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You feel sorry for Sean Longstaff when he’s making comments like this

5 years ago
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Sean Longstaff has been talking about the situation Newcastle United now find themselves in.

Fans and players such as Lomgstaff full of optimism as last season closed.

Rafa Benitez expertly steering the club to early safety on a tight budget AND giving great hope for the following season, as the team picked up 21 points from the final 13 games with now a serious attacking side added to the side after Almiron was added to Perez and Rondon as an attacking  trio.

Fast forward to the present and Newcastle fans are sick, yet again Mike Ashley pretending he was going to sell the club and instead presiding over the latest shambles, yet again pressing the self-destruct button on behalf of Newcastle United.

Reverting back to having a stooge head coach instead of a proper manager and god knows who deciding which players are/aren’t signed, instead of relying on Rafa Benitez.

You have to feel sorry for people like Sean Longstaff.

A 21 year old Geordie getting his chance, starting eight Premier League games and picking up 13 points from a possible 24, winning four including being the only English club to beat Manchester City in 2019, plus featuring against the likes of Liverpool, Chelsea and Spurs.

Part of a team/squad that looked to have real potential if the most important players were retained as well as Rafa Benitez and the right signings were made.

Instead we have this latest mess under Mike Ashley and his new patsy Steve Bruce, when asked about what should happen now, what else can Sean Longstaff say?

He says everybody wanted Rafa Benitez to stay but now we just have to get on with it, Sean Longstaff declaring: ‘We know it’s not been an ideal start but I think the whole city needs to get behind the team.’

The trouble is that we have seen it all before under Mike Ashley and the fans are just sick of it, whether they are still intending to go to games or not.

The atmosphere was terrible for the opening match against Arsenal and the travelling fans just stood in stunned silence watching the mess in front of them.

Rafa Benitez presented an opportunity for at last long-term ambition to be shown and for the club to move on with a properly funded Academy, Premier League standard new training complex, proper investment in the squad and signings chosen by a credible person.

Instead, Mike Ashley has done what he as always done, turned his back on doing things properly and if another Sean Longstaff does come through in the future, then it will be despite the underfunded set-up at Newcastle, not because of it.

The irony is that Sean Longstaff is all but certain to suffer more than any of us. With a low ability head coach and a team that looks all but certain to struggle, Longstaff could be dragged down by it all if the team do go down and/or feel he has no option but to move on elsewhere, instead of the dream of playing for a successful and ambitious Newcastle United.

Such a depressing and unnecessary mess thanks to Mike Ashley.

Sean Longstaff speaking to Sky Sports:

“I was speaking to Rafa (Benitez) throughout the summer and I think everyone wanted him to stay.

“But that is football, things change, and ultimately he didn’t want to stay.

“It’s in the past now and I think everybody, as harsh as it sounds, has to sort of forget about him, as tough as that can be.

“We’ve spent a lot of the start of the season talking about Rafa and he’s not here.

“Ultimately he doesn’t have an impact on the team or football club at this time.

“If the team start picking up results, everything will look more positive and people will forget about the previous manager, as long as we’re successful on the pitch.

“We had an honest chat (on Sunday after Norwich), we’ve got an honest group, with a lot of leaders and it came from us really.

“We know as a group we need to be better and hopefully it’s behind us now and everyone is looking to be as positive as we can.

“We’re not panicking and everyone is working as hard as they can to make each other better.

“We know it’s not been an ideal start but I think the whole city needs to get behind the team.

“We know how important they are to the club and especially in home games they can make a difference. They help us so much.

They’re also the best away fans in the country, hands down. It doesn’t matter where we go: Bournemouth, Norwich, everywhere is miles from Newcastle and the away end is always packed.

“Even when we’re losing, they’re louder than the home fans. It gives us belief as players that they are there.

“It means everything to me. It’s the only football club I’ve known.

“Being from this area, you are in the bubble. The atmosphere, what it can be like, is up there with the best in the world.”

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