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Eddie Howe isn't typically prone to dramatics or grand media pronouncements. Based on his standards, his press conference after the weekend's 3-1 defeat counts as a angry outburst. Newcastle took an early lead but West Ham took the lead by half-time, as well as hitting the post and having a penalty revoked by VAR, leading Howe to make a triple change at the half-time.

“That was the frustrating thing about the first half,” the coach stated. “I almost could have taken anyone off and I think that was a reflection of our performance level at that stage in the game and it's extremely uncommon for me to feel that way. In fact, I cannot recall I have since I’ve been head coach of the club, so I felt the squad required a significant change at half-time. That’s why I made what I did.”

Three key players all came off at half-time and the team did stabilise somewhat in the second half, without ever appearing like they might fight back into the game against an opponent that had secured just a single victory of their previous nine fixtures. Considering the congestion the centre of the table is, with just three points separating the top spots from mid-table, and a nine-point margin between the upper and lower ranks, a run of 12 points from ten matches has not left the Magpies adrift but, equally, they must not end the campaign in thirteenth place.

The Issue of Perception

The challenge to an extent is one of public view. With the Saudi PIF, the club have the richest owners in the globe. The assumption when the Saudi fund bought a majority stake of the club in 2021 was that it would have a transformative effect, similar to Roman Abramovich achieved at Stamford Bridge or Sheikh Mansour did at the Etihad. The difference is that those two investors took over prior to the advent of financial fair play regulations (while the current charges against City relate to whether they violated those guidelines once they were in place).

Profit and sustainability restrictions limit the ability of owners, however rich, to invest funds on their squads and so in that sense probably would have hindered every Saudi attempt to raise the team to the level of City. However it wasn't necessary for the club's expenditure to have been quite as cautious as it has; they could have spent more and remained within the limit – or just accepted a relatively meagre European fine given their major issue is more with the continental than the domestic rules.

Stadium Investment and PSR Rules

Besides which, stadium development is excluded from PSR calculations; the easiest method to increase revenue to create additional PSR headroom would be to extend or redevelop the arena. Given the location of the home ground, with listed buildings on two sides, practically that probably implies building an entirely new venue. There was talk in March of potentially making the nearby relocation to Leazes Park – resistance from community organizations might have been surmounted with a commitment to create a new park on the existing ground location – but there has been any progress on that proposal. There has been significant retrenchment from the PIF on a range of projects as it refocuses on local investments; the approach to the football club appears completely in alignment with that strategic shift.

The Alexander Isak Saga

The Alexander Isak saga was arose from that tension. A bolder leadership might have framed his sale as essential to release funds for additional investment; rather there was a vain effort to keep him. That meant Newcastle began the season amid a sense of frustration despite the acquisitions of Woltemade, Yoane Wissa, Jacob Ramsey, Malick Thiaw and Anthony Elanga. The start was indifferent: a single victory in their initial six fixtures.

But it appeared a turning point was reached. They had won five victories in six matches prior to Sunday, a run that included convincing wins of Union Saint-Gilloise and Benfica in the Champions League. That’s why the display against West Ham was such a shock. The issue perhaps is that Newcastle’s approach is very aggressive, high-energy; a minor decrease in intensity can have profound effects. Maybe the strain of Premier League, Champions League and Carabao Cup matches, five games in a fortnight, had taken its toll. Woltemade featured in each of those matches and appeared particularly weary.

Reality of Modern Football

This is the reality of today's the sport. Managers have to be ready to rotate. The manager has been unlucky that the forward's fitness issue has meant he is short of attacking options but, regardless of how valid the reasons, the weekend's showing was unacceptable –particularly following scoring first at a ground ready to turn on its own side.

Howe will wish it was merely a temporary setback, one of those days when everybody is off-colour simultaneously, but if Newcastle are to secure the European competition next season, let alone eventually mount an genuine championship bid, they cannot be as unreliable as this.