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The Newcastle manager isn't typically given to dramatics or sweeping media pronouncements. So by his standards, his media briefing after the weekend's 3-1 defeat counts as a furious tirade. His side took an early lead but West Ham were ahead by the interval, while also hitting the post and seeing a spot-kick overturned by VAR, leading Howe to make a triple change at the break.

“That was the frustrating thing about the first half,” Howe stated. “Virtually any player could have been substituted and I believe this indicated of our performance level in that moment in the game and it's extremely uncommon for me to feel that way. In fact, I cannot recall having done so during my tenure as head coach of the club, so I felt the squad required a significant change at half-time. That’s why I did those decisions.”

Three key players were substituted at half-time and Newcastle managed to steady somewhat in the second half, without ever appearing like they might get back into the contest against a side that had won only one of their last nine league matches. Given how packed the centre of the standings is, with just three points dividing the top spots from mid-table, and nine points between second and 17th, a run of twelve points from 10 games has not placed the Magpies stranded but, equally, they must not finish the season in 13th.

The Problem of Expectations

The challenge to an extent is one of public view. In the Saudi Public Investment Fund, Newcastle have the richest owners in the world. The expectation at the time the Saudi fund acquired a majority stake of the club in recent years was that it would have a transformative effect, similar to Roman Abramovich had at Chelsea or the City Group did at the Etihad. The distinction is that both of those investors assumed control prior to the introduction of financial fair play rules (and the ongoing charges against City relate to whether they violated those guidelines once they were implemented).

Financial regulations restrict the ability of proprietors, no matter how wealthy, to spend money on their teams and so in that sense probably would have hindered every Saudi effort to raise Newcastle to the standard of Manchester City. But there is no need for the club's expenditure to have been so restrained as it has been; they could have spent more and remained within the threshold – or just accepted a relatively meagre Uefa penalty given their big issue is primarily with the continental than the domestic regulation.

Stadium Spending and PSR Regulations

Besides which, stadium development is excluded from Profit and Sustainability calculations; the simplest way to raise income to generate additional PSR headroom would be to extend or renovate the stadium. Considering the site of St James’ Park, with protected structures on two sides, practically that probably implies building an entirely new venue. Rumors circulated in March of potentially undertaking the nearby relocation to a local park – resistance from community organizations might have been surmounted with a promise to create a replacement green space on the current ground location – but there has been any progress on that proposal. There has occurred substantial cutbacks from the Saudi fund on a variety of projects as it refocuses on domestic affairs; the approach to Newcastle appears completely in alignment with that strategic shift.

The Alexander Isak Saga

The Alexander Isak saga was born of that tension. A bolder leadership might have portrayed his sale as necessary to free up capital for further spending; instead there was a unsuccessful effort to retain him. That meant the team started the campaign amidst a sense of disappointment despite the signings of Woltemade, Yoane Wissa, Jacob Ramsey, Malick Thiaw and Anthony Elanga. The start was mixed: one win in their initial six fixtures.

Yet it appeared a turning point was reached. They had won five victories in six matches prior to the weekend, a run that featured demolitions of Union Saint-Gilloise and Benfica in the European competition. This explains the display against the Hammers was such a shock. The problem perhaps is that Newcastle’s approach is very aggressive, very high-octane; a slight drop-off in energy can have profound effects. Perhaps the pressure of Premier League, Champions League and Carabao Cup competition, five fixtures in 15 days, had got to them. The German forward featured in each of those matches and appeared particularly fatigued.

Reality of Contemporary Soccer

That’s the nature of today's the sport. Coaches have to be prepared to rotate. The manager has been unfortunate that Wissa’s fitness issue has meant he is lacking forward choices but, no matter how reasonable the explanations, the weekend's performance was inexcusable –particularly following taking the lead at a stadium 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 simultaneously, but if Newcastle are to secure the European competition in the future, let alone one day mount an genuine championship bid, they must not be as inconsistent as this.