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Newcastle did enough to win this match. Except for the part where they didn't. On a rainy day at St. Jame's Park that left the pitch looking more like a swimming pool than a real pitch, Newcastle United should have defeated 6-point Aston Villa going away. A moment of brilliance earned Villa a point on the day but the real story was on the other end of the pitch.
Whether you come down on the "unchanged lineup is fine" or the "Ayoze and Mitro 4 lyf" side of the discussion, the reality today is that every single person involved in that discussion had a direct hand in dropping the points today. Cisse headed a chance into his shoulder. de Jong missed a header from three yards. Mitro whiffed on another Sissoko cross. Ayoze skied one from 8 yards out. Gini missed one as well.
As Newcastle fans, we expect these kind of results. Beat Liverpool. Beat Aston Villa. Count on Rob Elliot (who was once again superb) to save a freaking point. Against Aston Villa. AT HOME. It's inevitable. And it's inexcusable. This team is about what it has always been. It's frustrating. We should have won and we have no one to blame but ourselves. I would encourage overreaction and pitchforks and torches, but we did enough to win the game on most days. It's yet another result under McClaren that tells us nothing. Nothing except maybe the culture hasn't changed at all.