If Newcastle United were a dog, it would have been put down by now. A floating goldfish flushed down the toilet. As history begins to repeat itself once more - meandering towards an inevitable denouement, I barely have enough energy to get angry about it anymore.
But whilst there is underachievement on the pitch, and obvious problems with the management team, let’s not forget who the real problem really is - the cancer entwining Newcastle United, Mike Ashley.
He may hide behind the guise of wanting to sell, and pursuing arbitration against the Premier League, but his failure to act months ago when dismissing the failing Steve Bruce seemed a no brainier, has once again resulted in the future of Newcastle United being gambled.
I don’t blame Mike for having a little gamble here and there. A little gamble like selling DeAndre Yedlin. But as a betting man myself, it’s obvious for all to see that he has backed the wrong horse.
For example, if I back a horse that doesn’t like a slog in the mud, I’m not going to back it if it’s been pissing down all night and day. And yet, Mike did this with Steve McClaren. The former England manager managed to guide Newcastle into the bottom three, despite arguably having the strongest squad we’ve had since that great season under Pardew. You could even argue that Newcastle haven’t even had such a strong a squad since!
Mike left it too late to dispose of McClaren, and a second relegation was inevitable despite the best efforts of Rafa Benitez. For 99% of the population, a lesson would have been learnt. But not Mike, and not for Lee Charnley - who also needs to be shouldered with a large proportion of the blame. They have again backed the wrong horse and won’t admit they’re wrong. Imagine backing a horse in the Grand National that you thought had potential, but is a fence behind the pack - that is Newcastle United.
Steve Bruce is not as bad as Steve McClaren, as last season he did do a good job “under the circumstances.” But the similarities between this season and the one under McClaren are tediously alarming. The warning signs were there months ago - we all saw it. But Ashley is still backing that horse lagging behind in the Grand National, hoping others in front of it fall so he move up the rankings.
The worst thing about all of this is that it’s not surprising. Nothing will change until the cancer that is Mike Ashley is removed.
コメント