Fabian Schar and Sven Botman team up against Erling Haaland during a 1-0 loss to Manchester City. Credit: Offside via Getty Images/Simon Stackpool When video of Newcastle United captain Jamaal Lacelles fighting off a gang that attacked his younger brother began to circulate online, some fans praised the centre-back for showing more struggle than his defensive counterparts in the last 10-man loss to Liverpool.
It was a light joke, but a tough one considering Newcastle's defense was the only team that managed to earn real reputation after losing 1-0 to Manchester City the previous weekend.
But a joke from social media comedians hinted at a more serious point — a potential weakness of the Newcastle team, which, to the surprise of many, was not fixed this summer.
When Newcastle made their list of transfer priorities at the end of last season, signing a centre-back was one of the top items on the agenda. However, with multiple sources at the club insisting that there is no money left in this window to secure new long-term contracts, the club has been unable to attract new ones.
This makes them look vulnerable in the center of defense, where first-pick pairing Sven Botman and Fabian Schar have played almost every game under manager Eddie Howe in the last 12 months.
They were excellent, but here at the end of last season, there were already signs that teams had found a way to hurt im.
Club captain Jamaal Lascelles seems happy to be a substitute, but only two starters last season won't set him up for a long stay with the team if an injury hits the established duo. Photo: EPA-EFE/Shutterstock/ADAM VAUAN
The main problem is that neither player is particularly fast, and since right-back Kieran Trippier is a key part of Newcastle's attacking threat, opposition managers have identified the correct channel and the space left by Trippier during the attack as a hole in the armor.
The plan is to get Shar to run back, get him out of the middle of the field and put him one on one with a fast attacker. The Swiss defender was one of the most advanced players under Howe — he was sent to the bench by former coach Steve Bruce — but he has too many mistakes to be considered an elite player in this position.
Howe loves him for his distribution skills, he has cool ball control, great game reading and a furious shot. But he is not a mobile, fast or physically dominant central midfielder.
Newcastle considered many players for this position, but they were all considered too inexperienced to immediately replace Ball, or too expensive for the available budget. .
As always with matchmaking, a compromise had to be found and Newcastle decided to look into other needs.
The signing of right-back Tino Livramento from Southampton and left-back Lewis Hall from Chelsea filled other gaps. in the unit.
Livramento is considered Trippier's long-term successor, who turns 33 this year. Hall went on loan for this season with a buyout obligation that has eaten up £28m, possibly rising to £35m next summer's transfer budget.
Newcastle definitely need a left-back. , but few expected that they would also go after the young right-back.
This strategy can be compared to how an NFL team prepares for the draft, where it is sometimes preferable to leave the best player on the board with an assigned pick, regardless of position, rather than fill a specific area of need with a lower quality player.
The chance to sign Livramento, who was one of the Premier League's brightest young defenders before his serious knee injury at Southampton, was seen as too good to pass up.
A signing victim The 20-year-old Livramento, with great potential but little experience in the top flight, thought Newcastle would have to bet on a centre-back.
Shar and Botman avoided last season serious injuries, but this was due more to luck than anything else. Indeed, Botman was sent off with an ankle injury against Liverpool which, while not serious, will almost certainly rule him out for at least a couple of weeks.
That leaves Howe with Lacelles, who has been delighted to be on the team for the last year or so, and Dan Byrne, who has spent most of his football at Tyneside as a left back. Berne was at fault for Liverpool's second goal after being moved to the center of defense after Botman was injured.
Eddie Howe chose to use Dan Burn as a left back rather than a central midfielder with four backs. Photo: Getty Images/Michael Regan
Burn has been a remarkable signing for Newcastle and has not let down anyone on the left flank. ago, but the thought of him stepping into the centre-back position as the team prepare for the first Champions League game next month is sobering.
To put it bluntly, Lacelles is a defender who would do well in a team from the lower half of the Premier League (as he did at Newcastle under Rafael Benitez and Bruce) and Burne was moved to the left-back position as Howe wanted him presence in the team, but didn't think he was better than Botman or Ball in the center.
Newcastle needed an upgrade from their centre-back to improve their squad, but now it looks like they'll have to settle for what they had, at least until January, when the Champions League group stage is over.
Newcastle could go deeper into the loan market before the deadline, but if Botman's injury isn't serious, they'll probably leave things as they are.
Back-to-back wins by Manchester City and Liverpool are not catastrophic results, but they have exposed the team's limitations in competing with the elite teams in the Premier League. How they are going to face Europe's best players in the Champions League remains to be seen.Compromises had to be made this summer to meet Financial Fair Play rules, but failed to add another centre-back, Howe knows he will need more luck with injuries for his main pair.
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