Newcastle's Ambitious Pre-Season Encounter with Everton
At Murrayfield, the stadium announcer promised “passion and world-class football from the very first whistle.”
That was ambitious.
What Matthias Jaissle did get, a week and a half out from the Premier League kick-off, was something far more valuable for a new head coach: a cold, clear look at where his Newcastle United side stands. Everton’s 3-1 win in Edinburgh stripped away any illusion that this transition will be seamless.
Bright start, brutal lesson
Newcastle actually began with a swagger. There was a freshness to them, a different energy. Bazoumana Toure, again, looked fearless on the left, stretching Everton with his pace and direct running. The patterns were there, the intent obvious.
The finish was not.
A series of half-chances went begging, promising moves broke down in the final third, and as the minutes ticked by, Newcastle’s early control began to fray. At the other end, the back line started to creak.
The warning became a punishment on 27 minutes. One simple, direct ball from James Tarkowski split Newcastle open. Thierno Barry darted in front of a hesitant Sven Botman and raced away. Lewis Hall did superbly to get back and make a recovery tackle, but his clearance fell straight to Harrison Armstrong. Armstrong kept his head, rolled the ball back to Barry, and the finish past Lukas Hornicek from inside the box was ruthless.
On the touchline, Jaissle punched his palm in frustration, then immediately urged his players forward again. He had seen them come from behind to beat Valencia 2-1 in his first friendly at the weekend. He wanted the same response.
Instead, the night turned.
Everton turn the screw
Just minutes after the opener, Iliman Ndiaye doubled Everton’s lead from the spot. Joelinton was judged to have fouled Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall in the area – a decision that felt harsh from a Newcastle perspective, but the referee’s call stood. Ndiaye stepped up and did the rest.
From the Everton end came the inevitable chant: “Going down, going down, going down.” Pre-season or not, it stung.
Newcastle tried to reset, but the rhythm had gone. The earlier sharpness in possession gave way to hesitation, and the gaps between defence and midfield grew. Everton looked comfortable, then confident, then in control.
When Tyrique George drilled in a third in the 73rd minute, the scoreline finally reflected that shift. At 3-0, some Newcastle supporters decided they had seen enough and headed for the exits – and not for a better view of the solar eclipse.
Jaissle, though, kept pushing. His side did at least find a response. Harvey Barnes, off the bench, arrived at the back post to slam in Jacob Murphy’s cross and make it 3-1 late on. A consolation, nothing more, but a reminder that there is still quality in this squad.
Barnes and Murphy had both been on the pitch the last time Newcastle lost to Everton, in the Premier League under Eddie Howe back in February. Almost everything else around them has changed.
A young team, and a clear “vacuum”
This was a very different Newcastle XI. Eight of the starters were 25 or under. Joelinton, captain for the night, and Yoane Wissa were the elder statesmen at 29. It looked like what it is: a team in the middle of a rebuild.
Key figures are still missing. Dan Burn, Lewis Miley and Tino Livramento are to return, though all three are unlikely to be ready to start when Liverpool come to St James’ Park on the opening weekend. Even with them back, the gaps are obvious.
Jaissle did not hide from that reality.
“You all see the matches,” he said afterwards. “You are also smart enough to see the needs in the squad. I will be always consistent with my approach. We handle these things internally. We are aware of what we need. Let’s see now. There is still some time.”
His words carried a familiar theme. For the second time in two days, the German referenced a “vacuum” left by the departures of Bruno Guimaraes, Sandro Tonali, Anthony Gordon and Kieran Trippier earlier in the summer.
“You cannot change things really quickly,” he said. “It’s a really young team at the moment so there are vacuums where players need to step up. We fill these positions we lost with the experienced players, but that’s also the process.”
In the stands at Murrayfield, sporting director Ross Wilson watched it all unfold. He did not need a scouting report to know what the head coach was hinting at.
Time running, window open
Newcastle are actively looking for a right-back. They want an older central midfielder. Depending on how Jaissle judges the squad over the next few days, there could yet be another arrival before the window shuts on 1 September.
The timing matters.
“If you make new signings at the end of the transfer window, they usually need time,” Jaissle said. “Usually it takes time to adapt to the Premier League. Those are all things we consider, but we are all still positive. We all want to go in the right direction. We have these goals and there’s many stones along the way thrown in that path, but we need to get rid of them.”
There are still a couple of friendlies to come before Liverpool roll into town. The margin for error is shrinking. The needs are obvious.
The question now is whether Newcastle can move quickly enough off the pitch to give this young, evolving side a fighting chance on it when the real whistle blows.
