This feels massive for Newcastle United

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The Mag

·17 October 2024

This feels massive for Newcastle United

It is Newcastle v Brighton on Saturday.

I know it is daft actually saying this BUT I also think in many ways it is the reality.

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This match feels massive for Newcastle United.

A real pivotal moment.

Even though it is only the eighth Premier League match of the season.

Newcastle United and their fans find themselves in a really strange position.

A cloud of negativity continuing to hang over the club and that has been the case for months. Some of it justified, much of it not.

Yet the media and indeed many of our own fans, continue with it, despite only one defeat on the pitch in over five months.

Since losing at Old Trafford on 15 May 2024, Newcastle United have won six, drawn three and lost just once yet it feels to me, like we need one of those great days at St James’ Park where players and fans come together to blow away the opposition.

We had the PSR drama/nightmare and enforced sales of two promising young players at the end of June and a summer of frustration in the main when it came to the transfer window overall. The failure to sign Marc Guehi, or any other major additional signing on top of the early business as the window drew to a close, sent Newcastle United into the season without great momentum.

The fact that the transfer window didn’t finally close until some weeks into the season didn’t help at all either. Even the fact that the constant media claims that Newcastle United were going to lose Bruno, Isak and Gordon, proved to have no foundation, still didn’t lift that black cloud hanging over NUFC.

We went straight from the transfer window closing into a lengthy informal interview that recently appointed Director of Football Paul Mitchell did with NUFC journalists. A few loose comments were seized upon and ridiculously overplayed and exaggerated, in my opinion. Anything else said in the interview barely registering, as the negative storylines put out, were endlessly repeated by other media. Which is the way it is now.

This is a lot easier to do and for it to happen, when there was already that negativity hangover from the summer.

Which brings me/us to Newcastle v Brighton.

We stand here with Newcastle United having won twice to advance to the last 16 of the Carabao Cup, as well as losing only once this season in the Premier League, sitting seventh and only two points off the top four. Also, having played four away and three at home.

We also had, certainly in my opinion, two much improved performances in the last two Premier League games.

It was excellent against Man City, fully deserving a point and if Newcastle United had won, then nobody could have claimed it was lucky. Whilst a lot of nonsense talked about it having been a poor display at Goodison Park, that simply wasn’t the case. Newcastle United battered Everton (42 touches of the ball in their box, compared to Everton having only 12 in the NUFC box, Newcastle with 67% possession and a corner count of 10 v 0), we just didn’t take advantage in the final third, with bad luck and two really bad fails from Anthony Gordon the stand out moments which really should have meant a win and not a draw. That though doesn’t mean a bad team performance, just not taking advantage in that final third.

So again, this brings me to Newcastle v Brighton.

We have even had to deal with nonsense in this latest international window, with a load of nonsense said and written about Eddie Howe, even though he has constantly made clear he wasn’t interested in leaving Newcastle United for England.

What we need is this convincing win and performance against Brighton, to draw a line on so much of the negativity, lift that black cloud over St James’ Park, even though much of it isn’t justified.

Newcastle v Brighton is perfect as well in so many ways, as compared to other opposition.

They are above us on goal difference and so a win would take Newcastle United three points above Brighton, it would guarantee moving into the top six, whilst if Chelsea and/or Villa falter this weekend, it would be top four or five for Newcastle coming out of this weekend.

I think reality is that only really performances on the pitch and results, can really properly change any negative narrative.

The fact as well that so many people, including many Newcastle United fans, have gone on like we’ve lost the next Pele or Maradona, has been a bit laughable where Yankuba Minteh is concerned. Yes it wasn’t at all ideal that he and Elliot Anderson had to be sold, BUT far better than selling Anthony Gordon and/or Bruno Guimaraes.

So demolishing Brighton and at the same time giving a bit of reality to what we have really lost in Yankuba Minteh, if he plays, would be a significant bonus.

The way the match schedule have fallen, it would be perfect timing as well, as we then go into a double header with Chelsea and then Arsenal following that.

So a convincing Newcastle v Brighton day on Saturday would be ideal preparation and give the momentum and confidence. Not forgetting as well that it was around this time of the year 12 months ago, when Eddie Howe’s side defeated both Chelsea and Arsenal at St James’ Park.

It is what happens on the pitch that counts and everything crossed that on Saturday we experience that with Newcastle v Brighton.

Newcastle United upcoming matches confirmed to end of January 2025:

Saturday 19 October – Newcastle v Brighton (3pm)

Sunday 27 October – Chelsea v Newcastle (2pm) Sky Sports

Wednesday 30 October – Newcastle v Chelsea (7.45pm) Sky Sports+

Saturday 2 November – Newcastle v Arsenal (12.30pm) TNT Sports

Sunday 10 November – Forest v Newcastle (2pm) Sky Sports

Monday 25 November – Newcastle v West Ham (8pm) Sky Sports

Saturday 30 November – Crystal Palace v Newcastle

Wednesday 4 December – Newcastle v Liverpool (7.30pm) Amazon

Saturday 7 December – Brentford v Newcastle (3pm)

Saturday 14 December – Newcastle v Leicester (3pm)