A summer without a sporting director and failure to keep Alexander Isak happy has left the club with an almost dysfunctional feel
“If you want to understand Newcastle you first need to understand its place in the world – that is, a very long way from anywhere. The next major city is Leeds, two hours drive to the south … London feels very far away.”
If Eddie Howe can only hope his prospective signings do not stumble across the Rough Guides introduction to England’s northern cities, Newcastle’s manager may also reflect that it was not supposed to be like this.
The days when the club’s recruitment strategy was often a victim of its geographical isolation were supposed to have ended four years ago when Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund obtained the keys to St James’ Park.
In October 2021 there was a sense of giddiness in the Tyneside air as Amanda Staveley, the then Newcastle director and minority owner who played a key role in convincing one of the world’s richest sovereign wealth funds to buy the club from Mike Ashley, settled back into a sofa at the city’s leafy Jesmond Dene House hotel and spoke of soaring ambition and trophies galore.
