It is a new season and a new era for Newcastle United, which is something we’ve written a few times over the past couple of years. There has been change in the boardroom, a replacement for Dan Ashworth has been hired, there has been angst about selling players and some of that uncertainty is still to settle down. Upheaval has never been far away.
That sense of change has yet to trickle down to the pitch. Although Newcastle have signed five players this summer — Lewis Hall, whose loan from Chelsea was converted into a permanent deal, is one of them — their first-choice side resembles that of last season. Additions will follow, but there will be little time for them to bed in.
Still, there are no excuses. That is not a world the post-takeover Newcastle operates in. Refreshed after last season’s injuries and with no Europe to stretch them, they expect to feature at the very top end of the Premier League.
Summer and pre-season have been…
Tough, draining in places and full of change.
There was a post-season trip to Australia, Manchester United nabbing a place in Europe by winning the FA Cup, that desperate race to comply with the Premier League’s profit and sustainability rules (PSR), the surprise departure of co-owners Amanda Staveley and Mehrdad Ghodoussi and the arrival of Paul Mitchell as sporting director. It has been a summer of flux, one Eddie Howe has described as “very difficult”.
There was also a training camp in Germany and a two-game trip to Japan, which was very hot but also rewarding as the club continues to expand its outlook and operations. It hasn’t felt like much of a break, but there is a mood of renewed determination.
Dan Burn during Newcastle’s Japan tour (Masashi Hara/Getty Images)
Are they in a better place than last season?
It’s difficult to gauge. Staveley leaving makes Newcastle feel different — less intimate, less emotional and less connected. Howe has felt that and relationships are still being tested and ironed out. That tight togetherness has been Newcastle’s USP, from boardroom to dressing room, and it has worked for them. It doesn’t mean what follows will automatically work less well, but it does mean adjustment.
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On the other hand, it has also been an opportunity to reset. A chronic list of injuries meant Newcastle spent much of last season on the back foot and by having players fit and available, they immediately become stronger. No European competition is a blow, but it gives the head coach more time on the training pitch and a long lead-in to matches, which is also quite exciting. Bringing in a replacement for Ashworth was important, but they still have work to do in the transfer market.
Which player are you most looking forward to watching?
Alexander Isak looks as if he is ready to step up another level — what does that even look like? — but for me, it’s Sandro Tonali. The Italy international, who was signed from AC Milan with great fanfare last summer, is approaching the end of his 10-month suspension for betting offences. Tonali views this season as a fresh start. If he returns up to speed with Howe’s demands and style of play, the prospect is dribble-emoji levels of enticing.
Tonali training in Tokyo (Yuichi Yamazaki/AFP/Getty Images)
The player with a point to prove is…
With a nod to Harvey Barnes, whose debut season on Tyneside was badly disrupted by injury, see above. Tonali was showered with love from fans and from within the club after admitting to a gambling addiction. There has been no judgement, only support. By all accounts, he is raring to go. Roll on Tottenham Hotspur on September 1.
Which player could have a breakout season?
William Osula did not have the most impressive stats for Sheffield United in the Premier League last season — no goals from 21 appearances — but forward is a position Newcastle needed more depth in and the Denmark Under-21 international has a lot of promise. Howe is an admirer of the player’s physique and raw ability and developing players is his great strength.
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The deal they still need to do this window
Aside from right centre-half (see below), signing a right-winger has been a priority for several windows. Howe’s leading target was Michael Olise, who joined Bayern Munich. Newcastle have also had interest in Anthony Elanga of Nottingham Forest, Chelsea’s Noni Madueke and Nicolas Gonzalez, Fiorentina’s Argentina international. Newcastle still need to sell, too.
The futures of Kieran Trippier and Marc Guehi are prompting speculation (Ina Fassbender/AFP/Getty Images)
Which Euros or Copa America player would be an ideal signing?
Newcastle have been pursuing Crystal Palace’s Marc Guehi for what feels like forever but is actually only a couple of weeks. He would represent another statement. There have been a few of those since the takeover — Kieran Trippier, Bruno Guimaraes, Isak, Tonali — but signing an England international who has just enjoyed a solid European Championship would be a big deal. Shades of Jonathan Woodgate under Sir Bobby Robson, but time is ticking and Newcastle have been looking at alternatives.
The game I’m most looking forward to is…
It’s always the first game at home, this time Southampton on the opening weekend. The grass is always greener, St James’ Park is always buzzing, you gaze around and realise how much you’ve missed the old place and you look to the team to set a tone. Last season’s 5-1 steamrollering of Aston Villa certainly felt like that, although it was a bit of a mirage. Look to Newcastle to press high and attempt to win the ball back early. This will be their style.
And the games against Liverpool, too. Newcastle have secured victories over every other big club recently. They owe them one (or several).
The stat to watch out for this season
The obvious thing is days lost to injuries. Newcastle were top of that list in the Premier League last season and it cost them dearly. It impacted everything, including their away form, which, for a team of their standing, was desperately poor. They were beaten 11 times on the road in the league. Only Sheffield United, Luton Town (both relegated) and Brentford lost more and, for all the mitigation, that isn’t good enough. At their best, Howe’s Newcastle are fierce, not soft touches.
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How likely is the manager to survive the season?
Those links with the England job were not hot air. They recognised the exceptional work Howe has done with Newcastle, taking them from the relegation places into the Champions League and to competing against the best teams in the division. Wider than that, he understands the club and has connected with supporters in a powerful way. He is already one of the most important figures in the club’s recent history.
Eddie Howe with Harvey Barnes in Japan (Masashi Hara/Getty Images)
Staveley described him as the “perfect” manager for Newcastle and “11 out of 10 every day”, but she has gone, meaning he has lost his closest and most supportive boardroom ally.
“We love him,” Darren Eales, the chief executive, said about Howe recently, but how would a reshaped club respond to another season like the last one, which had some sticky episodes and proved a struggle when injuries bit? Howe has done more than enough to earn leeway and understanding, but the simple answer is we don’t know.
What is their best XI as things stand?
Given the lack of premium new arrivals, Tonali’s lingering suspension and Sven Botman’s anterior cruciate ligament injury, which will keep him out for a little while longer, this is the team I reckon will probably start against Southampton as opposed to Newcastle’s best.
Trippier, who has been strongly linked with a move to Saudi Arabia, has only played part of one pre-season match, so Tino Livramento is likely to begin at right-back. Joe Willock’s minutes are still being rationed after injury, so Sean Longstaff keeps his place and, further up the pitch, Jacob Murphy’s five goals in pre-season is enough for him to see off Miguel Almiron.
A good season means…
No long-term injuries please and qualifying for European football, a minimum target that has been expressed explicitly. “We expect to be in Europe,” Eales has said. “That has to be the aim.”
Having got to the Carabao Cup final in Howe’s first full season, Newcastle reached the quarter-finals in both domestic cups last time. We don’t need a reminder about how long it is since the club actually won something, but come on. It’s time. Finally. Surely. Maybe?
Predicted league finish
It’s August, the sun’s out, f*** it: fifth.
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(Top photos: Daniel Pockett and Masashi Hara via Getty Images)
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