Eddie Howe's Magpies face a mouthwatering run - much of it in front of their own fans
Newcastle United head coach Eddie Howe
Newcastle United head coach Eddie Howe has plenty of options in his squad(Image: Newcastle United via Getty Image)
It is said home is where the heart is. That St James' Park is our fortress. May it be so.
Because after a tough start to a new season of attrition without a Premier League victory and a transfer window which produced turmoil Newcastle United will return to battle with four of the next five fixtures at home. All crammed into a 15-day period and covering three different competitions.
Stretch it a bit further and incredibly seven of Newcastle's next 10 fixtures are at St James' Park. Surely that is a glorious incentive for a delayed lift off.
Yet, steady my fluttering heart, the next fortnight of action is not quite a stroll on the sunny side of the street given that two of those initial four home matches are against Barcelona and Arsenal.
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The quickfire return to competition gives us: Wolves (h) Premier Lge, Barcelona (h) Champions Lge, Bournemouth (a) PL, Bradford City (h) Carabao Cup, Arsenal (h) PL.
That action packed programme will be the first test of how strong Eddie Howe's revamped squad is having been replenished in the summer transfer market and it ought to stand the strain.
I've already gone on record as saying overall it is stronger than last season when we won our first domestic trophy in 70 years and qualified for the Champions League. How? Because we have two experienced senior players for each and every position.
Consider this: Pope and Ramsdale; Livramento and Trippier, Schar and Thiaw, Burn and Botman, Hall and Livramento; Bruno and Willock, Tonali and Miley, Joelinton and Ramsey; Elanga and Murphy, Woltemade and Wissa, Gordon and Barnes. And we haven't even used two internationals Krafth and Osula plus old club captain Lascelles. They are held in reserve.
What a luxury . . . there were times last season when the bench looked like a kindergarten so many kids were on it sitting alongside not one but two goalkeepers.
Now Howe can rest and rotate though having only managed two points out of nine he is playing catch up and will therefore want to field his strongest side in the PL with minimal rotation.
Against Barca there will be no rotation whatsoever. It'll be full on. The very best on parade. That leaves the League Cup as his main target for mass changes.
Of course there are other things to initially take into account as well. Thiaw has only played a few minutes as a sub since signing, Woltemade not a minute, and Wissa is badly short of match fitness having withdrawn from Brentford's pre-season fixtures and opening PL programme.
What I find fascinating is contemplating what Howe will do when all his new signings are bedded in and up to speed. Will he play Woltemade and Wissa together, perhaps the German just behind the main striker?
If he does who goes out of the starting line up? A right winger? Or one of the midfield trio thought by many to be untouchable? It's a terrific problem to have and of course injuries, form, and tactics against certain opposition will play a crucial part.
Still we will stand the pressure of a packed programme because it is grand is it not? Defending the cup we won so gloriously at Wembley, returning to the Champions League against absolute royalty, and taking on our old enemy Arsenal up here who we beat three times in four clashes last season.