Q&A from inside Newcastle: Osula’s full debut, Almiron’s absence and CEO succession planning

Once a week for an hour during the Premier League season, AthleteNewcastle United subscribers have the opportunity to ask us for our views and insight into what’s going on at their club.

Here we’ve collected some of their questions and our answers from Monday’s edition of our Inside Newcastle live Q&A, which included questions about the new CEO, Miguel Almiron’s curious status in the squad, Kieran Trippier’s future and January’s transfer plans.

Want to ask a question about anything related to Newcastle? Chris Waugh will return on Monday at 2pm BST (9am EST) for another session…

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Do you have any idea what kind of CEO they want to replace Darren Eales? —Rob D

Chris Waugh: The process is still in its infancy and the news that Eales has been diagnosed with a chronic form of blood cancer comes as a shock to everyone at the club. Eales was the face of the summer restructuring and was heavily involved in the decisions that led to Paul Mitchell taking over as sporting director and changing staff at the very top, so his departure will be felt.

Despite his illness, Eales insists that for now he can serve his notice period before starting treatment. This means Newcastle will take their time in appointing their successor and, as with previous managerial appointments Dan Ashworth, Mitchell and Eales, it is expected that the club will take its time and conduct a thorough recruitment process. An external company can be commissioned to conduct the early stages of the search.

Early reports were that Newcastle were looking for a general manager who could make the club part of the English and European elite. During Eales’ tenure, in just over two years, Newcastle moved from the relegation zone to a Champions League team for the season, while also experiencing rapid commercial growth. However, to truly compete consistently, each area of ​​the club still needs to be improved to a “best in class” level, as they describe it internally.

When Eales was appointed, Newcastle needed a non-traditional Premier League CEO; someone who would come with an open mind and provide an alternative view of the club’s development. Time will tell whether they are still looking for a CEO with a similar profile, as the feeling is that just as Mitchell provides Ashworth with a different skill set as sporting director, perhaps Newcastle need an alternative type of CEO.

For now, everyone at the club is trying to make sure Eales stays fit and able to perform his duties, with his long-term health being the most important thing to him.

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Which academy player is closest to making his Newcastle debut this season? — Dmitry K

Waugh: Charlie McArthur, a 19-year-old defender, Leo Shahar, a 17-year-old right-back, and Cathal Heffernan, a 19-year-old center back, have impressed the Newcastle first-team coaching staff.

However, Trevan Sanusi is the academy product causing the most excitement at the moment, after delighting St James’ Park fans during pre-season matches against Girona and Brest. The 17-year-old winger quickly integrated into the starting lineup, training sporadically with Howe’s team over the last six months.

Stylistically, given his excellent technique and skillful dribbling, obvious comparisons have been made to Allan Saint-Maximin. At the moment, Sanusi can be frustrating and outstanding in equal measure, as Saint-Maximin famously was, and he is still raw, but Newcastle believe he has unique attacking options.

Given that he is an inverted left winger who likes to attack on the right, Sanusi faces a difficult challenge in usurping Anthony Gordon and Harvey Barnes in that position. However, with Jacob Murphy and Miguel Almiron struggling to claim a starting spot on the right, perhaps Sanusi could get a chance if the starting lineup is hit by injury.

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How many changes do you expect at AFC Wimbledon? I can’t wait to see William Osula-Mark R play

Waugh: Howe made six changes from the previous round at Nottingham Forest and I expect to see at least as many, and potentially more, given that Wimbledon are League Two opponents and the match will be at St James.

With injuries to Alexander Isak and Callum Wilson likely to keep both players sidelined until the upcoming international break, it is likely that Osula will make his Newcastle debut. Gordon will remain Everton’s centre-forward on Saturday, and with he almost certainly starting for England next week, protecting the 23-year-old by starting Osula against Wimbledon makes sense.

The 21-year-old is extremely raw and Howe always expected him to gradually integrate the Denmark Under-21 international into his starting lineup. But Osula is 6-foot-4, fast, physical and has what Howe calls the “raw ingredients” to be truly successful. Putting him on the field against the fourth division at home seems like an ideal opportunity, especially as Howe can field experienced players around him.

Almiron, Emil Krafth, Lloyd Kelly, Tino Livramento, Sean Longstaff and Joe Willock are also likely to play, although the choice of goalkeeper will be particularly interesting. Martin Dubravka could make his first appearance of the season after Nick Pope retained his place at the City Ground.

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What do you think about Almiron’s sympathy and asking for more minutes? Although it’s difficult, I’m delighted that he doesn’t play too much – Michael R

Waugh: Almiron’s lack of game time – just two league appearances from the bench, totaling three minutes – was in many ways a surprise. The 30-year-old made 23 starts last season and 29 in 2022-23, when he scored 11 goals to help Newcastle finish fourth.

However, the Paraguay international was advertised for Saudi Pro League teams in January and was available for sale in the summer. Newcastle’s desire to sign a right-sided striker – with Michael Olise and Anthony Elanga among their main targets – was an open secret and remains so.

Seemingly, Howe believes Newcastle needs to evolve beyond Almiron. Murphy is divisive but a conventional right-footed right-winger; Almiron is an inverted left-footed right winger, and on this flank, Barnes and Gordon were also preferred to the Paraguayan. It is disappointing that Almiron was not replaced by a valuable transfer in the summer, but only overtook players who are already at the club, although they play in a different style.

Howe insists that Almiron’s lack of match time is partly due to his reduced pre-season following his involvement in the summer’s Copa America matches, as well as the long-distance travel he undertook during international breaks, which affected his ability to reach peak fitness. However, the same applies to Bruno Guimaraes, who was not left on the sidelines.

Almiron deserves huge credit for his service to Newcastle but it appears he is no longer considered to be of a high enough caliber to play every week.

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Is Kieran Trippier more likely to stay now that he’s starting over or does he still want to leave? —DB

Waugh: It’s too early to tell. While Livramento shows promise, Trippier remains crucial to Newcastle’s attacking game plan. This was visible in the match against Manchester City.

While Livramento has a greater defensive recovery rate and his strength is dribbling possession up the field, Trippier’s progress on the ball with his passing and his ability to regularly play dangerous balls into the box from open play and set pieces is unparalleled.

Clearly Howe felt Newcastle were ready to move on from their reliance on Trippier at the start of the season, and with the former England international failing to regain full fitness after a shortened pre-season, Livramento was first choice right-back. Now Trippier has regained his starting position.

It is unclear whether this will change his decision to leave. He remained extremely professional and did not demand to leave, although he made it clear that he would prefer to leave in the summer. At 34, it still feels like we’re entering the final phase of Trippier’s Newcastle career, although Howe would like to keep him in the team for the long haul.

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Do you see Newcastle signing anyone in January? How much money is available? — AnonymousU

Waugh: Yes, I expect Newcastle to make a transfer in January, but their plans are not finalized and likely won’t be finalized until closer to the transfer window. Right centre-back and right-sided striker were priorities in the summer and remain top positions in the scouting squad.

Marc Guehi is still very much in demand, but at a significantly reduced price compared to what Crystal Palace were quoted in Newcastle in the summer. Burnley’s James Trafford is still admired and Howe is keen to sign a real No. 2 to compete with Pope, although perhaps at least one of Newcastle’s four remaining senior goalkeepers will have to go first before another is brought in (as was the case place in the previous window). ).

Newcastle prefers to conduct most of its business in the summer rather than in January, but it now has decent wiggle room when it comes to the Premier League’s profit and sustainability (PSR) rules.

Whether the centre-back will be wanted mid-season may depend on how Sven Botman and Jamaal Lascelles fare once they return to fitness – both are on track to be back in action before Christmas – and the position he finds himself in. Newcastle in terms of injuries across the team.

Newcastle are likely to be proactive but not panicky and Mitchell is expected to target players under the age of 26 who will show significant sales value.

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It seemed that until this week, players were instructed not to run as much. Is this a James Bunce influence or is it unrelated? —Oliwier H

Waugh: Howe is adamant that this was not the case. He was asked at the start of the season whether Newcastle had changed their style, but he rejected the suggestion. Howe also reiterated Friday that he is confident his team will rediscover its famous intensity over time.

Bunce has had an impact on training and recovery since his summer arrival, with the performance director tasked with injury prevention and ensuring all Newcastle’s medical, scientific and analytical departments work with the first-team coaching staff. Howe welcomed Bunce’s comments and changes were made to Newcastle’s fixture list and the way it operated.

But rather than wanting to move away from the demanding, high-octane approach, Howe hopes to accelerate it even further. Some of the changes were based on the belief that Newcastle could maintain a high physical level throughout the season, theoretically suffering fewer injuries, with the assumption that their level would decrease as the season progressed.

With some players failing to achieve peak fitness due to reduced pre-season periods, Newcastle were simply unable to consistently employ Howe’s preferred sporting approach. Despite this, Howe failed to impress with his team’s commitment, effort and overall statistics at Fulham, something he made clear to his players when he demanded answers against Manchester City.

On Saturday, Newcastle looked like Howe’s team again. The difficulty now is repeating this every week. Time will tell if they are physically ready for it.

(Top photo: Osula and Almiron’s training last week; Photo: Serena Taylor/Newcastle United via Getty Images)