Ahead of the Wolves 0 Newcastle 0 match, I had an article published by The Mag on Sunday morning.
I must have had a premonition, Mystic Mag?
The article (This wouldn’t be ‘unacceptable’ for Newcastle United) was a reaction to comments I had seen and heard from a number of Newcastle United fans in the lead up to the game at Molineux.
In that article that went up yesterday morning it included: ‘Look, I know it isn’t everybody, BUT a sizeable number of vocal Newcastle United fans are coming out with some right nonsense. Going on about how it would be “unacceptable” if Newcastle United don’t win this afternoon. I see this far too often, making out that failing to win any match is some kind of disaster, as though Newcastle United are now some all conquering force that shouldn’t be losing to anybody. This is a game that Newcastle United could AND should win, but as always, no Premier League victory is a given.’
In that article I also said: ‘I even heard this after the defeat to Man City in midweek, talk of his United had been “abysmal” and other such nonsense. when the reality was that Newcastle played pretty well and just didn’t take their chances, whilst Manchester City carried the luck and fine margins. That is football. You even have matches where you can do everything right and still lose, or don’t win anyway, where the opposition keeper has a blinder, you keep hitting the woodwork, the opposition score a screamer with their only effort on target and so on. I would be gutted if Newcastle don’t win today BUT then that is me every match!’
Sunday at Molineux WAS a very frustrating experience as Wolves sat back in an ultra defensive set-up and Newcastle United failed to break them down.
When the chances did come, Joelinton and Nick Woltemade failed to finish a couple of absolute sitters, when any kind of proper contact with the head would have seen the crosses hit the back of the net.
A few close things late on as Trippier, Joelinton and Bruno had chances, but it wasn’t to be.
Was it annoying, was it frustrating, was it disappointing…?
Yes, the Wolves match was all of those things.
However, was it unacceptable, was it inexplainable, was it a disgrace…?
No, it was none of those things.
The Newcastle United players gave it their all but the inspiration didn’t match the perspiration and Wolves got the goalless draw at home that they had set up to get.
In advance of the match my premonition article gave my opinion to fellow Newcastle United fans, that: ‘Wolves are rock bottom BUT after picking up only two points in their opening 18 Premier League matches, they have then managed five points from their most recent three. Their last six Premier League matches have been Everton 1 Wolves 1, Wolves 3 West Ham 0, Man U 1 Wolves 1, Liverpool 2 Wolves 1, Wolves 0 Brentford 2, Arsenal 2 Wolves 1.’
To sum it all up, I ended with: ‘Wolves have had a shocker of a season where they got into a right slump and struggled to pull out of it. Now they are playing with more freedom as relegation is all but guaranteed. I think Newcastle United will win today BUT I won’t see it as an unacceptable unexplainable disaster if we don’t, with heads to roll and so on.’
The thing is as well, I wasn’t the only one flagging this Wolves match up as one that nobody should be automatically winning.
With how Wolves had been playing recently, BBC Sport’s Chris Sutton had predicted a draw for the match at Molineux, whilst Harry Redknapp forecast a Wolves victory!
It might be easy for some Newcastle United fans to deny the reality, to deny how Wolves had been much improved recently, but it doesn’t mean they were/are right to do so.
Arsenal are going to win the league comfortably BUT in December they only won 2-1 against Wolves at the Emirates with a 94th minute goal AND both Arsenal goals were own goals!
The Gunners could only draw 0-0 at fourth bottom Forest at the weekend, just look at the strength of their team and squad compared to Newcastle United’s, especially with Eddie Howe having seven players missing yesterday, as the NUFC injury list goes very much under reported.
Stunning Premier League stats
Indeed, it was an extraordinary Premier League weekend all round, making it especially daft to think Newcastle United should automatically win away from home against Wolves and how it would be ‘unacceptable’ to do so.
All six clubs who were were in the top six ahead of the weekend, none of them won their games.
Arsenal drew with Forest, Man City lost to Man U, Villa lost at home to Everton, Liverpool drew at home with Burnley, Brentford lost to Chelsea, Newcastle drew at Wolves.
Wolves drew at home to Newcastle, Burnley drew at Liverpool, West Ham won at Spurs, Forest drew against Arsenal, Leeds won against Fulham.
If Bournemouth avoid defeat at Brighton tonight, that would complete an entire sweep this weekend of the top six all failing to win AND none of the bottom six losing.
Reality was that of those teams at the bottom end, Wolves were in better recent form than most of them. Whilst their performances generally this past month have been very decent.
Finally, if you want to sum up how competitive the Premier League is.
Whilst Newcastle were winning 4-3 against Leeds a week and a half ago, Wolves were only denied a win away at Everton in the final seconds due to a brilliant Pickford save.
Yet yesterday after the match at Molineux, Everton went and won 1-0 away at Aston Villa who have been pushing Arsenal. Villa who had lost only two of their last 18 PL matches and won 13 of their last 16.
Nobody is saying you should be happy with the Newcastle result against Wolves and the struggle to break them down.
However, getting hysterical and going on like this is some kind of disaster, that it’s impossible to comprehend how it could have happened, is just plain embarrassing.
