Leicester 5-0 Newcastle: Another abysmal display sets more alarm bells ringing

If anyone seriously doubts how much influence Rafa Benitez had over this group of players, today is your proof.

If you had any doubt how much Steve Bruce is out of his depth, today is your proof.

Today, Norwich and the first 70 minutes against Brighton are all in the the top (or bottom 10) of performances I’ve seen in my lifetime as a Newcastle fan. 3 out of 7 of Bruce’s games make my all time 10 worst. Genuinely.

Of course Hayden’s red card didn’t help and this isn’t entirely Bruce’s fault, but the dreadful summer is coming home to roost for us.

Despite a change of formation, we didn’t improve one iota. More worryingly, there was no heart, fight or spirit, things this group of players have always shown in abundance. Longstaff, what has happened to him?!? He was awful.

That said, what do we expect when a talented young player goes from being coached by a world class manager in an organised and well drilled team, to being coached by a man whose team has ZERO plan and no identity.

You can never totally defend a lack of effort, so the players must take a fair share of the blame today, but if I had a boss who didn’t give me a plan or something to get behind, how could I be motivated or perform to the best of my ability?

Any takers that Bruce will have the players in for extra training? That it’s all their fault? The pundits are already defending him on social media.

We must be the only team in the league who isn’t looking forward to playing Manchester United next….

(Fancy writing for us? Get in touch 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.

122 thoughts on “Leicester 5-0 Newcastle: Another abysmal display sets more alarm bells ringing

  1. I mean, it seems to just be presumed that Pogba is “world class”. The pundits say it all the time and it has become accepted by a lot of the fans. But when do we see it. I have said before that we get just about every Man U game in the US and you might get 2 bits of skill for a highlight reel in a match and then the rest he goes missing, or at best has a Sunday afternoon stroll in the park. Who are these arbiters of World Class? John Cross? Danny Mills? Fatman Custis, The Sun’s Man U reporter? If you read the shyte they spout on everything else football would you be trusting them to tell you who is a world class player?

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  2. I watched the Arsenal game and Pogba actually played quite well in the second half. But the gushing over 1 tackle and then a great pass to Rashford was instructive because there was no mention of the 5 missed tackles and 15 sideways passes earlier in the game. Or him slowing down their attacks. With Pogba, the pundits and commentators only see the good bits and ignore all of the times he goes missing or his passes don’t come off. He plays like the Rich Man’s Jonjo Shelvey but gets none of Jonjo’s (deserved in the past year) criticism from the media. Fans of other teams see it though and increasingly even Man U supporters. He is good in a good team but he cannot elevate this poor Man U team.

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  3. Why doesn’t Ashley just make Kenyon Chairman and give him 5% ownership of the club. Pay him the going rate for a Chairman and give him 1% of NUFC for every time NUFC get in the top 10 and withhold his salary if we are relegated. Charnley is on 300k so he could be kept on as the Financial Officer.

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  4. Because Kenyon wouldn’t just tow the line and do whatever Jabba says. He’d want to run the club the right way way in which a football club should be run which wouldn’t make sense to Jabba.

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  5. NUFC is not that attractive to a hedge fund – Kenyon’s people. They want to be in and out and at least double their money in about 5 years. People state Liverpool as somewhere that a hedge fund owns. That was a unique situation though. The previous owners had to refinance and there was a buyout clause that FSG took advantage of. They got Liverpool for about 350 million when the asset was really worth about 700 million, even then. They have gone on to manage the club well and the club is probably worth about 5 times their original cost. My guess also is that they didn’t even need outside investors to buy Liverpool and can hang onto it as long as they are having fun and the value is maintained.

    NUFC.com are quoting a Martin Samuel piece saying that the Kenyon deal is pie in the sky and I agree with him. Same goes for any hedge fund as they could not realise NUFCs potential in time to make it palatable to their investors who want a quick buck. It is also about risk/reward and NUFC are a big risk. What chances would you give us of breaking into the top 5 for more than a flukey season? 1%?

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  6. So Pogba will miss the Europa Lg game on Thurs along with Shaw and Wan Bassaka and Martial. That leaves them very short for us. Is anybody really scared of JLingz and MaRash in their current form? Their best player is the Hobbit they just signed from Swansea for 15 million.

    Still, we are even more shyte than they are. But, if ever there was a time to play Man U…

    The papers have their knives out for everything Man U and Spurs. A couple of months ago Poch and OGS could do no wrong, and now they couldn’t manage a chip van. I am enjoying this.

    Of course you could say what about NUFC? But we are always lurching from one crisis to the next and I am used to it after 40 years. I am just glad to see the media turn on their darlings.

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  7. Rio Ferdinand is saying Saint Harry of Kane should leave Spurs for the good of his career. He is right. Spurs aren’t winning anything. Not even the League Cup which they were knocked out of by Colchester.

    There would be a mutiny. What good is a shiny new Daniel Levy Stadium if they can’t keep “one of their own”? Please make it happen!!!

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  8. The Leicester result doesn’t worry me at all. These sort of results do happen from time to time What really worries me, and should worry Ashley (but it won’t), Is the way we played against Brighton and Watford. We were so bad that we would not have beaten a good division one team. Relegation looks a certainty to me and although I was willing to give Bruce a fair crack it is clear to me and many others he hasn’t a clue. Successful football is not just about skill or tactics it’s very much about confidence. I don’t think Bruce does anything for the confidence of the players (or me) who have shown previously that they are not as bad as recent performances suggest. Rude has to go and soon.
    ,

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  9. I agree Groucho. The dithering idiots will probably leave it too late – obviously!
    It might even be too late already.

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  10. Thanks for the Keys and Gray link Jamie. They cancelled BEIN Sports over here a couple of years ago so I don’t see them anymore. Some things never change though, like who they get on as guests. you could go back to 2003 and they would have the same guest list.

    And Andy still has the same suits from 2003. Two sizes too small and he is forever tugging at them to cover his expanding waist line. He did it on this clip too. And Keys always looks like he has left his false teeth in a glass on the nightstand.

    Moyes. He is looking very calm in his retirement. Getting fired from so many jobs gives you a canny stash in the bank. Same for Bruce as he will pad his bank account from with an NUFC payoff.

    Nothing will erase those worry lines from Moyes though. Football management is a stressful job. He is only 55 and his face looks like an ordinance survey map of the Lake District. Our new Manager in waiting.

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  11. Richard, which sacked British Manager should we have on this week to top up their tan and play a couple of rounds? Not sure Andy, Pards and Big Fat Sam have been busy on TalkSport saying Ashley isn’t a bad guy and it is not Ashley’s fault that NUFC are back to the future. How about Nigel Pearson, Pulis or Tony Adams? Are they free? Let’s pencil in Bruce for February, he always likes a bit of sun after he gets sacked.

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  12. And still, I haven’t yet lost all hope. This weekend is it for me. If we have another stinker against Man U I think I will go full on Stuart and want Bruce out.

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  13. I cling to a bit of hope because we were down to 10 men and got beat “only” 5-0 at Leicester. If it had been 7-0 I would have said Bruce was done, there and then. When you see those sorts of results you know there has to be change. Watford are done. 8-0 is something that tells you there is something wrong there. Same with Spurs. I just can’t see Poch or Kane staying. 7 goals at home tell you there is something rotten in the state off Denmark. They had never conceded 7 goals at home in their 137 year history.

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  14. I want a young continental manager not one of the old dinosaurs from the English
    game. Maybe at a push a young British manager.

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  15. For anyone still on the fence or feeling sorry for Bruce – I saw a stat the other day.

    Steve Bruce has the WORST win rate percentage of any manager who have managed over 300 games – 27% – THE WORST.

    To bring further perspective to that – Joe Kinnaer has a BETTER win ratio – JOE KINNAER!!.

    And just incase it’s missed – Mike Ashley appointed both as NUFC owner – but he just wants the best for the club ?.

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  16. OGS is being applauded by some for playing their academy players but that is because they have no-one else. How many academy players are starring for City and Liverpool? 1992 was 27 years ago lads and most of them were only about average anyway – I am looking at you **** and the Nevilles.

    Rashford seems to have gone backwards. Greenwood is the next big thing, but is he? Usually the next big things don’t work out. Ask me about Chopra and Adam Armstrong. Maybe he will be more Messi than Chopra but please wait until after Sunday to show us.

    Jlingz is injured so that will give Man U a better chance.

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  17. Is Sunday really “Super” Sunday as Sky are billing it. Man U are 10th and we are 19th. It is the battle of the underachievers.

    Blame Ashley all you want but we have spent 80 million in the last 9 months and broken our transfer record 3 times. We should be doing better than this.

    Perhaps it is Bruce. Sharpy seems full on Stuart now. I am giving it one more game 🙂

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  18. Sunday will be the battle of the sacked former Hull City Managers – Bruce and Mike Phelan.

    It has taken about 6 months to really sink in but Man U have Ole Gunner Solsjkaer as their Manager. Yes, that OGS. The one who relegated Cardiff and was sacked when they were 17th in The Championship. That one. The one whose redemption was at Molde in a Pub league.

    The one who will probably get 3 points on Sunday 🙂

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  19. So GACP Newcastle Management LLC has been registered in the States. We’ve been here before. These people just need to put up or shut up. I’m bored.

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  20. Eric Sykes:
    Is Sunday really “Super” Sunday as Sky are billing it. Man U are 10th and we are 19th. It is the battle of the underachievers.

    Blame Ashley all you want but we have spent 80 million in the last 9 months and broken our transfer record 3 times. We should be doing better than this.

    Perhaps it is Bruce. Sharpy seems full on Stuart now. I am giving it one more game

    Eric – I’ve posted on here for over 10yrs now and I reckon Stu & I disagreed more than we agreed. But on Bruce we seem to be in total agreement.

    However I’m about to disagree with you I’m afraid mate. It’s all well and good Ashley throwing £80m at it now – but there’s a number of issues with that. Firstly, Joelinton. I think the lad could be a decent player – but, he wasn’t a proven goal scorer in Germany – and we shelled out half that £80m on him. He also signed him when we didn’t even have a manager!!. So he wasn’t Rafas choice and he wasn’t even Bruce’s choice ??‍♂️ – £40m on your head scouts man.
    It’s all well and good putting £80m in in 9 months (which was only making up for a total lack of spend prior to that) but if your recruitment policy is wrong then it’s just compounding the problem.
    Add to that a substandard manager to coach them and I give you NUFC.

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  21. Sharpy: What you say is also true. I have no idea what qualifies Nickson to be the de facto Director of Football. I said before that everybody was praising Rafa for his contact list/footballer database and the fact that he was hammering the phones to get us bargains. Now we splash out all this money on Nickson’s sayso. As with everything Ashley, it doesn’t make much sense but at least all 3 look to have the skills for the PL, whether they will succeed is another matter.

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  22. Eric, I didn’t want Bruce when he was appointed. It was up to him to prove me wrong. So far he’s fulfilled all my Expectations. I haven’t needed to change my thoughts.

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  23. I am actually happy that Pogba is out. It would have been just our luck that he would play the 1 good game in 3 that he usually does and score a penalty to pad his stats.

    They will also be playing with 8 and a half men. Matic is finished. I don’t know what is going on with Mata. Maybe he has lost the little pace he had or is being played out of position but he has been **** when I have seen him this season. Then there is Young. A red card waiting to happen if the Refs had the balls to issue it. I give him a half a player because he can deliver a good corner and they have slab head to meet it.

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  24. I know what Hansen said about kids but that class of 92 was a bit of a myth. Only Beckham and Scholes were very good and Giggs was in the team long before that. Now the Man U fans are desperate that their new batch of kids will all be worldbeaters. Very unlikely, although some may go on to be decent PL players – the new Jlingz’s.

    They will be getting their opportunity only because of the wasted money on the likes of Matic and Sanchez. It is not really a policy, it is forced on them by bad transfer business. Greenwood could be the new George Best for all I know but he turned 18 yesterday. What were Harry Kane and Messi doing when they were 18? Kane was on loan and didn’t get his chance until his 20s. Messi was being babysat by Barca. Playing some games and rested for others to avoid injuries and burnout.

    Hell, Fergusson played Ronaldo on the wing for 3 years and also nurtured his talent.

    It is a big ask for Greenwood to carry the weight of expectation of Man U on his young shoulders. Same for Rashford to an extent, but he seems to be buckling under it rather than taking it on.

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  25. Stuart: you know I am not criticizing you for being negative on Bruce. I wanted it to work out but feared it wouldn’t. I also know you will say you are being realistic, not necessarily negative 🙂

    The rumour was that Bruce was the 11th choice. The club say he was on a shortlist of 3. To tell the truth, I would think more of the decision makers at NUFC if he WAS 11th.

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  26. So what’s the team then? I see Bruce going back to wing backs as he will say the back 4 last week was forced by injuries. Then we will see St Max and the question is who will he drop. Probably Atsu, playing Almiron for his higher energy. And I don’t get why Krafth is played ahead of Maquillo.

    Dubravka

    Manquillo Schar Lascelles Dummett Willems

    Longstaff Ki

    Almiron Joelinton St Max

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  27. I don’t normally predict the opposition starting 11 but will for Man U as it shows how **** they really are. They will probably play an 18 year old, a 20 year old and a 21 year old up front. I do worry about calling them **** will come back to bite me as I said I had never heard of the Brighton players and they ran rings around us. All but McGuire played on Thursday.

    De Gea

    Dalot Lindelof McGuire Young

    Mata McTominay Matic

    Greenwood Rashford James

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  28. Does that lineup strike fear in anyone’s heart? Rashford may have been overhyped. It has happened many times before with Man U players and they turn out to be **** when they leave but still have a cupboard full of England caps from their Man U days. Wes Brown, Darren Gibson, Tom Cleverly etc.

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  29. Rashford is a very good player Eric. Unlike the Ki you named in our line up. I’d much rather give Matty a go but Bruce will probably play Shelvey now they’ve both got over the embarrassment of his last performance. It’s a game we could win but I predicted a draw at Leicester

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  30. Eric – I would go Joelinton and Muto up from with Almiron having free role behind them to start at least.
    I think Joelinton will need help against McGuire and I think the Saint could be a great option off the bench – that pace and direct running at Man Utd later in the game.

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  31. Georgio: I picked the lineup I think Bruce will go with. I think we will see Matty Longstaff but Man U are still a big draw and it is the only TV game. It would be a lot of pressure.

    I reckon Rashford has lost a bit of confidence. I think he is a good player as well, just maybe not a natural centre forward. He doesn’t seem to have the knack like Van Nistlerooy or Rooney pre-27 years old. Maybe better as a winger, and certainly not your main striker with this much pressure on him.

    We could also both be wrong and he could be Theo Walcott and Danny Welbeck who showed so much early promise and never pushed on.

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  32. When OGS was appointed permanent manager I called him GBC (Gone By Christmas). I didn’t quite believe it because he had the backing of the class of 92 and almost begrudgingly from Keane and Rio Ferdinand. That is still there but it is surprising to see some of the fans turn. He is in way over his head and he will be sacked sooner rather than later. I think they may give him the January transfer window. A loss to us might change things. Especially if we then go on to lose to Chelsea and Wolves which is probably better than an even money bet.

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  33. There is also the giant shadow of Max Allegri out there. I think Man U would be mad to appoint Poch when they could have a proven winner. Either would be streets ahead of OGS.

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  34. OGS looks like a frightened schoolboy on the sideline. In the mould of Little Jimmy Kranky where you know the person is in their 40’s and are not that young anymore but they still seem to have that look.

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  35. Eric – maybe this is a bit harsh but Bruce is on a hiding to nothing against Man Utd. If he gets beat the negativity continues, but if we win it going to be said that this is arguably the worst Man Utd in the last 10yrs.

    The only thing is if we beat them convincingly with a very good performance as well as the win.
    If it’s a 1-0 cling on like the Spurs win then nowt changes.

    Any manager can pick up lucky wins through the season. The performances have to improve as much as the results imo.

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  36. It would pile the pressure on OGS though Sharpy. You lot in the UK have the added pleasure of GNev commentating. I don’t mind ex-players in the studio but as commentators for Man U when they are so biased as Neville!!! We have a Brit from Leicester, Arlo White, who used to do radio and does TV the same way – he over-describes and has to shoehorn every fact in his notepad into it no matter how useless and arcane. It is still better than having Neville for Man U though. PNev is the worst commentator in the world BTW. We get him over here sometimes and if you go with the opposite of what he says you will be correct 9 out of 10 times.

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  37. God only knows how this game will go and 5 things we want to know
    Which Newcastle will we see this week
    Will Matty get a start
    Will Miggy finally get a goal
    Will AC survive another run out or break down, apparently he was touching his ankle and gesturing to the bench towards end of last game 🙄
    Will the fans come armed with cabbages, a la Villa fans

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  38. Matty is bound to get a game against Man Utd, then Ashley can negotiate buy one Longstaff get the other half price ?

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  39. People go on about Bruce’s points per game and win percentage when he was managing **** teams in the PL. Well how about OGS when he was managing Cardiff. I am not defending Bruce here, just saying **** teams with little money tend to get **** results.

    At Cardiff:

    Played 20
    Won 3
    Lost 13
    Drew 4

    That’s a win percentage of 15%. I think Bruce is around 30%.

    Points Per Game = 0.65. I think Bruce is about 1.13.

    OGS was sacked the following September, he was that bad.

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  40. Bruce now saying he hasn’t got time to implement his ideas and is reverting back to how Rafa played. Why is that? Graham Potter has managed to give Brighton a new identity in the same time. That’s just one example. Bright also didn’t have the luxury of having spent £65m either.

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  41. Bruce also says he hasn’t got the players to play his way. Does anybody know what his way is? Also he’s at the wrong club if he thinks he will be able to choose His own players to fit in to the way he wants to play. Didn’t he realise that when all the players arriving were already agreed before he even arrived?

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