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The Newcastle manager is not given to histrionics or grand public statements. Based on his standards, his press conference following the weekend's 3-1 defeat qualifies as a angry tirade. Newcastle scored first but West Ham took the lead by half-time, as well as hitting the post and seeing a spot-kick overturned by VAR, prompting Howe to execute a triple change at the half-time.

“That was the frustrating thing about the first half,” Howe stated. “I almost could have taken anyone off and I believe this indicated of our performance level at that stage in the game and it's extremely uncommon for me to feel that way. Actually, I don’t think I have during my tenure as manager of Newcastle, so I felt the team required some shaking up at half-time. That’s why I did those decisions.”

Anthony Gordon, Nick Woltemade and Emil Krafth were substituted at the interval and Newcastle managed to steady somewhat in the latter period, without ever really looking like they could get back into the game against a side that had won only one of their previous nine league matches. Considering how packed the centre of the table is, with just three points dividing the top spots from mid-table, and a nine-point margin between the upper and lower ranks, a sequence of 12 points from 10 games has not placed Newcastle adrift but, equally, they must not finish the season in 13th.

The Problem of Expectations

The problem to an extent is one of perception. With the Saudi PIF, Newcastle possess the richest backers in the world. The expectation when the PIF bought a majority stake of the club in recent years was that it would have a transformative effect, as the former Chelsea owner had at Chelsea or the City Group did at the Etihad. The distinction is that both of those owners took over prior to the introduction of FFP rules (while the ongoing charges against City concern if they breached those regulations once they were implemented).

Financial restrictions limit the ability of proprietors, however rich, to invest funds on their teams and therefore likely might have slowed any Middle Eastern effort to elevate Newcastle to the level of City. However there is no need for Newcastle’s expenditure to have been so restrained as it has been; they could have spent more and stayed inside the threshold – or just accepted a relatively meagre Uefa fine given their major problem is primarily with the European than the Premier League regulation.

Stadium Investment and PSR Regulations

Besides which, stadium development is exempted from PSR calculations; the simplest method to raise income to create more PSR flexibility would be to expand or renovate the arena. Considering the location of St James’ Park, with listed buildings on two sides, practically that probably implies building an completely new stadium. There was talk in spring of possibly making the nearby relocation to Leazes Park – resistance from local groups could surely have been overcome with a commitment to create a replacement green space on the current stadium site – but there has not been any progress on that proposal. There has occurred substantial retrenchment from the PIF on a variety of projects as it shifts focus on domestic affairs; the approach to the football club appears completely in alignment with that change of approach.

Player Sales Situation

The star striker episode was arose from that tension. A bolder leadership could have framed his transfer as necessary to release capital for further spending; rather there was a vain effort to retain him. This resulted in Newcastle began the season amidst a sense of frustration despite the signings of Woltemade, Yoane Wissa, Jacob Ramsey, Malick Thiaw and Anthony Elanga. The start was mixed: one win in their first six fixtures.

Yet it appeared a corner was reached. They secured five victories in six matches prior to the weekend, a run that featured convincing wins of Union Saint-Gilloise and Benfica in the Champions League. That’s why the display against West Ham was so surprising. The issue perhaps is that the team's approach is extremely intense, high-energy; a minor decrease in energy can have significant consequences. Perhaps the pressure of Premier League, European and cup matches, five games in a fortnight, had taken its toll. The German forward featured in each of those matches and looked particularly fatigued.

Reality of Contemporary Football

This is the nature of modern the sport. Managers must be prepared to rotate. Howe has been unfortunate that the forward's fitness issue has left him short of attacking options but, regardless of how reasonable the explanations, the weekend's performance was unacceptable –especially after scoring first at a ground primed to criticize its own side.

Howe will wish it was just a blip, one of those days when everybody is below par simultaneously, but if the Magpies are to qualify for the Champions League next season, let alone one day launch an genuine title challenge, they cannot be as inconsistent as they have been.