Newcastle have entered their most difficult period since the club was founded. Bought It was founded five years ago by a Saudi Arabian sovereign wealth fund.
And managers under pressure know it, too.
“We know the result, but it’s not good enough,” manager Eddie Howe said after Saturday’s 2-1 home defeat to Bournemouth, Newcastle’s third successive Premier League defeat and seventh in their last 11 competitive games.
Newcastle were booed at full-time and are languishing in 14th place among 20 teams in the top flight with five games remaining.
how – Joined in November 2021just weeks after being bought by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, have qualified for the Champions League in two of the last three seasons and become a favorite among Newcastle fans. But support may be starting to shift. Last month, the club don’t guarantee anything He will continue to be the coach after this season.
“My belief in myself hasn’t wavered, and it hasn’t really,” said Howe, who admitted his team has found it too easy to win in recent games. “I feel very flat at the moment.”
Indeed, these are tough times for PIF, which has invested heavily in recent years in sports projects such as LIV Golf and in funding Saudi Arabia’s biggest soccer team.
This week’s PIF sold majority stake The most successful club in the kingdom, Al HilalThere was also significant speculation that the fund was on the verge of cutting off its financial support to LIV. Liv 2026 season begins The company’s chief executive said it was on schedule, but the situation after that remained uncertain.
Truffert scored the winning goal late on.
At St James’ Park, Adrian Truffert broke the tie with his first Premier League goal in the 85th minute to give eighth-placed Bournemouth, who are unbeaten in 13 league games, including six wins, to victory.
The Cherries took the lead in the 32nd minute when Marcus Tavernier slotted Rayan’s cross into the goalmouth. Will Osla scored the equalizer in the 68th minute after an initial offside decision was overturned on video review.
Newcastle captain Bruno Guimarães came on in the 62nd minute as he recovered from a hamstring injury that had kept him sidelined since February 10.
Coach Howe said he felt he had “full commitment” to the team, but was reluctant to say whether he believed his players had the same enthusiasm as him.
“I believe they do,” he finally answered, “and like I said, from what I’ve seen on the training ground, I don’t see any low attitude or commitment to their work at all. … If I were, I would adjust.”
___
AP Soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
