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Eddie Howe is not prone to dramatics or grand public pronouncements. Based on his usual demeanor, his media briefing after the weekend's 3-1 defeat qualifies as a furious tirade. His side took an early lead but West Ham were ahead by the interval, as well as hitting the post and having a penalty revoked by VAR, leading Howe to make a three substitutions at the half-time.

“The opening period was particularly irritating,” Howe stated. “I almost could have taken anyone off and I believe this indicated of where we were in that moment during the match and it’s very, very rare for me to have that impression. Actually, I cannot recall having done so since I’ve been manager of Newcastle, therefore I believed the squad required a significant change at half-time. That’s why I did what I did.”

Three key players were substituted at the interval and Newcastle managed to steady somewhat in the second half, but never really looking like they might get back into the contest against an opponent that had secured just a single victory of their previous nine fixtures. Considering the congestion the centre of the standings currently is, with just three points separating third from 11th, and a nine-point margin between the upper and lower ranks, a sequence of 12 points from ten matches has not placed the Magpies stranded but, similarly, they must not end the campaign in thirteenth place.

The Issue of Perception

The problem to an extent is one of public view. In the Saudi Public Investment Fund, the club have the wealthiest owners in the globe. The expectation at the time the PIF acquired 80% of the team in recent years was that it would bring a game-changing impact, as Roman Abramovich had at Chelsea or Sheikh Mansour did at the Etihad. The difference is that those two investors took over prior to the introduction of FFP regulations (while the ongoing allegations against City relate to whether they violated those regulations after they were implemented).

Profit and sustainability regulations limit the ability of proprietors, however rich, to spend money on their squads and therefore likely would have slowed any Saudi attempt to raise the team to the level of City. But there is no need for Newcastle’s expenditure to have been quite as cautious as it has; they might have spent more and remained within the threshold – or simply taken a relatively meagre European penalty since their big issue is more with the European than the domestic regulation.

Infrastructure Spending and PSR Rules

Besides which, stadium development is excluded from PSR calculations; the easiest way to raise income to generate additional financial headroom would be to extend or renovate the stadium. Given the location of the home ground, with protected structures on two sides, practically that likely means building an entirely new stadium. Rumors circulated in March of potentially making the short move to Leazes Park – opposition from community organizations could surely have been surmounted with a promise to create a replacement green space on the existing ground location – but there has been no movement on that proposal. There has been significant cutbacks from the PIF on a range of projects as it shifts focus on local investments; the attitude to the football club seems entirely in alignment with that change of approach.

Player Sales Saga

The star striker saga was arose from that tension. A bolder leadership might have framed his transfer as essential to release capital for further investment; rather there was a vain attempt to retain him. This resulted in the team started the campaign amid a sense of disappointment despite the signings of Woltemade, Yoane Wissa, Jacob Ramsey, Malick Thiaw and Anthony Elanga. The start was indifferent: a single victory in their first six fixtures.

Yet it appeared a corner was reached. They had won five in six before the weekend, a run that included demolitions of a Belgian side and a Portuguese club in the Champions League. That’s why the performance against the Hammers was such a shock. The issue maybe is that Newcastle’s approach is extremely intense, high-energy; a minor decrease in energy can have significant consequences. Perhaps the pressure of domestic, European and cup competition, five fixtures in 15 days, had got to them. Woltemade started each of those matches and looked especially fatigued.

The Nature of Modern Soccer

That’s the reality of today's football. Coaches must be prepared to make changes. The manager has been unfortunate that the forward's fitness issue has meant he is short of attacking options but, no matter how valid the reasons, Sunday’s performance was inexcusable –particularly following taking the lead at a ground primed to turn on its home team.

The Newcastle boss will wish it was merely a temporary setback, an off-day when everybody is off-colour at once, but if the Magpies are to qualify for the European competition next season, not to mention eventually mount an actual title challenge, they must not be as unreliable as they have been.