Beren

Been thinking about my favourite Newcastle XI: Given Albert Woodgate Schar Tiote Solano Guimaraes Joelinton Robert HBA Shearer

Any result wouldn't have been unfair given the performances. Bournemouth are a nasty side to face. They out-Newcastle'd Newcastle home and away I thought. First game, Newcastle were gassed. This game, we constantly invigorated them I thought instead of controlling the pace of them and demoralising them. When Joelinton got injured I thought the remainder of the season was a bit of a dead rubber and just playing from pride. Feel no different. 1 point from 6 against Luton, 1 point from 6 against Bournemouth. 3 from 6 against Forest. Just hope Bruno doesn't feel too shit about nee Europe next year.

A few chances where Newcastle could have hit it first time - like that, but didn't. Sigh.

Great finish tbf.

Bournemouth literally punting it into the left channel of our defence within 30 seconds

That's actually a really good idea. Regret not doing that instead of the very chalky option of triple captain'ing Haaland which is bound to give you absolutely zero edge over 99% of the field who will do the precise same thing.

Villa/Villa Park grousing and moaning is unparalleled.

Well, firstly - I appreciate the non-aggro response, I don't venture into this forum that often - nice to know there's still reasoned discussion to be had To be clear though, I neither expect or demand perfection from a manager. I don't care much at all about one-off mistakes, errors of judgement, bad days at the office etc. Some have suggested "we don't demand a team that wins, we demand a team that tries" has been forgotten, or was never sincere. I still agree with the statement. But, for me, "trying" is the minimum bar for the club - and probably not that aspirational. The Ashley era had a super regressive impact on the club psyche IMO - I struggle to get behind the idea that as long as you give it your all, if it doesn't come off, you throw your hands up in the air and say "it wasn't meant to be". My "want" is success and trophies, and I'm not in the slightest bit ashamed to say that out loud. I'm firmly middle-aged, and I'd love to see Newcastle win a trophy before I get off. I have probably now shed the bulk of the sentimentality I had as a younger fan. (I think it died when Hughton left the club, who ultimately had a lower ceiling than Howe but similarly salvaged a broken NUFC and returned it to top flight football and restored dignity, togetherness and pride - his departure was horrible ). I'm not desperate to see the back of Howe or anything. I don't want to get too HTT about it, so I'll just say this: the scale of positive impact he has brought to the club leaves any negative impact imperceptible to the naked eye. BUT - I do think it's worth exploring other options if they improve our chances of winning a trophy. Those chances are probably better with a manager who can grow/adapt, and I am concerned about about Howe's continued intransigence about not using his squad/substitutes (even when his players are dropping like flies), his unfathomable loyalty to BDB in open games, and not evolving the team's style of play away from outworking opponents (which feels even less sustainable in the long term this season, than it did last season).* These are becoming long-term trends, not isolated issues. * - In his defence, I'm sure his and the club's summer plans have been blown to smithereens by Tonali and the cavalcade of injuries that followed, but there is a fair bit that has been in his control which has left me really confused. But, Tonali and Joelinton being done for the season, and Longstaff looking a shadow of himself from last year are absolute hammerblows. Zooming out, I do think Newcastle are in a really good position to break into the elite with their squad and set-up, but with FFP and Old Money teams seeking to put up more barriers to entry to join the elite - I don't assume that the window for NUFC to capitalise on its position of relative strength will last forever. I think of the likes of Bruno and Isak - these incredible transformative talents - not just in terms of having their heads turned if they don't get European football - but also just getting fucking burnt out playing this attritional style of football that wears away their bodies. There's no guarantee whatsoever last season wasn't the highwater mark for the next decade. I very much hope not, but the talk of "last year being ahead of schedule" feels like a throwback to a different era of football. IMO, you spike into the elite really quickly, or you get stripped to the bone in the summer by Old Money. Sometimes both. Thanks I think If he were to leave for England in the summer, I wouldn't be indifferent but I also don't currently view him in the light of being the sure thing who can take us to the next level. I see him as a great young coach, but flawed (warts on show this year!), with the potential for growth. I could see there being other great candidates who would be attracted to the job and could do a great job too though - so it's not like Pep Guardiola leaving. I will say Howe is a really classy ambassador for the club, and has built a good relationship with the fans - and I don't underestimate the value of that (I very well remember the Pardews, Bruces etc) but it is replicable (Hughton, Benitez etc) and I don't think it's as irreplaceable as it feels right now, maybe. It feels like gold dust post-Ashley though, which makes sense, but I don't see why it can't be normalised. Maybe I'm an idealist. Sorry to disappoint mate.

Big 3 points.

The focus on Burn seems to be having a destabilising impact on the whole defence/team. Gordon is getting pinned back, and the whole backline is getting frazzled and discombobulated in really low pressure situations.

He's been a great unifying spirit for the club and taken us miles from where he found us. And I'm not desperate for him to go - he's not a Pardew - but I am increasingly disappointed by him this season. To the point that if he's poached by England... I'd not be crestfallen. That's just my feeling. There could be better people out there for NUFC for where we want to go. Don't think that's madly controversial.

That's unfortunate. Deflections happen though.

I'd not be devastated if he replaced Southgate if I'm honest. Last season was a 9/10 performance. This year is closer to 5/10.

This is absurd, man.

Great ball from Trippier. Looks like Miggy misjudged the flight of the ball.

This Burn stuff is really reflecting poorly on the meritocracy of the team. This forum knows, the wider fan base knows, the opposition know. Their primary strategy on the break is just to ping the ball optimistically down the left-back channel. There's a way to make the switch without cratering the relationship with Burn as a squad player. Can't fathom why the switch has not been made. Tino is the future, but he should be the present too.

Haha what a screen!

Oh, BDB is playing.

What a crossover

Would love if we broke villa's home form permanently

~ Barkley Alright, keep it in your pants. We'll come get you once we get some money in this summer.

Tbh, playing Burns over the vastly superior Tino in an open-ended game like this is untenable IMO. However beyond that I just can't understand why there was no attempt to dictate the game and there was such a cavalier approach to retaining possession. For this type of game to happen so frequently this season and nothing to be learnt is mind-boggling given all the resources and seriousness with which ownership treats success. Makes an absolute waste of a great performance at Villa. Two steps forward, one step back. Maybe next year.

Luton sweeping Newcastle would have been stomach-turning. This isn't much better tbh.

What a cracking point for Luton. Great in the last 10 minutes. Obvious to everyone except those that mattered that Burns was poorly suited to this game. No Joelinton the rest of the way is going to be painful as shit.

Definitely an element to this, but this goes beyond that 45 minutes for me. Newcastle are often too direct, and don't dictate tempo, make the opposition work for the ball. In certain games - often against better opposition - they seem to have a gameplan around this.