We felt so close | OneFootball

Never a dull moment when you follow Newcastle United.

I approached this close season with huge hope.

Having made the Champions League, maybe with a few additions this next season could be something special.

Now, here we are merely three weeks from the start of the next Premier League campaign and I’ve already ceded to the teams who have spent significantly this summer. Liverpool, Chelsea, Man City and Arsenal have all invested heavily and look stronger than last season.

Whilst the Newcastle United efforts have only led to the addition of Anthony Elanga (and I believe he as a great addition) and we are now locked in a battle to keep one of our best players, so close to the new campaign beginning!

What is going on?

1. We all know that attracting players to Newcastle can be tricky, although I’m not sure exactly why, having been born and raised in our beautiful city. As well as being frustrating for the fans, it must also be frustrating for the players who have lofty ambitions.

2. We seem to have very little guidance in terms of who we are going after and how much they will cost.

3. Eddie Howe seems isolated in his role with very little support from those around him on the non-playing side.

4. Alexander Isak appears to be rebelling against the fact that he hasn’t been rewarded with a new deal (having been promised one), and asking to leave at this stage of the pre-season is alarming. Maybe he is feeling the club aren’t matching his ambition (due to lack of signings) and are undervaluing him.

Whichever way you approach it, it feels as though Newcastle United are not set up for success and, since Dan Ashworth left, it feels as though the whole scouting and investment in new players has dried up. I’m not sure what Paul Mitchell did for a year but it certainly wasn’t buying and selling players or even preparing for that, looking outside in.

I’m attempting to not get too frustrated because, let’s face it, we have Champions League football to look forward to, but we shouldn’t be in this situation.

We should have done our homework before the end of last season…

Does Joao Pedro want to come?

Does Liam Delap want to come?

Does Bryan Mbuemo want to come?

In all cases it appears they had other objectives from the start, which we should have known.

In life you don’t chase after Jennifer Aniston and Angelina Jolie unless you are Brad Pitt (maybe we think we are Brad but in reality we are a few stages of cosmetic surgery away), you have to know your limits.

It appears we have acted like some deluded stalker trying to court players who wanted to move elsewhere. We should have had a shortlist of players who WANTED to come to Newcastle United.

I also want to put a theory forward regarding James Trafford, who apparently wants to join us and who I think would be a phenomenal addition to our first team. Why aren’t we just paying £35m for him? I believe that we think that because of the Saudi money, we are being held to ransom. I agree that football has gone mad in terms of transfer fees but, if we are going for players and missing out because of valuation, this is another significant flaw in the recruitment process. Hugo Ekitike is another example of that. We bid and it was turned down, Liverpool got it done. Why is this a repetitive issue?

The reality is that I should not be sitting here downhearted after an amazing campaign but I am. I feel like a kid at Christmas watching everyone else unwrapping lots of magnificent gifts, whilst I got one really nice present (Anthony Elanga) and an apple (Cordero) and orange (Park).

This should have been a transition window that propelled Newcastle United to the next level, and had us all chomping at the bit for the season ahead, but unfortunately, due to bad planning, broken promises and seemingly inflated ego, we have managed to go backwards while everyone around us is leaping forwards.