Positivity returns to Newcastle after poor summer - Good signs ahead of Wolves clash
Premier League football returns this weekend after the early season international break with Newcastle United scheduled to take on Wolverhampton Wanderers at Molineux on Sunday afternoon.
The pre-break fixtures saw United collect seven points from a possible nine and advance to the 3rd round of the League Cup. Spurs being the notable scalp with them potentially being top four rivals. Despite positive results, Newcastle were poor performance wise, only really playing well in short spells which have coincided with the lads doing just enough to secure the results.
Fast forward two weeks, and after a glittering international break for many of the lads, are whispers of positivity starting to return to Barrack Road after a difficult summer and wobbly start to the new campaign (performance wise)?
Anthony Gordon started both games for England and looked in great shape, especially against Ireland, making multiple, brilliant defence splitting runs and linking up with Trent Alexander-Arnold in the build-up to England’s first goal. He was so unlucky to not get a goal or an assist across both games.
If Gareth Southgate wasn’t such a wet wipe and had played Gordon at the Euros, England would be European Champions right now, mark my words.
Alexander Isak bagged three goals for Sweden quadrupling his tally for the season. His on-the-ball and off-the-ball running was powerful and intelligent, and he linked up beautifully with Victor Gyokeres. The lad has a hefty release clause at Sporting Lisbon but United could do a lot worse than linking the pair up at club level too, particularly considering Callum Wilson appears to be a busted flush through injury.
Sandro Tonali played two full 90 minutes for Italy, showing how vital he is considered for his country – something which must be replicated at club level. He looked match fit, almost as if he hadn’t been on the sidelines for ten months. He also provided one of the most delightful outsides of boot flicked assists you are likely to see this season.
Lewis Hall bagged two assists for England U21s, the second included an outstanding interception and tackle before he put it on a plate for Tom Fellows to score on debut. The lad has recently just turned 20-years-old, yet he should hands down be Newcastle’s starting left-back. Sure, he is not the finished article defensively, but he offers so much going forward that he must be given an extended run in the first team again.
Miggy Almiron enjoyed a productive international break as he was part of the Paraguay side that condemned Brazil to a fourth defeat in their last five World Cup Qualifiers. Miggy played well, winning several fouls, reliving pressure and running hard. Bruno Guimaraes will disappointed with the result, but he helped Brazil to a 1-0 win in their previous game against Ecuador.
Trevan Sanusi scored his first goal for England U18s and put in an impressive all-round performance of wing play. Starting on the left, Sanusi’s goal came from him cutting in onto his right foot before arrowing a shot into the bottom corner, leaving the ‘keeper with no chance, to put his side in front. Surely the lad must be on the bench for first team games as a wildcard option moving forward.
Will Osula surprisingly got no minutes before the international break, but he scored for his countries’ U21 side in a defeat against Iceland. Osula opened the scoring with a sweetly struck finish across the ‘keeper into the far corner from the left side of the penalty area. Only ever expected to be third choice at Newcastle, it will be interesting to see how many minutes he gets for the first team moving forward.
Even Odysseas Vlachodimos and Martin Dubravka both kept two clean sheets for their respective countries in back-to-back Nations League wins for Greece and Slovakia. Throw in call ups for Tino Livramento and Nick Pope then it’s been a hugely positive fortnight away from Darsley Park for most of our international call ups – although it was disappointing that neither Tino nor Pope got a single minute for England.
On top of all that, positive updates on Joe Willock's fitness, no new injuries over the break and Fabian Schar's return from a three-game ban adds to what has felt like an encouraging 10 days away.
Unfortunately, a niggling doubt remains as to whether the manager will pick some of our returning internationals, as he has shown a preference for Longstaff and Kelly ahead of Tonali and Hall, against Bournemouth and Spurs respectively.
Eddie Howe tends to reward loyalty and good performances, an admirable trait, but the gaffer really needs to show his ruthless streak and start picking a first eleven that will dictate our style of play onto our opponents and not the other way around. Eddie has had the lads play several different ways since his arrival - counter attacking in the immediate aftermath of his appointment, high-pressing throughout 2022/23, and a hybrid system deeply affected by injury last season. We all know which was the most enjoyable to watch and it would be delightful to see the lads put in a really dominant display in the ‘intensity is our identity’ style this weekend and bring our early season league tally to ten points.
As the old football cliché goes – form is temporary, class is permanent, and if the class lads can find similar form in Black and White as they have for their countries then we could be in for a positive next phase of the campaign. And with four of the next five away from home before the next international break in mid-October we will need everyone pulling in the same direction.
