ยท 3 November 2025, 21:30
Newcastle United's season so far has been a tale of inconsistency, and it's not just about fluctuations of form; we're talking Jekyll and Hyde levels of duality.
In the Champions League and Carabao Cup, Newcastle have looked steady, accomplished and genuinely threatening, but in the Premier League, they've often looked toothless and devoid of ideas.
Sunday's performance against West Ham has been spoken of as one of the worst under Eddie Howe, and you definitely won't hear an argument from us against that claim.
We can't pinpoint exactly what's going wrong; if it were that easy, then you could guarantee that Eddie Howe and his coaching staff would have highlighted the issue and would be taking steps to fix it.
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We want monster Joe back!
Newcastle United have thought about a plan to replace Joelinton
So know that when we say that one player is standing out as being miles off this season, we are by no means pointing the finger directly at him as the source of all that is wrong, but it's certainly playing a big part.
Joelinton has been absolutely nothing like the box-to-box menace we know him to be so far this season, and the i Paper has heard that there was chatter in the summer about putting a succession plan in place for the Brazilian.
They claim that Atalanta's Ederson, who has been linked with Newcastle many times in the past, was sounded out as a potential replacement given Joelinton's injury problems.
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We're so sorry, Joey!
We absolutely adore Joey here at the Feed, but even we can't make a case for some of his outings this season. He has been a machine for us in recent seasons and was a huge part of what made that midfield trio, along with Bruno Guimaraes and Sandro Tonali, so successful, but now we're wondering if Jacob Ramsey may be the better choice.
Ederson would be an amazing addition and almost a like-for-like replacement for Joelinton, so we understand the thinking behind it.
That being said, we are struggling to contemplate Newcastle United without Joelinton. We bloody love the man.
And let's be honest, he's not the only one who is miles off the pace. Anthony Elanga looks like he's seeing a football for the first time when he plays, and we think he's been here long enough now that the whole 'he's new to the system' excuse isn't valid any more.