Newcastle United midfield is missing this | OneFootball

Over a month ago, I wrote an article about the Newcastle United midfield trio of Bruno, Tonali and Joelinton.

Will it really work?

I highlighted their strengths and weaknesses and I mainly questioned whether as a Newcastle United midfield trio, they are the answer forward for Newcastle United?

I’m not blaming them for Saturday, they have generally played well these last three Premier League games together .

The front three haven’t done the business the last two games and they’ve had enough opportunities to do so.

The problem we have though, is when you become over reliant on a front three and they aren’t firing for you, then you need the midfield to step up and score the goals.

Reality is though, we haven’t got the midfield reliable enough to do that on a regular basis.

Newcastle United possess only one midfielder that’s ever managed to hit double figures in a single season before (all competitions) in Joe Willock. In 2020/21 he managed 11 goals in 42 appearances for Newcastle United and Arsenal, however, he hasn’t got anywhere near that since. This isn’t a dig at him, as I like Willock as a player and rate him, but it’s a fact.

The bare facts though show 14 goals for Newcastle in 93 Premier League appearances.

Sandro Tonali is no doubt a good player.

However, he’s not someone that’s ever going to score a lot of goals. He has one in 14 Premier League appearances in black and white and a total overall  of 14 goals in 197 league appearances, five of those goals were in Serie B . So again it’s not someone you’d expect to score goals regular.

Joelinton is another player I admire.

His transformation as a player was exceptional and he does a lot of good things for the team.

However, 19 Premier League goals in 164 PL appearances for Newcastle United, as both a midfielder and striker, shows he is not a reliable figure for goals.

Bruno Guimaraes has been excellent and with a total of 16 goals and 15 assists in 88 Premier League appearances, playing mostly as a sitting midfielder, I can’t really complain about. He’s doing his bit as the goals go.

Sean Longstaff is an honest grafter and gives his best. He has a total of 10 goals in 153 Premier League appearances for Newcastle United.

Lewis Miley has only made 18 Premier League appearances for NUFC and has scored the once. So it isn’t really a fair player to judge given he’s a kid learning his trade and who has played so few matches.

So look at the numbers when it comes to goalscoring in Premier League appearances by our current midfield options:

Bruno 16 in 88 .

Tonali 1 in 14

Joelinton 19 in 164

Joe Willock 14 in 93

Sean Longstaff 10 in 153

Lewis Miley 1 in 18

I mention the three in Tonali, Bruno and Joelinton first, because a lot of people have demanded that Newcastle United midfield for a long time and they’ve been given it now. However, as I have said there does not look to be enough goals in that trio collectively overall.

We need someone that can consistently hit double figures every season from midfield.

We don’t have anyone.

I was shot down for saying this over a month ago because some people felt Isak, Barnes and Gordon as a front three will score enough between them and it wasn’t an issue if the midfield weren’t scoring enough.

You look at Tonali, Bruno and Joelinton though and between them, I think you are looking 15 Premier League goals at best.

It is nowhere near enough.

Take Bruno away and I think you’d be looking at seven or eight goals between Joelinton and Tonali.

I appreciate not every midfielder is about goals and they all have different roles and strengths, but a successful team doesn’t overly rely on a front three.

We need more from that midfield.

Liverpool had a Gerrard, Chelsea had a Lampard, Man City have had De Bruyne and Gundogan, Arsenal the likes of Odegaard, plus others such as Fabregas in the past.

We need someone that can take the pressure off the front three from midfield.