What others think of Newcastle United and the club’s supporters – Manchester City fans kick this off | OneFootball

It’s midnight and I’m wide awake, looking at the moon.

There was a time when I had a guaranteed way to help me sleep, but that was pre-heart attack and a defibrillator.

These days no amount of puppy dog eyes is going to work on wifey. “Forget it, you are not going into cardiac arrest on top of me, pet.”

Therefore, I find myself back looking at the moon and deciding what my next article should be about.

Now after doing this over 100 times, I can tell you it is not getting any easier.

Then about 1am I have a light bulb moment. Why don’t I get other people to write it for me?

Let me explain.

I work for a mega humongous Company. It employs around half a million people. To put that number into context, it is nearly as many people who would cram into Idols bar before a match in 1996.

What that means is that I work with people from all over the place, from Inverness to Southampton. All of them have expressed their views about our club to me in the past, many a time over a pint, so I thought, why not share them with you?

I sent them a few questions to look at and I was surprised at the amount of responses I got. I reckon that with the editor’s agreement, I have enough material for this to go on for a while.

A bit like Game of Thrones, but without the incest, decapitations, and dead blokes riding a horse.

Just remember that these answers are between friends, so I reckon there may be a few wind-ups in amongst the answers but even so, hopefully it will give us an idea as to how others perceive us.

So let’s start with Manchester City fans.

One is an old school 64-year-old, around since the days of Lee, Bell and Summerbee, while the other is a new money 30-year-old. To their credit, both are from Manchester.

Old school Manchester City fan answering the questions:

Did you think of Newcastle United as a “big club” before the takeover?

Firstly, Newcastle will always be a big club.

They may not have achieved what other clubs have and it’s been a hard couple of decades but now hopefully they will have the financial backing to bring trophies back to the club.

Do Newcastle need to move out of the city to an 80k mega ground, in order to ‘develop the club’, or should they settle for a small increase on St James’ Park (up to 58k or so)?

As an opposing fan, St James’ Park is a fabulous football ground, scary at times but a true bear pit where you can feel the passion oozing from the terraces which is intoxicating for the away fans as well. One of the true “got to go to” away games.

It may be lost by a move.

What did you make of Mike Ashley’s time in charge of Newcastle United and what did you think of the way Newcastle fans hated him?

I totally understand the fans’ hatred of Ashley. We didn’t even like him for what he did at Newcastle, so God knows how you felt.

How well did you think Steve Bruce did as manager of the club? Were the new owners right to sack him when they arrived?

When new owners come to a club they have a vision and a plan already developed, which sometimes means changes are inevitable to advance forward. Managers are usually the first to fall.

Is Eddie Howe the next England manager?

I hope not for Newcastle and I always think it’s a poisoned chalice no matter how well you do.

Does he want it, or does he want to stay and develop Newcastle’s footballing style, which I think will bring him far more enjoyment and satisfaction. And out of the newspapers!

How did Newcastle perform in the Champions League last season?

I thought last year Newcastle performed well in the Champions League, they had a hard group and did well. It took my club years before we made it out of the group stages as it literally is a different ball game.

Would you be happy for Newcastle to win a trophy for the first time since the last ice age?

It is only a matter of time and a bit of luck (the draw) before they win a trophy. The next few seasons will be part of the building phase both on the pitch and financially to put the Geordies back on the top step,

IMAGO/Uk Sports Pics Ltd

New money Manchester City fan answering the questions:

What did you make of Mike Ashley’s time in charge of Newcastle and what did you think of the way Newcastle fans hated him ?

Sports direct dot com ? Poor.

A lack of investment in quality players. Only cared about using the club to promote his other ventures, which was obvious when he renamed the stadium.

The Geordies rightly should have disliked him, a club like Newcastle shouldn’t be battling for the bottom half of the table, let alone be fighting relegation.

How well did you think Steve Bruce did as manager of the club? Were the new owners right to sack him when they arrived?

His win rate isn’t ideal, you have to be in the high 40s for Newcastle in my opinion. Definitely the right decision but will Eddie get you to perform like a top six club? Think you need a foreigner to come in once the financials are sorted and you can spend big money.

Is Eddie Howe the next England manager?

100%. He’d be my choice.

Who in the Newcastle team would get into yours?

I don’t think any would replace the starting 11 at City but I’d take Isak

What do you think would be the price to buy Bruno, Anthony Gordon, Joelinton, or Isak ?

Bruno around 90m, Gordon 60m, Joelinton has to be around 35/40m, Isak 90m+.

Did you think of Newcastle as a ‘big club’ before the takeover.

Mid-table club prior to takeover. I would put them on par with West Ham. They were just drifters in the league, a bit like Stoke were.

Are Newcastle a ‘big club’ now? Or will that only be the case when they start winning things?

They’re a big worldwide club in terms of brand/image but are they a BIG club?

Not in my opinion…

Big clubs win trophies, and unfortunately until they can win trophies then they can’t be put up there with the others. A good start would be to qualify for Europe year on year.

I think it would be good to have a club like Newcastle win a trophy like League Cup (as long as it isn’t against City) or Europa League.

Do Newcastle need to move out of the city to an 80k mega ground, in order to ‘develop the club’ or should they settle for a small increase on St James’ Park (up to 58k or so)?

I personally wouldn’t. The ground’s location is perfect, in the heart of the City.

Can’t comment on the impact to the atmosphere it would have moving it, cos I haven’t had an away day there yet, but I’d stay put.

How did Newcastle perform in the Champions League last season?

As expected. They had a difficult group and just did not have the squad depth, quality, or experience for that level.

So that’s the opinion of a couple of City lads. Next, will be a couple of Chelsea fans.