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Eddie Howe isn't typically prone to dramatics or grand media pronouncements. So by his standards, his press conference after Sunday’s 3-1 defeat counts as a angry outburst. Newcastle took an early lead but the opposition were ahead by half-time, as well as striking the woodwork and seeing a spot-kick overturned by VAR, prompting Howe to make a triple change at the half-time.

“That was the frustrating thing about the first half,” Howe said. “I almost could have taken anyone off and I believe this indicated of our performance level in that moment during the match and it's extremely uncommon for me to have that impression. In fact, I cannot recall I have since I’ve been manager of the club, therefore I believed the team needed a significant change at half-time. This explains why I made what I did.”

Three key players were substituted at the interval and Newcastle did stabilise to an extent in the latter period, but never really looking like they might get back into the game against an opponent that had won only one of their previous nine league matches. Given how packed the middle of the standings currently is, with just three points dividing third from 11th, and a nine-point margin between the upper and lower ranks, a sequence of 12 points from 10 games has not placed the Magpies adrift but, similarly, they cannot end the campaign in thirteenth place.

The Issue of Perception

The problem partially is one of perception. In the Saudi Public Investment Fund, the club possess the wealthiest owners in the world. The expectation when the PIF bought 80% of the club in 2021 was that it would bring a game-changing impact, similar to Roman Abramovich achieved at Stamford Bridge or Sheikh Mansour did at the Etihad. The distinction is that those two owners assumed control prior to the introduction of financial fair play rules (and the ongoing charges against Manchester City relate to whether they violated those regulations after they were in place).

Profit and sustainability regulations limit the capacity of owners, no matter how wealthy, to spend money on their teams and therefore probably would have hindered any Middle Eastern effort to elevate Newcastle to the level of Manchester City. But it wasn't necessary for the club's expenditure to have been so restrained as it has been; they might have spent more and stayed inside the threshold – or simply taken a fairly minor European fine given their major problem is primarily with the continental than the domestic regulation.

Infrastructure Spending and Financial Regulations

Besides which, infrastructure spending is excluded from PSR calculations; the easiest method to raise income to create more financial headroom would be to extend or redevelop the stadium. Considering the site of St James’ Park, with listed buildings on multiple sides, in reality that probably implies constructing an entirely new stadium. There was talk in spring of possibly undertaking the nearby relocation to a local park – resistance from local groups might have been surmounted with a promise to build a replacement green space on the current ground location – but there has not been any progress on that proposal. There has been substantial retrenchment from the Saudi fund on a range of initiatives as it refocuses on domestic affairs; the approach to the football club appears completely in alignment with that change of approach.

Player Sales Saga

The Alexander Isak saga was born of that tension. A bolder leadership might have framed his sale as essential to free up funds for additional spending; rather there was a unsuccessful attempt to retain him. That meant the team began the season amid a sense of frustration even with the acquisitions of Woltemade, Yoane Wissa, Jacob Ramsey, Malick Thiaw and Anthony Elanga. The opening was mixed: a single victory in their initial six games.

But it seemed a corner was reached. They secured five victories in six matches prior to Sunday, a run that featured demolitions of a Belgian side and a Portuguese club in the Champions League. This explains the performance against West Ham was so surprising. The issue maybe is that Newcastle’s approach is very aggressive, very high-octane; a slight drop-off in energy can have significant effects. Perhaps the strain of Premier League, Champions League and Carabao Cup competition, five fixtures in 15 days, had taken its toll. The German forward started each of those games and appeared particularly fatigued.

Reality of Modern Football

That’s the reality of today's football. Managers have to be ready to make changes. The manager has been unlucky that Wissa’s injury has meant he is lacking attacking options but, regardless of how valid the reasons, Sunday’s performance was unacceptable –particularly following scoring first at a ground ready to turn on its own side.

Howe will hope it was just a blip, an off-day when everybody is off-colour simultaneously, but if Newcastle are to qualify for the Champions League next season, not to mention one day mount an actual title challenge, they cannot be as inconsistent as this.