The return of these two Newcastle United players is enough to take things up a notch

The 2024/25 Premier League season is fast approaching for every Newcastle United fan.

Only one day to go now until United host Southampton and it all kicks off again.

An ideal time to get a snapshot of views from Newcastle United fans on how they think things are going.

So we sent out various sets of questions to a number of regular/irregular contributors to The Mag.

Next up we have Jamie Smith:

What do you think Eddie Howe’s first choice eleven will be this coming season, when all current squad are fit?

When all are fit: Pope, Livramento, Hall, Schar, Botman, Tonali, Bruno, Joelinton, Gordon, Murphy, Isak

I say this every time, but you don’t have a first choice eleven any more, you have a squad of 17 including “finishers” to come off the bench, or fluid changes to allow different formations (e.g. Burn/Kelly come in to give you three at the back, Wilson starts to allow a front 2). The key is if Eddie effectively manages this so changes can be fluent and effective, with the line up easily amended to beat the opposition in front of them.

Your thoughts on the signings made this summer?

I think Osula is a wise signing that will help keep maintain the fitness of the existing two strikers while building his own potential.

Kelly is a solid addition for free but I’m not sure what’s going on with the keepers.

It’s probably premature to answer this, as I’d expect additions at centre half and/or on the right side of attack before the season starts. If we get both, combined with last season’s injured returning, this squad could be very exciting indeed.

Predict the top five in the Premier League (in order) and which three clubs will be relegated.

Arsenal, Newcastle, Liverpool, Man City, Spurs.

It’s total guesswork based around Man City receiving some kind of deduction from their Premier League charges being heard in November, but not to the extent they disappear from the picture altogether. I honestly have no idea how it will pan out, if they get off scot free they’ll likely win it again of course.

I’m going to stick my neck out on the relegation question and say this is the season that Everton’s bizarre juju expires and they finally drop. Southampton seem no better than when they were bottom two years back, so for me it’s a question of whether the other promoted sides are up to the challenge. I’m gonna back Ipswich to pull off a narrow escape, give Cooper some credit to stabilise Leicester and suggest Brentford’s time in the Premier League has run its course. They looked poor in the second half of last season and nowt to suggest they’ve rebooted.

Name a Newcastle player who you think could be a massive surprise success this season, doing far better than most fans expect.

My immediate thought is Lewis Hall, who I think could be a revelation this year. I’m not sure he’ll fit the bill of being a massive surprise though, given his solid performances at the end of last season, and in the pre-season games.

With the emphasis on the “could” in the question I’m going to say Osula. If Howe can raise his game to PL levels it could be transformative to have a reliable forward coming off the bench to finish games off, while lessening the burden on Isak and potentially allowing the time management to get the best from Wilson.

Hand on heart, where do you think Newcastle will finish in the 2024/25 Premier League?

Rights, I’m serious here, there are some factors, but I believe top three.

There are two main reasons, the first being the strength in our squad when it isn’t ravaged by injuries like last year. Pre-season has confirmed what I’ve said all along, that the return of Pope and Joelinton alone is enough to take the team up a notch, but the options at full strength are very positive even before any late August additions.

The second reason is the punishing schedule that our rivals all face in Europe, as the extended group stages will see a crammed fixture list right through to January. I’d hope United can revert to the high intensity side of two years ago and capitalise on their relative freshness.

Finally, the new managers at Liverpool and Chelsea would suggest transitional seasons, while Man Utd under Ten Hag just don’t look the part. With Man City in court and Villa facing the Champions League pressure that buckled us last year, this leaves the north London pair as the only threats that don’t have some issues to contend with, and I doubt Spurs will cope well with the Europa league.

What would be your ideal future stadium if these two were the options – St James’ Park increased to 60,000, or brand new 80,000 stadium just a few hundred yards up the road where Leazes Park and/or Castle Leazes is?

I have to concede a bit of ground to my mate Simon here. As we walked into the Emirates Stadium last season he said “this is what you get with a brand new ground” – the space access, facilities are all that bit upgraded, not to mention its capacity to make money. And the Emirates is 20 years old, so there’s a strong case for the benefits of a super stadium.

The issue would be our unique location, I love being in the town all day on matchdays and the way SJP dominates the skyline. So in your scenario it’s definitely the Castle Leazes option, if it’s only shifting a goal kick away, 80k would I think give the fans who currently face the frustrations of membership the opportunity to get in, while still allowing visitors to take in a game on a more casual basis (just put them up a height so the TV doesn’t catch them).

How much of a shock was it that Newcastle United had to sell Elliot Anderson and Yankuba Minteh this summer to cover a £50m+ PSR shortfall?

Not shocking in terms of the sales as everyone should have been well prepared for the fact we had to shift someone due to statements from club officials and reports from journalists over the past year or so outlining precisely this. If we’re honest both of those two were acceptable sacrifices, much as we’d have preferred them to still be here.

The shock factor for me was how frantic it all became, with these two being rushed through in the final 48 hours with an apparent double digit points deduction the alternative.

Which Newcastle United player sale would have hurt the most if they’d gone this summer?

Isak. Prolific goal scorers in the Premier League are real commodities and he would be utterly irreplaceable. To lose Bruno or Gordon would be horrifying but the reinvestment of funds could see the team bounce. However, the success of this season relies on the Swede staying fit and firing more than anything else.

Would you like to draw Sunderland again in one of the cups this coming season?

In the FA Cup you mean? Absolutely 100%. When we got drawn there last year (in the middle of a terrible slump in form) I just felt anxious, but I had such a brilliant day there that I’d love it to happen again.

A big factor in last season’s game was that it shattered the delusion that even the more balanced mackems had entertained, which was that we weren’t that good and their own young, promising team would give us a good game. The absolute anonymity of the likes of Clarke and Jobe in that one-sided match was a sobering experience for them, and I love the thought of full-strength Newcastle getting a home tie this time and delivering a high scoring battering.

The fact that last season’s game created a malaise that contributed to their fall away from the play off picture was an enormous bonus and would be terrific to repeat.

Of course, their early exit from the league cup (wise if you ask me) means we’ll have to wait for the FA Cup third round draw, but I’d consider it an early Christmas present to draw them.

Next three seasons, would you rather finish top four all three seasons BUT win nothing, or finish mid-table all three seasons AND win the League Cup in one of the three?

I heard a quote from the journalist (and friend of Bruce) Craig Hope that if you qualify for the Champions League every year, the cups will just come naturally. It’s a sickener to think of another three barren years but the CL qualification probably bodes well in the longer term. The corresponding three years in the last decade were: narrowly avoided relegation, fail to avoid relegation, promotion from the Championship, so let’s keep a bit of perspective.

Compared to how you felt just after last season ended, are you more or less optimistic now about the season ahead, taking into account all the pre-season matches have now been played and the transfers in and out so far?

More. Waaaay more.

Last season had some glorious moments but it was peppered with constant misery, be it in the form of the absurd amount of injuries, the offensive string of cup draws or the very disappointing performances that shot up semi-regularly, especially away from home. I was glad when it ended and spent the summer keeping clear of NUFC matters.

When I rocked up for the Sela Cup in my nice new Adidas top to see a relatively injury free United continue an impressive build up, I felt renewed and energised about things. There is still a story to be written in what remains of August, as we should be collecting a good points return from the games we have and improving the squad with signings (not losing anyone!) so that optimism has the potential to rocket in the weeks ahead.

I’m trying to keep it grounded though, as we know all too well how badly these things can go wrong.

How worried are you about PSR/FFP affecting Newcastle United over the course of the next decade?

Every time we have a bad result, I get a bit angry at how these crooked rules are holding us back. A change in the way it’s applied next summer should benefit us, but the fear is that the super league crew will take every opportunity to fiddle things in a way that prevents Newcastle closing the gap on them.

One positive that I think gets overlooked is that we actually have a huge ally in all of this in Man City. Their recent case against the PL’s rule on related party transactions will have its results published in the next week, with City having had some successes according to reports. I wonder if Newcastle are holding off on mooted sponsorship announcements until they digest these outcomes, which could be a game changer.

Either way, the court case between the Prem and its champions over their 115 charges has potential to blow this open further. I’d hope that this, allied to the grumbling from many big clubs that are forced to sell home grown talent or be miserly in the transfer market could be the death knell for PSR as we know it.

While this is all playing out, we need to grow as a force within the current parameters and, much as I hate to say it, this adds pressure to the need for this season to be a success. Massive year ahead.

Newcastle start the season with Southampton (Home), Bournemouth (Away), Spurs (Home), Wolves (Away) and Fulham (Away), what would you see as success in these opening five Premier League matches?

Being conservative, 10 points+. Southampton at home is the easiest game on paper and not winning that would be unacceptable. Those away games are golden opportunities to sort out our form on the road. If we can do this we could get close to the target for these openers, which absolutely should be 15 points going into a huge face off with Man City.

Chelsea are spending incredible amounts of money under these current owners and appear to have a rule book all of their own in terms of what they are able/allowed to do. What do you predict will happen to Chelsea, will it all suddenly collapse like a deck of cards or will they simply continue doing as they are and potentially competitive on the pitch as well?

I barely even consider them an English football club, they’re just a manufactured experiment bringing the worst kind of American capitalism into the Premier League. It’s ridiculous the subterfuge they’ve used to continue spending and my only hope is that they’ve run out of options now and the deck of cards effect will kick in. Ironically, I still don’t consider them a particularly strong team, if it wasn’t for the relative punt on Cole Palmer, a fairly low-key addition of a Man City youngster, they’d be absolutely nowhere right now.

When did you begin actively supporting Newcastle United/realise you were an NUFC fan? How would you describe the differences between now and then? Do you think it is better supporting Newcastle United now (and being a football fan in general), or was it better back when it all started for you?

Got given the shirt when I was five and told I supported them.

First game in the late 80s, season ticket in the early 90s and been there since. I’ve always made it a good experience with mates and family, with my 10 year old son sat next to me every week now. I think the early explosion of the Premier League in the 90s was great and it felt like being part of something massive, whereas now that has become over saturated and riddled with frustrating or boring elements like having to follow FFP rules.

There’s also the price factor, as the league grows as a global brand and the need to appeal to an audience across the world threatens to eradicate the identity that built the club’s appeals in the first place.

You need to move with the times of course, and if being part of this kind of modern day growth sees Newcastle finally taste some real success, we’ll all be happy I’m sure.

Which player from your early days supporting Newcastle United would you most like to see in the NUFC 2024/25 team?

Gazza played in my first game. If Steve Parish thinks Guehi is a generational talent he should have seen this lad.

You can follow the author on Twitter @Mr_Dolf