Leicester City 5-0 Newcastle United - 29/09/19 - post match from pg20

[AyeDubbleYoo]

It’s a shame Longstaff is starting to be down-

rated like. We’ve seen what he can do. Aye, he needs good coaching and the right environment, just like every other footballer.

[Consortium of one]

Longstaff needs a lot of coaching too.  He's just a kid for chrissakes.  Bruce throws him out there without a word I'll bet.

 

He's 22 in a month. Look at players in other teams of similar age in similar positions (Tielemans, Ndiddi, McTominay, Mount, Winks, Ndombele, Guendouzi, Torreira, Cantwell - probably forgetting someone) and it's pretty clear he's not where he would want to nor should be. So far this season I think he's looked out of depth and I struggle to put all of that down to coaching. Still young so there's still time of course.

 

And what kind of coaching has he gotten compared to those players?  He came through our youth setup?  Doesn't mean he can't come good but he's no where's near the exposure that other youngsters have.

[Yorkie]

It’s a shame Longstaff is starting to be down-

rated like. We’ve seen what he can do. Aye, he needs good coaching and the right environment, just like every other footballer.

 

I'm trying to think if there's anything he especially excelled at in that run of games. He was playing very well, like, but I'm wondering if he's just 'neat and tidy' - which obviously means he's not going to excel in a rubbish team where no one knows where they're supposed to be. He made a brilliant start to his career, regardless; feels now like he needs to leave urgently if he's going to fulfil whatever potential he's got.

 

It's an enormous shame, like. The team had deficiencies, of course, but absolutely masses of promise under Rafa. We could easily have been staking a claim up there with the likes of West Ham and Bournemouth. Easily. Maybe even Leicester if we'd got lucky with a couple of quality signings who hit the ground running straight away.

 

Doubt there'll ever be a greater tragedy in my lifetime than us getting Rafa and then just chucking him away. He was about as close as Newcastle United - a community behemoth in the North East with global appeal and a profound heritage - could get to guaranteed success. But we weren't allowed that cos some bloke from Buckinghamshire who's a bit of a dick isn't that into football.

[Conjo]

Longstaff needs a lot of coaching too.  He's just a kid for chrissakes.  Bruce throws him out there without a word I'll bet.

 

He's 22 in a month. Look at players in other teams of similar age in similar positions (Tielemans, Ndiddi, McTominay, Mount, Winks, Ndombele, Guendouzi, Torreira, Cantwell - probably forgetting someone) and it's pretty clear he's not where he would want to nor should be. So far this season I think he's looked out of depth and I struggle to put all of that down to coaching. Still young so there's still time of course.

 

And what kind of coaching has he gotten compared to those players?  He came through our youth setup?  Doesn't mean he can't come good but he's no where's near the exposure that other youngsters have.

 

True

[huss9]

fucking hell we miss diame. even as a sub.

[Johneddy]

It’s a shame Longstaff is starting to be down-

rated like. We’ve seen what he can do. Aye, he needs good coaching and the right environment, just like every other footballer.

 

I agree with this Rafa was perfect for young talent under Bruce they have no direction whatsoever

[Gallowgate End]

It’s a shame Longstaff is starting to be down-

rated like. We’ve seen what he can do. Aye, he needs good coaching and the right environment, just like every other footballer.

 

I agree with this Rafa was perfect for young talent under Bruce they have no direction whatsoever

 

I remember people saying Rafa got lucky with Longstaff as if he had nothing to do with his rise & had nothing to do with his understanding of the pivot role.

 

He looked so well coached/drilled.

 

The Man City game and Wolves away game in particular.

[Chapo]

The first half of this game was the only time that I’ve seen Longstaff play this season. It appeared clear to me that he was nowhere near match fit.

[ujpest doza]

The first half of this game was the only time that I’ve seen Longstaff play this season. It appeared clear to me that he was nowhere near match fit.

That's my take on it too.

 

shouldn't have started imo, Ki should have and longstaff on the bench.

 

[Guest]

It’s a shame Longstaff is starting to be down-

rated like. We’ve seen what he can do. Aye, he needs good coaching and the right environment, just like every other footballer.

 

I'm trying to think if there's anything he especially excelled at in that run of games. He was playing very well, like, but I'm wondering if he's just 'neat and tidy' - which obviously means he's not going to excel in a rubbish team where no one knows where they're supposed to be. He made a brilliant start to his career, regardless; feels now like he needs to leave urgently if he's going to fulfil whatever potential he's got.

 

It's an enormous shame, like. The team had deficiencies, of course, but absolutely masses of promise under Rafa. We could easily have been staking a claim up there with the likes of West Ham and Bournemouth. Easily. Maybe even Leicester if we'd got lucky with a couple of quality signings who hit the ground running straight away.

 

Doubt there'll ever be a greater tragedy in my lifetime than us getting Rafa and then just chucking him away. He was about as close as Newcastle United - a community behemoth in the North East with global appeal and a profound heritage - could get to guaranteed success. But we weren't allowed that cos some bloke from Buckinghamshire who's a bit of a dick isn't that into football.

 

See Winks, McTominay, Rice.

[Darth Crooks]

It’s a shame Longstaff is starting to be down-

rated like. We’ve seen what he can do. Aye, he needs good coaching and the right environment, just like every other footballer.

 

I'm trying to think if there's anything he especially excelled at in that run of games. He was playing very well, like, but I'm wondering if he's just 'neat and tidy' - which obviously means he's not going to excel in a rubbish team where no one knows where they're supposed to be. He made a brilliant start to his career, regardless; feels now like he needs to leave urgently if he's going to fulfil whatever potential he's got.

 

It's an enormous shame, like. The team had deficiencies, of course, but absolutely masses of promise under Rafa. We could easily have been staking a claim up there with the likes of West Ham and Bournemouth. Easily. Maybe even Leicester if we'd got lucky with a couple of quality signings who hit the ground running straight away.

 

Doubt there'll ever be a greater tragedy in my lifetime than us getting Rafa and then just chucking him away. He was about as close as Newcastle United - a community behemoth in the North East with global appeal and a profound heritage - could get to guaranteed success. But we weren't allowed that cos some bloke from Buckinghamshire who's a bit of a dick isn't that into football.

 

See Winks, McTominay, Rice.

 

Cleese. Everett...Sessions...

[TRon]

It’s a shame Longstaff is starting to be down-

rated like. We’ve seen what he can do. Aye, he needs good coaching and the right environment, just like every other footballer.

 

I'm trying to think if there's anything he especially excelled at in that run of games. He was playing very well, like, but I'm wondering if he's just 'neat and tidy' - which obviously means he's not going to excel in a rubbish team where no one knows where they're supposed to be. He made a brilliant start to his career, regardless; feels now like he needs to leave urgently if he's going to fulfil whatever potential he's got.

 

It's an enormous shame, like. The team had deficiencies, of course, but absolutely masses of promise under Rafa. We could easily have been staking a claim up there with the likes of West Ham and Bournemouth. Easily. Maybe even Leicester if we'd got lucky with a couple of quality signings who hit the ground running straight away.

 

Doubt there'll ever be a greater tragedy in my lifetime than us getting Rafa and then just chucking him away. He was about as close as Newcastle United - a community behemoth in the North East with global appeal and a profound heritage - could get to guaranteed success. But we weren't allowed that cos some bloke from Buckinghamshire who's a bit of a dick isn't that into football.

 

He looked after the ball very well under pressure, I remember being impressed by that. But with Rafa we played very compact, and he got a lot of support from those around him. He's also got quite a languid style, so I'm not sure it will translate into a 4-4-2 where the central midfielders need to have plenty of mobility.

 

Really hard to tell at the moment, we are playing like a bunch of strangers chucked together with no instruction. Even players who were excelling last season such as Schar look lost.

[Conjo]

It’s a shame Longstaff is starting to be down-

rated like. We’ve seen what he can do. Aye, he needs good coaching and the right environment, just like every other footballer.

 

I'm trying to think if there's anything he especially excelled at in that run of games. He was playing very well, like, but I'm wondering if he's just 'neat and tidy' - which obviously means he's not going to excel in a rubbish team where no one knows where they're supposed to be. He made a brilliant start to his career, regardless; feels now like he needs to leave urgently if he's going to fulfil whatever potential he's got.

 

It's an enormous shame, like. The team had deficiencies, of course, but absolutely masses of promise under Rafa. We could easily have been staking a claim up there with the likes of West Ham and Bournemouth. Easily. Maybe even Leicester if we'd got lucky with a couple of quality signings who hit the ground running straight away.

 

Doubt there'll ever be a greater tragedy in my lifetime than us getting Rafa and then just chucking him away. He was about as close as Newcastle United - a community behemoth in the North East with global appeal and a profound heritage - could get to guaranteed success. But we weren't allowed that cos some bloke from Buckinghamshire who's a bit of a dick isn't that into football.

 

For me it was his awareness that struck me the most. He never seemed to get caught out by a pressing opposition no matter what angle they were closing him down from. He just elegantly created some space for himself and moved the ball forward. He also had a really good right foot with the ability to score from outside the box, which he also showed during his stint with Blackpool, and also a fantastic technique when crossing from wide right position.

[Kanj]

Conjo[/member] 100% agreed. He was so smooth on the ball to be honest. He also covered an immense amount of ground, Cabaye-esque in that regard.

 

Yorkie[/member] god damn it, couldn't agree with you more about that tragedy line. still shook over the Rafa thing man...I was thinking about it on Sunday during the match. Keep that team in tact he ended the season with and add less than a handful of players and we'd be doing brilliantly well, IMO.

[Dinho lad]

Conjo[/member] 100% agreed. He was so smooth on the ball to be honest. He also covered an immense amount of ground, Cabaye-esque in that regard.

 

Yorkie[/member] god damn it, couldn't agree with you more about that tragedy line. still shook over the Rafa thing man...I was thinking about it on Sunday during the match. Keep that team in tact he ended the season with and add less than a handful of players and we'd be doing brilliantly well, IMO.

 

Cabaye who wasn't the most athletic and mobile?

[Conjo]

Conjo[/member] 100% agreed. He was so smooth on the ball to be honest. He also covered an immense amount of ground, Cabaye-esque in that regard.

 

Yorkie[/member] god damn it, couldn't agree with you more about that tragedy line. still shook over the Rafa thing man...I was thinking about it on Sunday during the match. Keep that team in tact he ended the season with and add less than a handful of players and we'd be doing brilliantly well, IMO.

 

Cabaye who wasn't the most athletic and mobile?

 

Don't think it was meant as in that Longstaff was or is particularly athletic and mobile.

 

Watch "Sean Longstaff | Season Review 18/19" and the clips 01:05 - 01:21 for examples of what I meant with his awareness and elegantly making space for himself to release the ball forward.

 

Watch the entire video actually. Can't believe it's the same player we are seeing this season.

[Jimburst]

That video shows how far our team has fallen in confidence and organisation. Like you say, totally different player.

[peder]

Let’s start with a statistic, if only to give you something before it all gets a bit ranty. Rafael Benitez managed Newcastle United for 146 matches, and in that time they conceded more than three goals in a match on two occasions. The first of those was a 4-1 defeat at Old Trafford in November 2017, when Newcastle took the lead but eventually succumbed to United’s pressure in the second half. The second was in December 2018, when Liverpool scored two goals in the final 12 minutes at Anfield to beat Newcastle 4-0.

 

That is important, because it partly explains Benitez’s reason for often playing defensive football in away matches that Newcastle were favourites to lose. He figured that the chance of winning away at Big Six clubs was far smaller than the chance of getting a thumping, and a thumping can cause lasting psychological damage on the squad.

 

Even at the start of last season, when Newcastle were wretched, Benitez will argue that he was working on defensive organisation that would benefit the team later in the season. Only with that organisation in place could Newcastle look to attack. Over the last 16 league games of last season, only four teams scored more goals than Newcastle. They were transformed because they had a platform from which to attack.

 

Then there was a process. Now there is nothing. It isn’t just that Newcastle conceded five for the first time since the month before Benitez arrived. It isn’t just that this was a team that has had all the useful elements that Benitez forged unpicked and dismantled. It isn’t just that Steve Bruce is consistently picking players out of position, and then saying after the match that tactics are “nonsense” and it’s all about playing with pride despite Newcastle showing none of that either. It isn’t just that Bruce has a £40m centre forward that Benitez warned the club would be worse than Salomon Rondon and already looks vindicated on that point.

 

It’s that this was so utterly predictable from the moment it started. Bruce is not the disease, merely a symptom thereof. Newcastle allowed Benitez, the most capable manager they have had in 20 years, to walk because they couldn’t muster enough competence to convince him to stay. Benitez didn’t want vast transfer budgets. He didn’t even want the club to be jolted forward, merely pointed in the right direction. And in his place they appointed a Championship-level manager because he was likely to say yes and come cheap. This disarray is the result of that strategy.

 

Newcastle’s players have got worse since last season. The defence is far more open without Benitez’s defensive coordination (they have already conceded almost 30% of last season’s goal total). Sean Longstaff, Miguel Almiron and Isaac Hayden have all suffered a drop in form that coincides with the new manager’s arrival. Newcastle offer little as a counter-attacking threat. They are making individual and collective mistakes that Premier League teams are too good not to punish.

 

Finally, spare me the ‘poor Steve Bruce’ angle that I’ve seen in some places. He backed himself to do this job, and he deserves to be judged on what happens on the pitch as Benitez was. And what took place on Sunday was a total abdication of responsibility. The “tactics nonsense” quotes speak of a manager out of his depth and out of step with the modern Premier League.

 

This wasn’t a Leicester victory through excellence, because they did not need to be excellent. It was a victory through surrender. Leicester exploited the obvious flaws and Newcastle were lucky that they stopped pushing on at 4-0. The worst a struggling team should be is hard to break down. And goodness me, Bruce should know that more than most managers.

 

This might get a little better. Newcastle will not be drubbed every week and they may claw a few more unexpected points over this tricky run of fixtures. But make no mistake, they are now battling for survival and no well-timed takeover rumours will appease the wrath of supporters if the worst befalls them. Newcastle have been sleep-walking for half a decade. Maybe Benitez was the only thing stopping them slipping into a coma

[Guest chopey]

Great post

[AyeDubbleYoo]

He was working on it in the Championship, when people were telling him to open up and thrash teams.

[Conjo]

He was working on it in the Championship, when people were telling him to open up and thrash teams.

 

This. I'm convinced that the season of preparation in the championship, sticking to a certain game plan and focussing on organisation and shape was the foundation for the good first season back in the premier league although he in theory could have played more attacking and gotten more high scoring results with the squad that was at his disposal.

[Greg]

He was working on it in the Championship, when people were telling him to open up and thrash teams.

 

This. I'm convinced that the season of preparation in the championship, sticking to a certain game plan and focussing on organisation and shape was the foundation for the good first season back in the premier league although he in theory could have played more attacking and gotten more high scoring results with the squad that was at his disposal.

 

Agreed.

[Paully]

He was working on it in the Championship, when people were telling him to open up and thrash teams.

 

This. I'm convinced that the season of preparation in the championship, sticking to a certain game plan and focussing on organisation and shape was the foundation for the good first season back in the premier league although he in theory could have played more attacking and gotten more high scoring results with the squad that was at his disposal.

 

100% correct!

[ToonArmy1892]

We thrashed QPR away.

[Gallowgate End]

We thrashed QPR away.

 

And were Championship top scorers.