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Eddie Howe is not prone to histrionics or grand media statements. So by his usual demeanor, his media briefing following the weekend's 3-1 defeat qualifies as a angry tirade. His side took an early lead but West Ham took the lead by half-time, as well as hitting the post and seeing a spot-kick overturned by VAR, prompting Howe to make a three substitutions at the half-time.

“That was the frustrating thing about the first half,” the coach said. “I almost could have taken anyone off and I think that was a reflection of our performance level in that moment in the game and it's extremely uncommon for me to feel that way. In fact, I don’t think I have since I’ve been manager of the club, so I felt the squad required a significant change at half-time. This explains why I did those decisions.”

Three key players all came off at half-time and the team did stabilise to an extent in the latter period, without ever appearing like they could get back into the game against a side that had secured just a single victory of their previous nine fixtures. Considering the congestion the centre of the table currently is, with a mere three-point gap dividing third from 11th, and nine points between the upper and lower ranks, a sequence of twelve points from 10 games has not left Newcastle stranded but, similarly, they must not end the campaign in thirteenth place.

The Problem of Perception

The challenge to an extent is one of public view. With the Saudi PIF, the club have the wealthiest backers in the globe. The expectation when the PIF bought 80% of the team in 2021 was that it would bring a transformative effect, as Roman Abramovich achieved at Stamford Bridge or Sheikh Mansour did at the Etihad. The distinction is that both of those owners took over before the introduction of FFP rules (while the ongoing charges against City relate to if they breached those regulations once they were implemented).

Financial regulations restrict the capacity of owners, however rich, to invest funds on their teams and therefore likely might have slowed every Middle Eastern attempt to raise Newcastle to the standard of Manchester City. However it wasn't necessary for the club's expenditure to have been quite as cautious as it has been; they might have spent more and remained within the limit – or simply taken a fairly minor European penalty since their big issue is primarily with the European than the Premier League rules.

Stadium Spending and Financial Regulations

Besides which, infrastructure spending is exempted from PSR assessments; the simplest way to raise income to create additional financial headroom would be to expand or redevelop the arena. Given the site of the home ground, with listed buildings on multiple sides, practically that likely implies building an completely new venue. Rumors circulated in March of possibly undertaking the nearby relocation to Leazes Park – opposition from community organizations could surely have been overcome with a commitment to build a new park on the current stadium site – but there has been any progress on that proposal. There has occurred significant retrenchment from the PIF on a variety of projects as it shifts focus on local investments; the attitude to Newcastle appears entirely in alignment with that change of approach.

The Alexander Isak Situation

The Alexander Isak episode was born of that conflict. A bolder management could have portrayed his sale as essential to release capital for additional investment; rather there was a vain effort to keep him. That meant the team started the campaign amid a sense of disappointment despite the acquisitions of several new players. The start was indifferent: a single victory in their initial six fixtures.

But it appeared a corner had been turned. They secured five in six before the weekend, a run that featured convincing wins of Union Saint-Gilloise and a Portuguese club in the Champions League. This explains the performance against the Hammers was so surprising. The problem maybe is that Newcastle’s approach is extremely intense, very high-octane; a minor decrease in intensity can have significant effects. Maybe the strain of domestic, European and Carabao Cup competition, five games in 15 days, had got to them. Woltemade started each of those games and looked particularly weary.

The Nature of Contemporary Soccer

This is the nature of modern football. Managers have to be ready to make changes. Howe has been unlucky that Wissa’s injury has meant he is short of forward choices but, no matter how valid the reasons, the weekend's showing was unacceptable –especially after taking the lead at a ground primed to criticize its home team.

The Newcastle boss will hope it was merely a temporary setback, one of those days when everybody is below par simultaneously, but if the Magpies are to secure the Champions League in the future, not to mention one day launch an genuine championship bid, they must not be as inconsistent as this.