Newcastle players should be expected to struggle

Has Miguel Almiron been the difference maker that he was last season this season? Don’t answer that, it’s rhetorical. Have Newcastle United’s big names made as much of a dent as they did under Rafa Benitez? Don’t answer that, it’s rhetorical.

Here’s the tea (yeah I did it): new managers bring new tactics which means players are going to struggle adjusting to different placement and style of play.

Get it? Probably not, so let’s review. This article is mainly in defense of Miguel Almiron, but also should come to the defense of players that fans have been unjustly targeting.

Miguel Almiron is not usually one for a drought. He’s yet to bag an assist, and is still looking for that coveted first Premier League golazo. No, he hasn’t gotten either of those yet, and it’s looking bleak for someone who for a short time was Newcastle United’s most expensive signing. Heck, even Joelinton managed to score two matches into his career with the magpies.

Miguel Almiron is used to playing as a true number ten. Something he wasn’t really doing under Rafa Benitez. He was playing off of the wing, used for his pace and playmaking to generate openings which both Salomon Rondon and Ayoze Perez were able to exploit. Just because it doesn’t show on a scoresheet that Almiron was the facilitator doesn’t mean it isn’t true.

And that still holds true today. Almiron has played for Newcastle United for less than 15 matches. While he’s yet to score, he’s made all the difference in the world. And him, along side Allan Saint-Maximin, Joelinton, Jonjo Shelvey, Isaac Hayden, and Sean Longstaff makes for an mouth-watering team that has so much potential.

As for Steve Bruce, while I question his tactical prowess, and how he manages the players in multiple situations, I need to have faith that sooner or later Miguel Almiron will settle into it. Instead of calling Almiron trash, or worse (which it’s mainly been), I have faith in the quality of the player to make the best out of what Steve Bruce gives him tactically.

The criticism directed at players early in the season is ridiculous behavior. Especially when we have a new coach that wants to play a different type of football than these players were playing not even six months ago. It takes time.