It’s fair to suggest that the 2023/24 season probably hasn’t gone as well as Eddie Howe and the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF) would’ve hoped, with Newcastle out of the Champions League at the first opportunity and struggling in the Premier League.
With 16 games left to play, the Magpies are still way off the pace and are 11 points away from finishing in a Champions League spot.
Howe, being the positive individual that he is, will surely be trying to accentuate the positives, and won’t allow anyone to give up on getting Newcastle back into the premier European competition for 2024/25.
Injuries have been a curse for the club of course, and as Premier Injuries note, even now the Magpies are missing 10 players which is the worst in the entire division.
What’s also worrying is that when the 25-man squad list is submitted in the coming days now that the January transfer window has concluded, Newcastle won’t even be able to provide a full complement of players.
As Newcastle World note, the club will be two players short after Javier Manquillo was sold to Celta Vigo, and Sandro Tonali is still suspended until next season.
The Italian was never going to form part of the squad in any event, and Manquillo hadn’t been close to playing either, so any potential effects from having a ‘reduced’ squad are likely to be negligible.