These two Newcastle United mistakes in three years balanced against… | OneFootball

This Newcastle United squad is down to the bare bones.

We are heading into cup final week as very firm underdogs and a Premier League top five finish looks very unlikely.

The curse of FFFP/PSR has put the brakes on development as quickly as the Newcastle United owners had hoped.

Whilst our system of play has become erratic .

This is largely due to the essential need for all members of the Newcastle United team to be at the top of their game. So they can ensure our high press and quick break tactic work AND can be fortified from the bench.

Given what has gone wrong since our purple patch over the festive period, what could the club have done differently?

With the benefit of hindsight, the fact that Anthony Gordon’s best position turned out to be down the left, made the acquisition of Barnes flawed. Especially as Newcastle United could have then retained the services of a very effective right winger, who we had to sell to Brighton to balance the books.

Secondly, the protracted unsuccessful attempt to buy an additional right-footed centre-back to cover for injury and an ageing less mobile pairing.

That’s two mistakes in three years, measured against two cup finals, a fourth top finish and a certain relegation avoided.

I’m not blinkered. I’m not willing to put up with second best or people who don’t try, nor am I willing to join the moaners who have very short memories while paying £380 for an Ashley season ticket.