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- Magpie's Missing Piece? The Search for a Right Winger 🧩
Magpie's Missing Piece? The Search for a Right Winger 🧩
PLUS: A look back at our defeat to Brighton & a Hayles hat-trick for the Lasses 💫
👋 It’s not all bad! The result against Brighton once again highlighted the pressing need for more firepower up front. Let’s break down the game and discuss how we can solve our issues up front.
In this weeks issue of NUFC Pitch Notes:
➡️ Addressing the desperate need for a reliable right winger in our squad.
⚽ A look back at our defeat to Brighton and what we can take from it.
🖤 How the lasses lost a 3-1 lead in injury time (plus a Hayles hat-trick!).
🗓️ ON THIS DAY
On this day in 1995, Newcastle delivered a stunning 6-1 victory over Wimbledon at St. James’ Park. The Magpies were in unstoppable form, with Les Ferdinand leading the charge with a hat-trick.
This win kept Newcastle at the top of the Premier League, continuing their push for the title that season that ultimately ended with an infamous second place finish to Manchester United.
📢 THE BIG STORY
The Search for a Right Winger: The Missing Piece We Need? ➡️
The right wing problem 🤔
Newcastle's lack of reliability on the right wing continues to be a major missing link in our game so far this season.
It’s hard not to love Murphy and Almiron for their work rate and clear passion for the club.
It’s frustrating because we know how good they CAN be, but they just haven't been able to deliver the quality we need on a consistent basis.
This problem is clearly restricting Howe's tactical flexibility, forcing him to either persist with underperforming players or experiment with makeshift solutions - like Gordon moving to the right.
Although both Gordon and Barnes could fill on the right, they are both natuarally left sided players - it just doesn’t seem like a long term answer.
A potential solution 👇
There’s has been a lot of reports recently around the possibiltiy of bringing in Antoine Semenyo from Bournemouth.
Semenyo’s been great so far this season with three goals and an assist in just seven games - he’s quick, versatile and looks like he could bring the spark we’re missing on the right.
Bournemouth are reportedly asking between £40-50 million for him, which obviously isn’t cheap, but at only 24 years old he could well be the longer term solution we’re looking for.
However, his current form doesn’t nessessarily demonstate long term consistency - just look at Almiron’s form 2 years ago…
Plus, such a significant investment could limit our ability to strengthen other areas of the squad - but I can’t say that Howe has made any bad signings yet!
Here’s the key things to know:
⚖️ Murphy & Almirón: Murphy and Almirón just haven’t been consistent enough on the right.
🗣️ Transfer Talks: Newcastle is in talks for Antoine Semenyo from Bournemouth.
🎯 Semenyo's Performance: Semenyo has scored 3 goals and provided 1 assist in 7 appearances this season.
💰 Asking Price: Bournemouth are reported to be asking for £40-50 million for Semenyo.
🤔 WHO AM I?
I am a striker who came through Newcastle United's academy and made a name for myself with my physical presence, heading ability and powerful left foot. I became the most expensive British footballer at the time when I moved to Liverpool, but later returned to Newcastle in 2019 for a second stint.