£550M Spent – And Newcastle United Are Worse Than Before
Regular readers will know that I have championed buying older experienced players with a quality pedigree even during Eddie's time.
For me, it beggars belief that after selling Bruno and Tonali leaving just Jo from our established mid three, that we effectively signed Stuer and Bamba as their replacements.
Who sat down and planned out this summer's signing strategy after the lessons that should have been learnt from last summer's debacle - and in the knowledge that Trippier, Gordon and Tonali would definitely be leaving?
Who sat down, if they did, and revisited that plan once it was obvious Bruno would also be off and Eddie Howe jacked in?
Who decided that the best person to replace Eddie and take on the massive task ahead was a young manager from the Saudi League with no PL experience?
Getting the decisions above right, at every senior management level in business, are what separate going forward from going backwards and as it stands currently Hopkinson and Wilson have to be the main two in the firing line. Not Jaissle,
Did Hopkinson and Wilson really believe that Ramsey and Willock would step up and perform in the place of Bruno and Tonali while the young lads bedded in?
Did they really believe that never mind not needing PL experienced pedigree players to guide us through a huge transition period, that we also didn't need a PL manager with a similar pedigree?
On players...
Gonzalez was added, but only after Jaissle arrived and although he did reasonably well at City stepping in for the injured Rodri he is not the inspirational leader type with the pedigree of, dare I say it, Xhaka who did a fantastic job last season helping Sunderland's young signings.
Last night, and all this season, who is the fist shaking driving force in the team?
Who is the player who can be depended on to demand the ball in midfield, retain possession and keep us moving forward in an aggressive way?
That's what Bruno did.
But no one other than Steur gets near that now - and he has hardly been given minutes recently.
Whichever eleven Jaissle puts on the pitch, in whatever formation, it is a shadow of what Newcastle were at the end of the 24/25 season.
That in no way excuses the performance of individual players last night or the selection, tactics, and formations that Jaissle has used since arriving at the club.
But the fact is we are almost totally devoid of even one player, especially in midfield and attack, who can produce with any expectancy or consistency those moments of quality that can turn and decide a match as Isak, Gordon, Bruno and Tonali could.
Jaissle has been dealt a hand of duff cards and is being asked to go all in at the PL poker game.
It's been repeated, but I'll repeat it again...
The last two season's signings have been abysmal.
Not one player has been better than what we already had and most have been worse.
Every team makes bad signings that don't turn out right...
But whoever was responsible for the pig's ear of a transfer policy and the signings made for c£550M over the last two windows that has not improved the squad one iota needs to carry the major part of the blame for where NUFC is now...
And where we might end up.
Trying to offload some of the flops will be almost impossible because of the huge losses we will have to take plus the huge wages that other clubs won't pay in any event to sign them.
I called this an absolute mess a couple of days ago and some said I was exaggerating...
Well, I stand by what I said.
£550M spent in c15 months has given us the team that took the pitch last night?
If that isn't a mess...
What is it?
Cheer yourself up by having a laugh at our Geordie Humour T Shirts :)
@JfA
We’ve been absolutely gash this season, yet we’re on the same number of points at this stage as we were last season.
Eddie did punch above his weight with us and isak ,bruno and one or two others carried a group of bang average players on the whole
''People clamoring for Eddie Howe to come back must have been watching different football to me last season. ''
There's no denying last season was very poor but none of you calling for his head would believe there were underlying issues, he kept us punching well above our weight.
Unfortunately @Barry Paul Henry we keep saying if we win this one..... there isn't any signs of improvement and bar the Hull game first half and fifteen minutes at Palace, performances have got consistently worse, not better,
RIP, the Spanish Tenerife player killed in the collision with that keeper.
It was reckless and violent and it's still on the net if you want to make a judgement.
People are saying Owona, the keeper, should be prosecuted for manslaughter. Spanish authorities investigating.
I don't know.
Tragic for that footballer.