Even those inside Newcastle United were questioning the commitment and focus of some of their star players last season, when a staggering 27 points were dropped from winning positions.On the evidence of their four-match unbeaten start to 2026-27 in all competitions, character, focus and want are certainly not issues with Matthias Jaissle’s youthful, new-look squad, who managed to fight back from two goals down and rescue a point against Bournemouth at St James’ Park as much through sheer force of will and dogged determination as technical quality.Their shortcomings, however, are becoming persistent. No side allowed their opponents more shots across the first two Premier League rounds of the season (44) than Newcastle, and Bournemouth managed another 17 on Saturday, 13 of them during the first half.Newcastle, meanwhile, have conjured four shots on target in their last two games and scored with every one of them. That displays an enviable clinical nature, but it also spotlights their creative deficiencies, with chances from open play in short supply, particularly when counter-attacking openings are stifled.Put simply, those statistics feel unsustainable. But the fact Newcastle are four games unbeaten in all competitions and have taken five points from their first three Premier League fixtures also shows they have foundations.Jaissle has repeatedly described Newcastle’s summer transfer policy, when they exclusively acquired players aged 24 and under, as “brave” and has urged “patience”. Clear areas in which Newcastle can improve are hardly surprising, given the relative inexperience across their squad.As the shot map below shows, Newcastle — who have scored two goals in each of their three league matches — are outperforming their expected goals (xG), which measures the quality of the opportunities they are creating.Admittedly, this is a small sample size, so it would be premature to draw any firm conclusions. Yet to have scored double the value of their xG (3.0) does not feel durable.“There are elements to improve,” said Jaissle. “Often, the final pass was missing. We didn’t find the free player when the opponent was stressing us in a high press.”