Newcastle United crashed out of the Capital One Cup in humiliating fashion as they were beaten 1-0 at home to Championship side Sheffield Wednesday.
Lewis McGugan’s 76th-minute strike fumbled its way past Tim Krul to ensure a memorable win for The Owls, who currently sit 14th in English football’s second tier.
Those in black-and-white were subject to huge boos at both the half-time and full-time whistles, and deservedly so.
Here’s what we learnt from another torrid night at St. James:
This may just be the lowest of the low for Newcastle United.
The home defeat to Sheffield Wednesday is as embarrassing as it gets for Newcastle. It could just be the lowest point the club has found itself at within recent memory.
Now I know what you’re thinking, a certain trip to Birmingham on the final day of the 2008/09 season was surely more catastrophic than tonight’s game.
Yes, last season was filled with a catalogue of horror-shows, but never at one stage would I imagine I’d see a side filled with players of proven quality roll-over to an opposition of this calibre…
Sheffield Wednesday made 10 (TEN!) changes for this tie, almost handing Newcastle a free pass into the next round of a cup that The Magpies had vowed to try and win.
Newcastle themselves boasted the likes of Florian Thauvin, Siem de Jong, Moussa Sissoko, Daryl Janmaat, Tim Krul and Gini Wijnaldum in their starting XI, all of whom are of considerable international pedigree, yet failed to register a shot on target until the 85th minute.
Newcastle needed a win in this game to revive the players’ confidence after a poor start to the league campaign, particularly with Chelsea and Manchester City next up.
Yet instead they produced one of the most lackluster, lackadaisical and downright pathetic team performances ever to exist on a football pitch, and a supposed Premier League one at that too!
Newcastle were easily second-best to a bottom-half Championship side’s reserve team tonight, and really they should have won by more.
Quite frankly, this display was unforgivable.
Things need to improve, fast.
On the opening weekend of the season, a fantastic header from debutant Georginio Wijnaldum had given Newcastle a 2-1 lead over Southampton. St. James’ erupted as the ball flew into the top corner and chants of “Steve McClaren’s black-and-white army” rang through the terraces.
Fast forward a month-and-a-bit, and the former England boss is the subject of an immense amount of criticism.
Three games in a row now have passed with Newcastle losing all three, scoring one goal, and appearing to have absolutely no idea what they’re doing. From the players, through to the coaching staff, right through to McClaren. Seriously, what is our game plan? Keep possession until Thauvin gives it away and we get countered? It’s diabolical to watch!
I have patience with McClaren, but he really needs to turn things around now. Nobody is going to expect 6 points against Chelsea and City, but the performances have to be there. Which they aren’t, far from it.
Add two more likely defeats from our next two games, we then have Norwich at home and the small matter of Sunderland away. We can’t afford to keep up the current mentality, or we’re going to be in big, big trouble.
Even the fan favourites are losing support.
As the team news was released for the game with Wednesday, there was further disbelief at the fact Ayoze Perez had once again been left out of the starting line-up.
The talented Spaniard came on at half-time, and although he did liven the game up somewhat, he lost his footing a ridiculous number of times in good areas and went on to strike the post when facing an open goal (though the linesman’s flag had already been raised).The confidence continues to chip away, but Perez has to be a starter for the foreseeable future as the boy is quite obviously one of our best players.
Siem de Jong was given a start with many Newcastle fans hoping to see the man that captained Ajax to Eredivisie domination, yet instead drifted around the pitch without conviction, and missed two very, very good chances in the closing minutes of the game.
These are the players that Newcastle fans are dying to see light up St. James Park, and on the rare occasion they are fit/chosen to play, they just aren’t doing it. Who else do we have left to turn to in order to improve fortunes on the pitch?
We’re desperate for a strong performance from Mitrovic this weekend.
The Serbian striker returns from suspension this weekend, and it could just be the revival we need.
Against Watford we floated several balls into the box with nobody to attack them. If Mitrovic can get himself about (without any cards), make himself a nuisance (again without getting any cards) and maybe even get himself on the scoresheet, it could be the spark to our season that we’re craving.
