Alarm bells have begun to ring for Newcastle United, with a humiliating 4-1 defeat at Elland Road at Leeds United confirming that Matthias Jassel and his side are not ready to challenge for the top spot in the Premier League.
So many big changes in the summer are always going to spell trouble, but Jessel will certainly be worried about the way his team were outplayed by the Whites, whose physical and athletic superiority paid dividends for them on the night.
Newcastle’s two-man midfield pivot doesn’t work every week. Even Bruno Guimarães, Sandro Tonali and Joelinton will encounter it at Elland Road.
Such a sale was ultimately inevitable, but Newcastle will surely continue to regret their decision to let Elliott Anderson go two years ago. He’s long gone now, but the Three Lions midfielder’s presence was felt on Monday night.
Why Newcastle will continue to regret the sale of Elliott Anderson
In hindsight, Newcastle will surely regret their decision to sell Anderson to Nottingham Forest in 2024. At the time, £35m felt like a good deal for a young and relatively untested player, but the England star has since proved them wrong.
Anderson’s immediate impact at the City Ground outlines the Magpies’ fault and as long as they invest more time and patience in Anderson’s development, they are sure to reap rich rewards from their homegrown superstar.
Of course, PSR concerns have hampered the club’s growth to a certain extent. However, they may be an alternative method of circumventing penalties. That summer, for example, the PIF rejected a £75m offer from Liverpool for Anthony Gordon.
You only need to take one look at the 23-year-old’s commanding performance against the Red Devils in the Manchester derby to know that he is one of the best midfielders in Europe – but sadly Toon fans have known this for a while.
Newcastle have their share of regrets, but Anderson’s meteoric rise – a £116m move to Manchester City this summer – won’t be replicated by every promising midfielder.
Newcastle’s new Anderson is becoming Longstaff 2.0
Sean Longstaff came on as a substitute to help Leeds United to a comprehensive victory against Newcastle on Monday night. A product of the Cartoon Academy system, Jessel is now poised to become the new homegrown superstar.
Indeed, Luis Miley is becoming an increasingly important part of Newcastle’s squad, but if Jessel insists on a double pivot, the homegrown star could struggle throughout the season.
Leeds absolutely overwhelmed Newcastle United and Miley may not be at Anderson’s level just yet – in fact, he may not be up to the same lofty standards.
The 20-year-old Miley has excellent ball control and instincts in the attacking and build-up phases, but leaves a lot to be desired on defense. He’s not the most combative player, and so far this season he’s in the bottom 25% of Premier League midfielders in terms of duel win rate, while he’s also in the bottom 10% of players in terms of tackles won per 90.
Longstaff isn’t a bad player, but he doesn’t have the same world-class qualities as a player like Anderson. He is a hard-working midfielder but Daniel Farke has yet to start him in the Premier League this season.
To be fair, Miley has shown considerable technical potential and when you look at his performance last season compared to Anderson’s performance in his final year at Newcastle, there’s no doubt he can become a mainstay in Newcastle’s midfield.
premier league format | ||
|---|---|---|
Statistics (* every 90) | Anderson(23/24) | Miley(25/26) |
Game (start) | 21 (10) | 23 (15) |
Goals + assists | 0+2 | 1+4 |
touch* | 33.5 | 48.7 |
Accurate pass* | 16.4 (83%) | 32.8 (90%) |
created huge opportunities | 2 | 3 |
Key Pass* | 0.7 | 0.7 |
success. Dribbling* | 1.0 (54%) | 0.5 (86%) |
Ball recovery* | 2.9 | 3.0 |
definition. contribute* | 2.5 | 3.7 |
Duel won* | 4.0 (49%) | 3.9 (66%) |
But the Leeds United midfielder gave Miley and his team-mates a lesson in Premier League fitness on Monday. The Geordie midfielder still has a lot to learn before becoming one of the best in the business, something that echoes Anderson’s rise to prominence at Forest.
Miley certainly has talent, but she received a bit of a reality check against Leeds United, lacking the gumption and initiative that Anderson has been able to display most weeks.
Whether Miley can take her game up a few levels remains to be seen, but there’s no doubt that Jessel now knows he doesn’t have the next Anderson on his hands. not yet. Newcastle still have a lot of work to do in this regard.