This is not a disaster for Newcastle United – I repeat – This is not a disaster for Newcastle United | OneFootball

There is a desperation to portray this Newcastle United as a complete disaster.

It isn’t.

A disappointment? Yes, in a number of ways. Frustrating? Absolutely!

That doesn’t though necessarily equal a disaster.

I can totally understand journalists, pundits and rival fans so desperate to say 2023/24 is total disaster for Newcastle United fans. What’s new?

However, when I hear certain Newcastle United fans so desperate to do this, what’s that all about?

This is not a disaster for Newcastle United – I repeat – This is not a disaster for Newcastle United.

Yes, expectations were raised by last season’s four place finish, qualification for the Champions League, getting to Wembley.

Despite those very same journalists, pundits and rival fans writing off NUFC’s chances of doing similar, or even better, this season, I didn’t share that negativity, that supposed reality check, whatever you want to call it.

I didn’t think it was a fluke what happened last season, it was something that United could repeat and even potentially improve upon. Especially with the addition of quality signings such as Tino Livramento, Sandro Tonali and Harvey Barnes. As Eddie Howe looked to reinforce a squad so it could cope with the demands of playing pretty much every midweek and especially the Champions League campaign.

For those who claim it is too many games that has left us disappointed and frustrated, it is simply not true.

It is too many games AND too few players available to play in them, that eventually just became too much for any manager and squad to deal with AND keep the same levels.

The thing is, despite a crazy number of injuries having built up and the stab to the heart revelation that star summer signing Sandro Tonali was going to miss pretty much all of the season, Newcastle United HAD dealt with great success, the demands of so many games in quick succession, playing every midweek.

When we got to the weekend of Saturday 2 December and defeated and totally outplayed Man U, who were ridiculously lucky to lose only 1-0. That latest win saw Newcastle United fifth in the Premier League and just one win away from the last 16 of the Champions League and one victory away from the semi-finals of the League Cup.

However, that freak injury to Nick Pope towards the end of that win over Man U, tipped us over the edge, then weeks later the freak Joelinton injury picked up against the Mackems was the final sickener in a season where the fates had conspired against us.

It is beyond belief really, when you read the provocative headlines…

‘What on earth has gone wrong at Newcastle United?’

‘It has all gone wrong for Eddie Howe, time for him to go’

‘Newcastle United have totally fallen away, why the collapse?’

They know ABSOLUTELY what has gone wrong, why this season has ended up as it has.

As for Newcastle United fans thrashing around like a fish out of water, getting hysterical, demanding to know why results aren’t what they should be. What a total embarrassment they are.

You can point to whatever else you want to BUT the simple fact is that with all these key players and squad players missing for so many matches, it has been impossible for Eddie Howe to repeat what happened last season.

As things stand, Newcastle United are currently 13 points worse off than they were after 28 Premier League matches last season. With even only half a disaster where injuries have been concerned, I could have seen Newcastle United definitely having picked up 13 points more than has been the case. Just look at the matches against Forest, Bournemouth and Luton, 13 points dropped against that trio for starters.

I honestly don’t understand why the natural instinct of ALL Newcastle United fans isn’t to stand with Eddie Howe and this group of players. To take it on the chin that this season has proved impossible, due overwhelmingly to matters beyond their control.

Yes, of course you can maybe in hindsight point to this and that decision, but in reality they would have made little or no difference, if doing things differently. Indeed, I think the reality for me is that Eddie Howe and his players have done far BETTER  than could have been expected in these circumstances this season.

As I say, yes we can feel disappointed and frustrated but that does not equal this season having been a disaster.

I am not accepting going back to old Mike Ashley measurements BUT how many times in however many decades have Newcastle United reached the ‘magical’ 40 points safety mark after only 27 matches. I am NOT saying that is the level of our ambitions now but 40 points after 27 PL matches was not evidence of any disaster, especially when we take the months and months of so many missing players into account.

Why different to last season you say?

As for the cup competitions, this is surely where the media and some of our fans pretending to not understand how thing have turned out as they have, really does my head in.

Last season, Newcastle United got to a cup final for the first time in 24 years on the back of having been drawn away to a League Two side, then drawn at home to three bottom half of the table Premier League sides, before then a home and away semi-final against a team who would be relegated rock bottom of the Premier League, 11 points off safety.

In total in domestic cup competitions last season, the only away draws were against teams in League One and League Two, then the other four were against four poor Premier League clubs of which two were relegated, with the only other way game the away leg of the semi at Southampton.

So exactly what is different this season…?

Seven domestic cup draws and the only home one against Man City.

Then the six away ones against Man City, Man U, Chelsea, Fulham, local rivals Sunderland who were sixth in the second tier when we played them, plus Championship side Blackburn.

Then to top it all off, everybody absolutely accepted at the time of the draw, that Newcastle United couldn’t have had it tougher in the Champions League when drawn against PSG, AC Milan and Borussia Dortmund.

I absolutely believe that Eddie Howe and his squad should be given massive credit for how they have done this season, especially in the cup competitions, despite the unprecedented number of unavailable players for five months or more.

Losing away to Man City and Chelsea in the two domestic quarter-finals and coming so close (a world class save by AC Milan keeper from Bruno in the closing stages of the final group match) to getting to the last 16 of the Champions League.

Of course it was disappointing and frustrating to not go further but it wasn’t a disaster.

A disaster would be Eddie Howe and our many quality player leaving, rather than getting ready to go again next season and bring in some extra quality to help that effort.

Newcastle United are still a club that is massively in transition, recovering from a decade and a half of the place falling apart under Ashley.

Win these two home games against West Ham and Everton, then attack the remaining eight matches and it should be a minimum of seventh at the end of the season and more European football to look forward to, never mind what could be possible next season if Eddie Howe gets a fair degree of luck with available players.

Disaster isn’t a frying pan catching fire, it is if you then make the situation so much worse and it ends up that the frying pan on fire, then burns your whole house down.