Newcastle’s bruising defeat at Leeds has raised questions over Matthias Jaissle’s tactics and the make-up of his squad.
So, what happens next – and how worried should supporters be?
In our latest Newcastle Confidential Q&A special, CRAIG HOPE answers your questions on Anthony Elanga’s injury, Nico Gonzalez’s concussion and Joelinton’s recovery.
He also reveals the club’s plans at centre back, examines why Newcastle are being overrun in midfield and asks whether Jaissle has built a system around a No 10 he does not actually have…
Any news on Anthony Elanga’s injury?
This cannot be definitive, because another scan is scheduled, but my information coming out of Leeds was of a muscle injury in the hamstring area that would keep Elanga sidelined for around six-to-eight weeks.
I know those inside the club are concerned about the gravity of the problem, but only when another MRI scan is complete will they communicate the full prognosis. Those tests, I’m told, are taking place this week.
Either way, Elanga is facing a period in the treatment room. The problem, say sources, is not knee related, despite speculation.
Anthony Elanga is facing an extended spell on the sidelines – though he doesn’t have a knee injury, despite speculation to the contrary
Will Nico Gonzalez get the all-clear to play on Saturday? (Saeb Macafi)
No. There is a loophole that allows a player to return if they were only taken off with ‘suspected concussion’, but even then the earliest point of clearance is seven days.
My sources say the team are preparing for the weekend on the assumption Gonzalez will not be involved.
What’s the situation with Big Joe? (Clare Bremmer)
Joelinton has a quad injury that is not as bad as first feared, at least in that it does not require surgery.
However, by the time he returns after the international break, his absence would have extended to two months, and that is assuming there are no setbacks.
In other news, I’m hearing Bruno Guimaraes had a sleepover at Joelinton’s place following his goal against Sunderland at the weekend, although I suspect their customary kickabout in the back garden had to be sacrificed.
Former Newcastle star Bruno Guimaraes (left) stayed over at Joelinton’s house following Arsenal’s win at Sunderland
Could Will Osula be the answer on the right wing? (Bobby Martins)
First of all, Osula needs to get fit. His foot injury is said to be healing well and he should be in contention for the trip to Coventry on October 12.
In theory, as last season’s brilliant goal against Manchester United showed, he is dangerous cutting in from the right. But Osula is a central striker and thrives playing on the shoulder of centre backs. I’m not sure he’s cut out for a more disciplined role with responsibility to work both ways.
One of the reasons Jaissle doesn’t yet fancy Bazoumana Toure as a starter, I’m told, is his need to work on the defensive side of his game as a winger.
Why did we invest so much in midfielders but not in centre halves? I was pointing out all summer how vulnerable we were in that position with ageing and injury-prone players. Does Jaissle want to invest in a CB in January and how do we cope till then? (Shearer’s Slipper)
Centre backs were put to the club by agents early in the window and the likes of Fikayo Tomori were closely monitored. But once a new deal for Fabian Schar was agreed, the plan was always to stick with him, Sven Botman, Malick Thiaw and Dan Burn. Staff have also spoken about Amar Dedic being able to play in the middle.
The problem Newcastle had in this position, when it came to the summer market, was that they needed to trade one out to bring one in. Botman had not long signed a new contract; Burn is 34, club captain and settled, while Thiaw has been at the club only one season and is not a player they want to sell.
As for Jaissle, he will be assessing what he has and doesn’t have all of the time. But a club like Newcastle, in an SCR world, can’t really afford to carry more than four senior centre backs.
The longer-term plan is to replace Schar, 34, next summer with a centre back in the 21-to-24 age profile. However, the performance of the other three this season – especially if they struggle – could see more drastic change in an area of the pitch in which, I agree, Newcastle suddenly look vulnerable.
Newcastle plan to replace 34-year-old Fabian Schar (left) with a younger centre back next summer
Do you think the team were prepared correctly for the Leeds game? It felt like there was a failure in the overall game plan, but more worryingly in the basic preparation of patterns, marking and motivation (Sean Brown)
Well, I’ve heard nothing to suggest they weren’t prepared (under some former managers I was often told that they weren’t!) and all of the noise around Jaissle has been positive. But what played out in front of us at Elland Road did look void of the elements you mention.
One word that has been put to me by those close to the club in recent days is ‘naive’. That in the sense of Newcastle playing a 4-2-4, in effect, against a Leeds side who crowd the middle of the park.
Such naivety is, of course, all part of the learning curve for a new manager in a new country.
But the first half on Monday night was as bad a 45 minutes as I can remember post-takeover – and that was simply because of the absence of the basic application you would expect when it comes to tackling, marking and running.
That should be a concern because, as Jaissle said, those are the ‘non-negotiables’.
Matthias Jaissle will have been furious with what he saw at Elland Road on Monday night, as his players failed at basics like tracking back, marking and tackling
Do we still need a top No 9, rather than a 10? (John Keith)
I would argue they still need both! But the bigger issue is the No 10, especially if Jaissle continues to use one. Because, for me, he does not have a No 10!
Yoane Wissa is a No 9 and does not have the qualities a player in the deeper position needs – that is not his fault, it’s just not him.
Joe Willock can do a job there, but it’s not his position. The same for Jacob Ramsey. Matias Fernandez-Pardo has told the club he wants to play centre forward.
So, there you go – a team built around a No 10 when it doesn’t really have one. They need someone who can act as an extension of the midfield, who can control the tempo of a game and open doors. At present, the players used are out-of-position runners.
Wissa can have a good season, I really believe that, but only as a central striker.
Yoane Wissa (pictured celebrating his goal at Tottenham last month) has made a bright start to the season but isn’t the answer at No 10
Eddie Howe got it in the neck about not being tactically flexible, so we have to be consistent with Jaissle – why is he sacrificing his midfield to play Wissa as a 10? Wissa is a striker and we’re being overwhelmed in midfield. Every opponent will run and pass through us just like with Howe (Pablo Hopez)
Is Jaissle tactically flexible enough to accept we are light in midfield and need extra bodies? Ruben Amorim made that mistake at Man Utd (Geoff Adamson)
Is Jaissle dead set on having only two in midfield after we have had two Premier League games in a row now and been completely overrun? (Smithy)
Jaissle’s preferred system is 4-2-3-1, for sure – he has told us that. But only he can answer the questions you pose with his team selection.
As you all say, there is an issue in midfield that needs to be addressed. I flagged it before the trip to Leeds and my suspicion of them being overrun played out.
The problem Jaissle has this weekend against Hull is that Gonzalez, Joelinton and Ramsey are all likely to be missing. Maybe a three of Lewis Miley, Sean Steur and Joe Willock would be the best bet for this game. To go with two in midfield would perhaps lay a blueprint for Hull to exploit.
Right now, Miley and Steur between them don’t have the physicality needed for a Premier League midfield pairing. Miley, in mitigation, looks like he needs a good run of games to build fitness, rhythm and confidence.
Midfielder Lewis Miley looks like he needs a good run of games to build fitness, rhythm and confidence
Do you think we will be relegated based on what you have seen so far? (Daniel Hickey)
No. But I did say at the start of the season that a repeat of 12th would probably represent a decent campaign based on how the summer played out, even though they salvaged the window with some good business towards the end.
I know the ambition internally is European football, and after a few games there was optimism in that regard, but my realistic take has always been that this year will likely be a bottom-half finish.
What is the highest finish the club would still consider a disaster this season? (Kizza)
Well, the hierarchy have labelled 12th a ‘disappointing end’ to last season, and they say that within the context of each position lost or gained equating to £2.6million in prize money.
So, to answer the question, I’d say anything below 12th would be disappointing for them. A ‘disaster’ would be relegation.
How do they expect to meet this 2030 target (of being the best in the world) if they are routinely selling our best players and stubbornly holding on to the likes of Murphy/Willock when we get perfectly good offers for them? (Capitao39)
It’s a question a lot of supporters are asking re the non-sales of Jacob Murphy and Willock. In defence of Murphy, Jaissle really wanted to keep him and I understand why. He values his leadership in a young dressing room.
Also, the final £15m offer from Nottingham Forest landed on deadline day, so it was too late to replace him. The original offer of around £10m did come a week or so earlier.
Some Newcastle fans wanted to see Joe Willock (left) and Jacob Murphy sold this summer, but Willock has started the season well and Murphy is an important leader in the dressing room
As for Willock, I agree with your point. The club could have negotiated his sale sooner in the window and reinvested. Saying that, Willock has started the season well and will probably emerge as an important player in the coming weeks. He’s got the legs that others haven’t.
The club also felt the turnover of players was already very high and were conscious of having some continuity and stability.
As for where all of this leaves Vision 2030… I’m on the record in saying that, while I admire the ambition, I’m not sure it is deliverable in four years. I believe the hierarchy are well-intended, competent and will push as hard as they can, but I don’t see a club (on the pitch or off it) that feels on the coattails of the top six at present.
