Newcastle United doesn’t seem to have the best luck when it comes to managers, and it looks like their run of misfortune isn’t going to let up any time soon. Are the Magpies set to take on a new manager any time soon, or will they be sticking it out with Steve McClaren for the remaining nine games? Sources suggest that despite his instance that he will not be walking away from the job, McClaren’s time as Newcastle’s manager is drawing to a close.
The week kicked off with Newcastle’s directors holding talks without current manager and fellow board member Steve McClaren, following the team’s home defeat on Saturday. The Magpies lost to Bournemouth 3-1, leaving the team in the Premier League’s bottom three. With only nine games remaining, the pressure is on Newcastle United to pick up the pace and start scoring some serious goals. The question is whether they can pull it back from the brink before then with McClaren at the helm. Given the team’s current position and the most recent up-to date news from companies like Ladbrokes speculating, it’s seems very likely that Newcastle will be sourcing for a replacement.
The fans are decidedly unhappy with McClaren’s management since he took on the role last summer, with more and more people calling for him to be sacked and for a replacement to be found as soon as possible. In fact, the NUFC fan forum released a statement in response to the Bournemouth defeat, claiming that “someone has to be accountable and decisions must be made. What Newcastle fans want is a team of 11 players in black and white shirts that understand their role to perform the maximum – week in, week out. We have entrusted the board of NUFC to ensure that the right personnel are in place to carry out this basic expectation.”
So, with the pressure mounting is there any hope for McClaren? The fact that the board managers and directors held talks without McClaren’s presence doesn’t bode well, and it’s reported that three members held talks on Monday, and that McClaren was not invited to the meeting being held in Newcastle upon Tune. With McClaren not even being invited to discuss his own future, things seem bleak for the manager.
The hottest potential replacements include David Moyes, the current bookies favourite, along with Harry Redknapp, Brendon Rogers and Nigel Pearson to name a few. We’ll most likely see what the results of these discussions are soon. In the midst of all this secrecy and smoke and mirrors it’s hard to figure out what the future holds for NUFC, but it may be fair to assume that McClaren is on his way out, and that there may well be a new manager for the team in time for their game against Leicester.
