Newcastle 0-3 West Ham: A miserable day for the Mags as West Ham burst our bubble

A miserable day on Tyneside (in more ways than one) with West Ham showing their quality in the end in a game that was generally dominated by wasted chances.

It’s a rare hammering for us – only the third time Rafa’s NUFC side have been beaten by three or more in the league – with us being punished for missed chances and poor defending; it’s as simple as that.

The results ends our run of four unbeaten, with us missing our chances to make it four wins on the bounce – seeing us drop down to 15th (just three points above the drop zone).

Despite badly messing up huge chances on the counter attack on countless occasions, West Ham only ended up having 7 shots to our 15, but their quality told. Really, this shouldn’t be much of a surprise in a game we allowed to be too open, with their front 4 cost just shy of £90m – almost £75m more than ours.

We had our chances and it could have been very different had the woeful Ayoze Perez got his shooting boots on, but it’s one of those days where we just weren’t at the races – and proof that A) we’ll struggle to win with these players if we’re no ‘at it’ and B) that several of our back up players just aren’t up to it (Manquillo and Atsu being examples).

On the plus side, Schar and Ki performed admirably once again, showing bravery and quality on the ball. Rondon was a handful, holding up the ball well and giving us a focal point, but he had very little to work with at times today – with Perez having a shocker, Kenedy struggling to get anything going and Ritchie very quiet. It’s easy to say in hindsight, but the system didn’t work well today, raising questions as to whether we should’ve stuck with the same side that controlled the game at Burnley on Monday.

The 11th minute walk in was sparsely attended, but can you blame fans for trying to do their bit when West Ham’s winger Felipe Anderson cost more than our entire starting eleven.

Here’s how the table looks after today’s results (*before Southampton vs Man Utd at 5.30pm):

Results elsewhere so far this weekend have been pretty mixed from our perspective. On the plus side, Burnley have lost again, losing 2-0 away to Palace and Huddersfield surrendered a 1-0 lead to lose 1-2 at home to Brighton, but Cardiff beat Wolves on Friday night and Southampton are currently drawing 2-2 against Man Utd – despite being 2-0 up at one stage!

Here’s our next five fixtures between now and Christmas:

  • Everton (A)
  • Wolves (H)
  • Huddersfield (A)
  • Fulham (H)

Our three wins in November may have given us some hope after a truly dreadful start to the season, but it’s not vital that we get back on track – with some very tough fixtures awaiting us in the new years after these four fixtures above between now and Christmas.

(Fancy writing for us? Send any articles/ideas over to us at [email protected] & we’ll get back to you!)

About Olly Hawkins

As a Junior Magpie since birth and season ticket holder, I eat, sleep and breathe all things NUFC! Here at the blog, I aim to bring you news, views, match reports and transfer exclusives as and when I get them.

124 thoughts on “Newcastle 0-3 West Ham: A miserable day for the Mags as West Ham burst our bubble

  1. Sharpy17:
    It would obviously be amazing to have an owner with the wealth to compete with the likes of City.But personally I would favour an owner who could come in and do for us what Leicester’s late owner did.

    yes, that would be nice.

    Stuart79:
    Jabba said something very informative today in his interview with MP’s. He said “if there’s free glasses at the petrol station, I want them! I want them because they’re free”! Doesn’t that explain an awful lot?

    yep, it does sadly .

      (Quote)

  2. Are we actually interested in signing this lad from Atlanta then or have we gone over to negotiate the sell of the club??

      (Quote)

  3. Sharpy17:
    Is it agist to worry that this fella is 76?

    These mega-rich people in the US usually set up family trusts to hand their money down to their kids using tax loopholes to not pay inheritance taxes. I am sure there is a son or daughter waiting in the wings.

      (Quote)

  4. Eric Sykes: These mega-rich people in the US usually set up family trusts to hand their money down to their kids using tax loopholes to not pay inheritance taxes. I am sure there is a son or daughter waiting in the wings.

    That’s all well and good for them, but do they share daddy’s interests or will we just be sold to the first person that comes along when Blank pops his clogs. I know it’s a strange way to look at it, but if this is about the long term stability and success of NUFC, then it should be taken into account.

      (Quote)

  5. I am not really sure that we should be too worried about Ashley letting the cat out of the bag. These deals usually become public before they are completed, even for a privately owned business like NUFC. They certainly do for publicly owned companies here in the US. If one company buys a certain percentage of anothers they have to disclose it to the stock exchange (I think it is about 12%) so everybody knows a possible takeover is in the offing. I have a stockbrokers license so sort of know this stuff but don’t operate on this level.

      (Quote)

  6. Of course The Chronic are getting Blank confused with the Glazers who own Tampa Bay. Blank owns the Atlanta Falcons of the NFL. Good fact checking as usual by Lee and the boys.

      (Quote)

  7. Personally think the row back has already started. Now it’s just Jabba smoking out interest and trying to hurry buyers up as it’s not moving quick enough for him. He also let the cat out of the bag when he said “hopefully we can carry on with our good form and get the deal done”. That’s to me says he knows no dea will be done before the transfer window and he’s basically admitted no buyer will buy us while in a relegation battle so we need to get to 30 points by end of February to get it done.

    Not going to happen.

      (Quote)

  8. Can’t believe anyone is taking any of it seriously. I reckon he has a serious offer and has talked about it to **** them off and back out. It is also handy for him as an excuse to not spend in January again.
    He is the most reluctant of sellers, 8 years tells you that, it’s no more than a sound bite, don’t get your hopes up folks .
    We see Blank, Murat Ulker and the Ortega group all being linked today, but if and when it ever happens I don’t think names will be linked prior somehow.
    Nothing to see here imo.

      (Quote)

  9. I think that NUFC is a distraction to Ashley and he wants to sell. He was talking to MPs about House of Fraser and then ended up on Sky. He knows that all of his attention needs to be on HoF right now. He usually never speaks to the press and to think he is using this platform as an excuse for not spending in January would mean that Fatty is the reincarnation of Machiavelli himself.

    If anybody thinks this has anything to do with the Magpie Group’s failed protests then they are delusional.

      (Quote)

  10. Caulkin hasn’t tweeted a thing on it either and I trust his info over the ” I knew about it last week ” Edwards. 🙄

    Bullshit, all of it. Nowt for Rafa in jan is what this is all about.

      (Quote)

  11. Kimtoon: I don’t think there is a direct link to Blank. It is people putting 2 and 2 together that we are looking at Almiron and that Blank has turned a new MLS team into potential champions in 2 years. It is more hope than evidence.

      (Quote)

  12. Eric, He’s done this before though, just last year then said in the summer clubs still for sale then told the players at that pizza meal it wasn’t. So what’s the truth?

    Who was it that said Humans aren’t smart enough to tell convincing lies ?

    He talks himself into corners, in that sky thing yesterday he was stuttering and there was pauses all over the shop. When he said yes he hoped to sell by jan he was shaking his head ! that’s a no then. Body language dead give away, he’s a bloody liar , end of.
    I’m not having my hopes built up by that ***** to be left deflated yet again.
    Go on tv when it’s done Mike, until then just f off.

      (Quote)

  13. As for the Magpie group, I don’t think 11 min walk in’s have any effect whatsoever, BUT, I do think he is getting vexed by the shop protest and the MP questions. Moreover SD shareholders are not happy by all accounts about all the negative press and demo’s. Share price is dipping whilst JD sports is rising.
    Keep targeting the business and shareholders, make having any links to NUFC and SJP advertising uncomfortable, it’s working.

      (Quote)

  14. I think a few months in the North East would do Arthur Blank the world of good judging by that picture in The Chronicle. He has been working on his tan too much and needs some bracing Northern days to get him back to a normal colour.

      (Quote)

  15. kimtoon:
    As for the Magpie group, I don’t think 11 min walk in’s have any effect whatsoever, BUT, I do think he is getting vexed by the shop protest and the MP questions. Moreover SD shareholders are not happy by all accounts about all the negative press and demo’s. Share price is dipping whilst JD sports is rising.
    Keep targeting the business and shareholders, make having any links to NUFC and SJP advertising uncomfortable, it’s working.

    I am actually for the general protests, just not pre and in-match protests.

      (Quote)

  16. I’m hoping George Caulkin is out there getting to the truth of it and will update in next few days to stop fans having their hopes ruined yet again.
    Remember he was showed 3 differing bids made by Stavely that were turned down or brushed aside.
    She was called a time waster and lambasted by Mike for going public, yet that’s exactly what he’s done yesterday.

    You can fool all the people some of the time, and some of the people all the time, but you cannot fool all the people all the time. Abraham Lincoln

      (Quote)

  17. Everybody is now coming out and saying how great the Uruguayan Hobbit is. I said he would be the best buy in the summer. He was about 20 million Euros so there are still some good buys out there as long as you don’t expect everything to be a bargain.

    Even with a new owner there is no way we will jump to competing in the 40-50 million transfer market.

      (Quote)

  18. Eric, I don’t see any problem with protest outside the ground but not enough do it inside to make a difference.
    Target his baby, that’s what irks him the most, we are a minor irritant to him in so far as fans moaning about NUFC running is concerned, so hit him where it hurts, don’t buy any merchandise, or food or drink, the businesses he lets run the food and drink stuff will run a mile from renewing if sales drop enough.

      (Quote)

  19. I watched a replay of the MLS semi-final yesterday. The half time panel is made up of ex-US internationals (not the usual motley crew of lower level Brits like Robbies Earle and Mustoe). The general consensus is that Almiron is the best player in MLS and that he will leave for the PL and set a precedent in sales from North America to Europe.

    I think the standard of MLS will greatly improve in the next few years as money is thrown at football/soccer ahead of the 2026 World Cup and clubs like Man City have US feeder clubs. It wouldn’t be bad for NUFC to have a link here.

      (Quote)

  20. What MLS is also doing is sourcing their players from South America and not European has-beens (apart from Wayne). NUFC should be scouting here because it is cheaper and there is some South American talent that the big European clubs miss.

      (Quote)

  21. Eric, I just think he is a nasty, bitter man. There are a lot of young and gullible fans who, yet again will be taken in by what he said yesterday.
    At best he’s mischievous, a panto villain as he likes to call himself, at worst he’s just plain cruel and spiteful.
    It is cruel to build up false hope, but he’s a proven liar and leopards don’t change their spots in my experience .

      (Quote)

  22. Sorry if I am giving too much MLS information. Normally I would ignore it as far as NUFC is concerned but with Blank and Almiron in the news I thought it might be relevant.

      (Quote)

  23. kimtoon:
    Eric, I just think he is a nasty, bitter man. There are a lot of young and gullible fans who, yet again will be taken in by what he said yesterday.
    At best he’s mischievous, a panto villain as he likes to call himself, at worst he’s just plain cruel and spiteful.
    It is cruel to build up false hope, but he’s a proven liar and leopards don’t change their spots in myexperience .

    ‘Tis the season. Watched The Grinch last night and A Christmas Carol will be shown umpteen times. There’s 2 that changed their spots. But that was fiction Eric! Oh, maybe I am gullible after all.

      (Quote)

  24. I’m not getting into Almiron talk, that’s serious money for him and we don’t spend unless fatty is cacking himself.

      (Quote)

  25. The best I can say about the protests is that it may hasten an owner to do what they wanted to do anyway. I can’t really think of any time it has persuaded an owner to sell against their wishes or self interest. Managers, are different. I think that protests do make a difference in this case although I still think they should stop at the gates of the ground on Match day.

      (Quote)

  26. The number being quoted as the sale price is 300 million. This is in the Chronic of course and changed from 400 million about 2 months ago. It could be true though with the threat of relegation. Then again, we don’t see the books and we know that:

    1. the wage bill has been drastically cut.

    2. there was a net profit in transfer dealings

    3. TV money has come in and not been paid out.

    Is it possible that Ashley has been paying himself back some of the loan he made to NUFC? I wouldn’t be surprised.

      (Quote)

  27. Eric, yep he has taken back some of his loan, I read it a few weeks back. Will see if I can find it.

      (Quote)

  28. kimtoon:
    Eric, yep he has taken back some of his loan, I read it a few weeks back. Will see if I can find it.

    I know he took back the money he put in during the Championship season which was about 16 million but what about after that? The TV money has been coming in but not going out. The excess is either in the bank or in his pocket. If there is money in the bank I would expect Ashley to either take it or add it to the price.

    From what I have seen of prices paid for other clubs like Palace and Southampton and what people have quoted for Chelsea and Liverpool, Ashley is not being unreasonable in his price for NUFC. That’s assuming he is serious about selling and that the papers are correct about how much he wants.

    I think he has concluded that NUFC are more hassle than we are worth. I know he gets the SD advertising but he really isn’t getting much more than he put in if he sells at the quoted price. In the meantime his money has sat idle for 11 years.

      (Quote)

  29. I have no idea whether there is any truth to the rumour of Arthur Blank being interested in NUFC but the Chronicle have ruled it out because Blank’s end have said there is no truth to it. Well…

    It is a deal between 2 private companies so they don’t have to say anything.

    They would deny it wouldn’t they, until a deal is done.

    The speculation was based on NUFCs interest in Almiron and Blank’s success at Atlanta United. There was never any concrete link to begin with so it is exactly the same as it was before Blank’s people made their statement.

    Haven’t the Chronic dealt with Keith Bishop enough to know that when PR people say something it is not always true and in fact can be deliberately misleading to hide what they are actually doing?

      (Quote)

  30. Eric, City will be relieved.

    Regards Kenyon and his consortium. I’d favour him I think all in all. He’s experienced and knows how to run a successful football club. If he has the finance then it could be exciting. Then again, it might just all fall apart. 😯

      (Quote)

  31. It seems like something is going on. Kenyon would seem ideal as he has the experience. Blank seems to know what he is doing as well.

    It would be interesting to see what someone could do at NUFC if they didn’t just install their friends and cronies – Wise, Jiminez, Lliambas etc. The last one that was at board level who knew anything about football was Carr and he picked McClaren.

    Ashley is a strange duck. He started out enthusiastic and even sacked Allardyce mostly for the awful football. He appointed Keegan and Shearer which was a populist move but then undermined both. You can never tell what is going on in his mind so hopefully he will sell up and we can forget about trying to work him out.

      (Quote)

  32. Stuart79:
    Eric, City will be relieved.

    Regards Kenyon and his consortium. I’d favour him I think all in all. He’s experienced and knows how to run a successful football club. If he has the finance then it could be exciting. Then again, it might just all fall apart.

    Stuart: seems that you think there might be something going on now and that it is not just a ploy to explain not spending in January. Even if Ashley remains the owner it would be madness not to add to the squad in January. The 7 teams at the bottom seem pretty close so anything we can do to get a few more goals would help.

      (Quote)

  33. The league is looking as expected and is split into 3 tiers based almost entirely on money spent/wages. The only real surprises are that Man U are not in the top tier (6) and that Fulham are struggling so badly – if you go purely on money.

    There will always be a team or 2 who punch above their weight (Brighton) and another that screws up despite money spent – Man U and Wolves?

    But if you look at the wages league compared to the actual league it is pretty close.

      (Quote)

  34. The weird thing is that Ashley’s tight-fistedness has made us very attractive to a potential buyer. We are almost a blank slate:

    * we are self financed IF we stay in the PL

    * there is hardly any deadwood

    * we have very low wages

    * we can sell almost all of our players for more than they cost so could upgrade.

    * there really aren’t any busts on our books. Not even Murphy. And there are no Bentekes, Slimanis or Defoes getting 120k a week for sitting on the bench.

      (Quote)

  35. I still think the problem is timing. Unless the process is a lot further on than we are hearing it’s still not likely to be completed in time for January. You couldn’t buy a house in three weeks let alone a £300m asset. It’s going to be up to Jabba to allow the club to spend in January. That’s a worry.

      (Quote)

  36. Reports now that there are four parties in talks. All too public now for me. NUFC sources are starting to let their mouths go. Now I am sceptical.

      (Quote)

  37. It’s all bollocks lads.
    Don’t get taken in.
    I will rejoice if and when it happens but until then………………..

    Would be happy with a draw tonight .

      (Quote)

  38. George Caulkin‏Verified account @CaulkinTheTimes · 2m2 minutes ago

     More

    I am 100% with you on the scepticism scale. I always am with Ashley. The Kenyon bid/story is accurate – I’ve had it confirmed from all angles – although, as we saw a year ago, that offers no guarantees at all.

      (Quote)

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *