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The Newcastle manager is not prone to histrionics or sweeping public statements. So by his standards, his press conference after Sunday’s 3-1 defeat counts as a furious tirade. Newcastle scored first but the opposition took the lead by the interval, as well as striking the woodwork and having a penalty revoked by VAR, leading Howe to make a three substitutions at the break.

“That was the frustrating thing about the first half,” Howe said. “Virtually any player could have been substituted and I think this indicated of where we were at that stage during the match and it’s very, very rare for me to have that impression. Actually, I don’t think I have during my tenure as head coach of the club, therefore I believed the team needed some shaking up at half-time. This explains why I made those decisions.”

Anthony Gordon, Nick Woltemade and Emil Krafth were substituted at the interval and Newcastle managed to steady to an extent in the latter period, but never appearing like they might fight back into the game against an opponent that had secured just a single victory of their last nine fixtures. Considering the congestion the centre of the table currently is, with a mere three-point gap separating the top spots from mid-table, and nine points between the upper and lower ranks, a sequence of twelve points from 10 games has not left Newcastle stranded but, similarly, they cannot finish the season in 13th.

The Issue of Perception

The challenge to an extent is one of public view. With the Saudi PIF, the club have the wealthiest owners in the world. The assumption when the PIF bought a majority stake of the team in recent years was that it would have a transformative effect, similar to the former Chelsea owner achieved at Stamford Bridge or Sheikh Mansour had at Manchester City. The distinction is that both of those investors took over prior to the introduction of FFP rules (and the ongoing allegations against Manchester City concern whether they violated those regulations once they were implemented).

Financial regulations limit the ability of proprietors, however rich, to invest funds on their teams and therefore likely would have slowed any Saudi attempt to raise the team to the standard of City. But there is no need for Newcastle’s expenditure to have been quite as cautious as it has; they could have invested further and remained within the threshold – or simply taken a relatively meagre Uefa fine since their major problem is more with the continental than the Premier League rules.

Infrastructure Spending and Financial Rules

Besides which, stadium development is excluded from Profit and Sustainability assessments; the easiest method to raise income to create more PSR flexibility would be to extend or renovate the arena. Given the site of the home ground, with protected structures on two sides, in reality that likely implies building an completely new venue. There was talk in spring of possibly undertaking the nearby relocation to a local park – opposition from local groups could surely have been overcome with a promise to build a new park on the current stadium site – but there has been any progress on that proposal. There has been significant cutbacks from the PIF on a range of projects as it shifts focus on local investments; the approach to the football club seems entirely in keeping with that strategic shift.

Player Sales Situation

The Alexander Isak episode was arose from that conflict. A more confident management could have portrayed his transfer as necessary to free up funds for additional spending; rather there was a unsuccessful attempt to keep him. That meant the team began the season amidst a sense of disappointment despite the signings of Woltemade, Yoane Wissa, Jacob Ramsey, Malick Thiaw and Anthony Elanga. The opening was indifferent: one win in their first six games.

Yet it seemed a turning point had been turned. They had won five in six prior to Sunday, a streak that included convincing wins of a Belgian side and a Portuguese club in the European competition. That’s why the display against West Ham was such a shock. The problem maybe is that Newcastle’s approach is extremely intense, very high-octane; a slight drop-off in energy can have significant effects. Perhaps the strain of Premier League, European and Carabao Cup matches, five games in a fortnight, had taken its toll. The German forward started each of those games and looked especially weary.

Reality of Contemporary Football

That’s the reality of today's the sport. Coaches have to be prepared to make changes. The manager has been unfortunate that Wissa’s fitness issue has left him short of forward choices but, no matter how valid the explanations, the weekend's performance was inexcusable –particularly after scoring first at a ground primed to criticize its own side.

Howe will hope it was merely a temporary setback, an off-day when everybody is below par at once, but if Newcastle are to qualify for the Champions League next season, let alone eventually mount an actual title challenge, they must not be as inconsistent as this.