Jermaine Jenas has questioned why Newcastle United have become survivors this season in a debate on BT Sport.
The former United midfielder spoke about the transition the club have made from playing in the Champions League compared to now, where they could potentially be facing the prospect of fighting to stay in the Premier League.
He claims that this is down the “powers-that-be” – in this case, Magpies’ owner Mike Ashley, and his reluctance to provide enough financial backing in the transfer market.
“All of a sudden Newcastle have turned into survivors, which I don’t get. I don’t like to talk about the past too much to be honest,” he said in the BT Sport debate on Saturday night [as quoted by the Chronicle].
“To go from playing Champions League football and having the players who were at that football club, to all of a sudden all of that going out the door and now having what is out there and trying to survive in the Premier League… I don’t get that how that has happened.
“Unfortunately the powers-that-be have allowed that to happen.”
An interesting discussion on Newcastle United under Mike Ashley on #PLTonight ?
"I feel sorry for the fans when I see what I see…" ? pic.twitter.com/xZ3YFGo0lv
— TNT Sports (@tntsports) September 1, 2018
OPINION
It must be sad to see for a former Newcastle player like Jenas to his see the club be heading in the wrong direction. When he played, they finished third, fourth and fifth – which is a stark comparison to where they will end up this season. Rafa Benitez may have guided them towards a tenth placed finish last term, but there is no guarantee that will happen again this time around. It was only a few seasons ago that the club finished above the likes of Chelsea, but that now seems a distant memory after they were subjected to their third loss of the season by Manchester City on Saturday. With only one point on the board, the harsh reality of having to fight for survival will become real if they continue to get such negative results. Nevertheless, Benitez is an experienced manager, and if anyone can guide Newcastle to safety, it is him. Jenas may already be condemned to the fact that United may go down, but with Benitez at the helm, the club has every fighting chance.