear that the whispers to the media are still positive and that blame for our situation is being shifted by the players to recruitment.

We can only guess if the reporting is correct, but we have to hope it is.

Because, if the players turn against Jaissle, the the downward spiral currently circling around SJP will only get worse and lead to the inevitable; Jaissle being sacked.

A win against Fulham, just as when we beat Crystal Palace, can turn a raging storm into a relative calm in ninety minutes.

Lose, and especially badly, and the storm will whip up to hurricane force and it could see Jaissle blown away.

Last Post: Newcastle's £550M Transfer Mess – Who Is to Blame?

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Jaissle's position was a feature of a NEWSFEED article Will Newcastle Sack Matthias Jaissle? as the media continue to speculate on the future of our young manager.