Season 4 - January Clear Out

We have gotten to the January transfer window and decided the best thing to do with a bunch of our reserve and younger players is to get them all out on loan at the best level possible where they get regular football. At the same time I don't want to leave myself too short for options but I would rather have people out getting football and developing rather than stagnating at our club when they're only playing a couple of cup games here and there. We also have a bunch of cup games to play during this month plus a few Premier League games to try maintain our first place.

Transfers

Transfers Out

We only have the one permanent transfer out and it is a new record sale for the club.

Bruno Guimaraes - £74,000,000 - AC Milan

We had the issue where he had been injured for the first half of the season and as a result Miley is now as good as Bruno and then Finneran had progressed to being the level Miley was beforehand so we had a choice to make when he came back to fitness for if he was going to jump back into the team and potentially slow down our two young stars, or do we look to sell him on. AC Milan and a few Saudi teams came in with high bids and the answer seemed pretty clear for us. He had a year and a half left on his contract so it made sense to get the big money now, instead of having to give him a new contract and potentially slow down Miley and Finneran.

Loans

As mentioned at the start, we have decided to thin the squad out and get our younger players getting more football and have loaned a bunch out to hopefully develop and become ready for our first team sooner than waiting around for chances to play and playing in the under 21's league.

Robbie Bull - Flora - Estonian Premiership

Emmanuel Alimi - Crawley Town - League Two

Made Monamay - Lazio - Serie A

Brian Peralta Bauer - Lyon - Ligue 1

Mikey Moore - Cardiff City - Championship

Igor Oyono - Preston North End - Championship

Regis Planche - Modena - Serie B

Mycael - Norwich City - Championship (potential £20m permanent move)

Jan Badia - Strasbourg - Ligue 1

Aleksander Hammer Kjelsen - Hull City - Championship

Randolf Barusso - Rochdale - League Two

Giacomo Faticanti - Salento - Serie A

Cammy Gray - Charlton Athletic - League One

Kalvin McFadyen - Bromley - League Two

Elia Caprile - Atalanta - Serie A (potential £17.5m permanent move)

Taylor Harwood-Bellis - Aston Villa - Premier League (potential £46m permanent move)

Players In

Ben Godfrey - Inter Milan - £5,500,000 - Centre Back

We brought in Bed Godfrey just for a bit of extra cover for the last half of this season whilst we loan out Monamay, Kjelsen and Harwood-Bellis and at such a cheap price his experience should be helpful to our team for 6 months. Hopefully we'll be able to make our money back at the end of the season as well on him.

Cammy Gray - Hibernian - £9,250,000 - Defensive Midfielder

The only other signing this window was the young Scottish defensive midfielder from Hibs who we are looking to develop into a bigger player for us in a few years time. Unfortunately our young defensive midfielders haven't really developed into pushing Klemens and Tonali so we've brought one in to see where we can get to with him. He looks decent enough for 18 and with regular game time on loan at Charlton hopefully he can come back at the start of next year a 2 star player already trying to push into the team.

The Matches

Newcastle 3 - 0 Tottenham

We started off January with a double header against Spurs and in the Premier League game we came out on top very comfortably. We got good performances all round and can be very happy with the start of the month. We took the lead in the 2nd minute when Isak ran from the half way line all the way into the box before cutting it back for Gordon who was able to tap it in from close range. We then got the second as Frimpong gave it to Pino on the edge of the box where he then forces his way into the box and fired under the keeper to double the lead at half time. We though we had a third when Miley took a shot from the edge of the box and a deflection took it to Pino who was able to finish into an open goal, but he was offside when Miley took the shot. However it did eventually come in the 90th minute when Frimpong whipped in a cross from the right wing and Isak won his header and beat the keeper to make it 3-0.

Newcastle 2 - 0 Tottenham (FA Cup Third Round)

Next up in the double header was the start of our FA Cup run so as usual we rotated a lot of the starting 11 and gave the others a chance to beat Tottenham. We got more good performances all round and Amadi made his debut in goal for us keeping a clean sheet. We once again took the lead in the 2nd minute when Finneran gave it out wide to Lewis-Skelly who got into the box and found the far corner to make it 1-0. The rest of the half was quiet and nothing too much happened but we went in with a tight lead. We got the second when Muzambo had the ball in the box but was tackled, only for the loose ball to fall to Finneran who took on the shot which Van Der Ven turned past his goalkeeper as he tried to block it. After this the subs started happening and really broke up the game and again nothing much happened so we go through with a comfortable 2-0 win. We will face Blackburn in the fourth round.

Aston Villa 1 - 1 Newcastle

We went back to the league next where we were facing a high flying Villa team and the game created a very even game all the way through. We started the better team and then let them start creating chances and then we took back over for the final part of the game but neither team was able to secure a winner. We took the lead when Pino sent in a cross that took a deflection and just bobbled its way across the box and somehow made it through to the back post where Gordon was able to shoot from close range and make it 1-0. Vicario had to make one superb save from the edge of the box to keep it 1-0 at half time. In the second half we started by making a collection of mistakes by our two centre backs which eventually fell to Tielemans playing the ball over the top for Toney who scored an equaliser, only for us to get away with it because he was offside. However they did get their deserved equaliser when Tielemans slid it through for McGinn and he was able to beat Vicario to make it 1-1.

Newcastle 3 - 3 Chelsea (Carabao Cup Semi Final Leg 1)

The first leg was a very action packed game and in the end hasn't helped us decide which one of the two clubs is going to be in the final. The game seemed to swing one way then the other throughout the whole 90 minutes making it a very exciting watch and a draw is probably a fair result as the attacks from both teams outshone the defenders. They took the lead when Kean came down the left side and took an effort that beat Amadi to make it 1-0 early on. Muzambo slid it through for Sesko who got on the end of it and found the bottom corner, but the offside flag denied us our equaliser. We did get it shortly afterwards though when a corner was whipped in by Hall and Harwood-Bellis won the header at the near post to make it 1-1. Shortly into the second half Palmer was able to break through our defence and then find the bottom corner again to beat Amadi and restoring their lead. However it was short lived as Muzambo got into the box and took a shot which was deflected straight into the path of Lorran who blasted it in from close range. Then in the 93rd minute they thought they had won it when Nkunku had a shot which we got a good block on, but it fell back to Kean who added his second of the game and the Chelsea fans went crazy. Whilst they were still celebrating we went straight up the other end of the pitch and Lorran came down the right, sent in the cross to the back post where Gordon was able to head home to make it 3-3. All to be decided at Stamford Bridge.

Newcastle 0 - 3 Man City

Next up we hit the same old story when playing Man City and seeing the difference having that one goalscorer can really make. We had a rare game this season where our attack just wasn't able to finish their chances whilst despite creating less, Haaland finished everything that came his way. The actual game itself was pretty close but the scoreline just ruined us. They took the lead when Klemens gave away a penalty for what looked like a good challenge, and Haaland stepped up and sent Vicario the wrong way for 1-0. The second came when a cross from the left found Haaland in the box and he was able to tap it in from close range to give them a 2-0 lead at half time. Shortly in to the second half they took a corner which Haaland won his header, it came back off the bar and straight to him again for a second chance to head it in and complete his hat trick. A big loss in the title picture as it was Man City we battled it out with last season.

Newcastle 9 - 2 PSV Eindhoven (Champions League - League Stage)

It appears after one bad game of finishing suddenly everyone wanted to prove they can still score goals and PSV just faced us at the most unfortunate times for them. This was a total demolition of a team and the first time we've seen our team do it this season. We took the lead when Guehi who was still up from a corner found himself out wide on the left with the ball and he was able to find Pino in the middle who tapped in the opener. Lorran then came from the left and sent a cross in which found Isak and he applied a simple finish to make it 2-0. Nypan then sent it out wide to Livramento who came charging down the right wing before playing it back to Nypan who finished low to make it 3-0. Shortly afterwards Isak laid the ball off to Nypan on the edge of the box who curled it into the top corner to make it 4-0. Then to follow that up, Hall played a short free kick to Nypan who was a bit further out than last time, but once again curled it into the top corner to complete his hat trick and make it 5-0. Start of the second half they got one back when Tillman got into the box and his effort was able to beat Vicario for 5-1, but straight after Guehi came forward out of defence with the ball before playing it through for Lorran who hit it first time and made it 6-1. They then added their second when Muqiri found a bit of space in the box and was able to turn and get his shot away which Vicario was unable to get to making it 6-2. Faticanti then played it over the top for Pino who hit it first time across goal for Isak to tap in his second and make it 7-2. Our 8th goal came when Pino came down the right wing then pulled it back for Nypan who tapped it in for his fourth of the game making it 8-2. Finally Lorran whipped in a corner and Sildillia won the header at the near post to make it 9-2.

Blackburn Rovers 2 - 4 Newcastle (FA Cup Fourth Round)

Next up in the FA Cup we faced Championship side Blackburn Rovers where the team we put out was more than strong enough to win but started off slowly and made a bit of a meal of it. However the game was made more simple when they had a player sent off in the 26th minute and from then on we took over the game and eventually our talent shined. They took the lead early from a corner which Duffy was able to win the header in the box to make it 1-0. Then despite us piling on the pressure we had to wait for them to go down to 10 men before the goals started coming. We got the equaliser when Tonali got a second chance to cross from a cleared corner which fell to Harwood-Bellis and he was able to divert it goalwards. Then just before half time our corner routine worked again as Hall sent in a corner which Sildillia won at the near post to make it 2-1. They equalised in the second half when Guzman found himself through one on one and was able to beat Amadi to make it 2-2. However they were only level for 3 minutes as Hall played it up the left wing to Muzambo who was able to cut it back for Dowman to tap in his first goal for the club. Hall then sent in another corner which Sesko won at the near post this time to make it 4-2 and secure the win. We will face either Nottingham Forest or Man U in the next round.

Barcelona 3 - 6 Newcastle (Champions League - League Stage)

Next up was the last game of the Champions League league stage where we went away to one of Europe's elites. Despite a poor defensive display, we more than held our own and deserved to win and got a big scoreline in the meantime. We took the lead when Sesko played it first time out to Gordon who ran towards the box and then curled it round the keeper with a smart finish. They got back level when Ansu Fati found some space on the edge of the box and fired low to level it up. We regained the lead though when Gordon played it through for Sesko who tried to go round the keeper and his shot got saved but it only fell to Gordon who volleyed it straight in to make it 2-1. They then levelled it back up with a long range effort by Fermin that beat Vicario and made it 2-2. Then just before half time Livramento won the ball back and gave it to Gordon on the corner of the box who bent it round into the far top corner to complete his hat trick and give us the lead at half time. Early in the second half Miley played it through into Gordon's path and he once again beat the keeper to make it 4-2. They then hit us on the counter attack and Ansu Fati was able to get his second of the game and put some late pressure on us for a comeback at 4-3 with 10 minutes left. We had other ideas though and Wirtz played it forward for Pino who got into the box then cut it across where Isak was waiting to tap in our 5th of the game and seal the win. However before the game could be completed, Lorran played the ball into the box which they tried to clear, only for the clearance to hit Pino and rebound straight in to make it 6-3 and we go through comfortably to the knock out rounds.

Newcastle 3 - 1 West Ham

The final game of the month was back to the Premier League and another solid win for us where the result never looked in doubt. The first half was the story of a warning coming their way, as we had three of our corner routines all get met by Sesko only for their keeper to be able to keep them all out. We had to wait until the second half for the goals and it finally came when Hall got down the left wing and his cross found Nypan in the middle who won his header and got us the breakthrough. Lorran then came down the right wing and cut it back to Nypan who charged into the box and found the far corner to double our lead. Then we added our third when Finneran released Sesko into the left channel who ran the defence with him then cut it back for Gordon to finish under the keeper and make it 3-0. They got one back at the end where Bowen went for a screamer and it took a touch off Sildillia, hit the bar and bounced in but there was never any sign of a comeback from it and we took the 3 points.

Competitions

Premier League

The Premier League is still going well for us as we are currently joint top but with a game in hand, the major improvement so far this year is that we are leading the goal difference as well mainly due to our defence. Villa have dropped off now in January and fallen out of the European places with only Forest being the surprising team in there as Arsenal continue to have a bad season. The relegation zone looks like it could be sorted in the next episode really as Leicester and Southampton sit on 15 points whilst Wolves in 16th are on 23. So there's only really Norwich that can drop in there with them whilst Sunderland are rock bottom with 9 points and don't look to be offering any form of safety.

Champions League

We actually went through in first place in the league stage thanks to those 2 big wins at the end and there's actually only us and Liverpool who didn't lose one of the eight games. We are joined in the automatic qualification by Liverpool, Real Madrid, Arsenal, Bayern Munich, Inter Milan, Tottenham and Napoli meaning teams such as PSG, Barcelona and Man City are all having to do the extra qualifying round. Our Europa Conference League finalists Ludogorets have also qualified for the playoff round whilst Lille, Marseille and PSV all miss out completely.

Carabao Cup

The final is still yet to be decided with only Liverpool having one foot in it so far as they won their home match against Man U in the other semi final. Ours could go either way and Man U could easily turn round a 1 goal difference at Old Trafford so who knows which way this will go.

FA Cup

The FA Cup is starting to ramp up now as a few replays are required to sort out a few teams for the fifth round. However in terms of Premier League teams already out, we've lost Villa, West Ham, Sunderland, Burnley, Tottenham, Wolves, Norwich, Brentford, Bournemouth whilst Man U/Forest and Everton/Fulham all have replays to face against each other.

Next Time

So next time we will sort out February and March, potentially getting our youth intake in this period and we should potentially add a couple more cup games in there should we win the semi final and fifth round of those two cups. Other than that we've got big games against Chelsea, Liverpool, Forest and Man U in the league as well as our first knock out round of the Champions League. Where do you think we're going to end up this year in the trophy hunt? Will we have our first one of the season in the next episode in the Carabao Cup?