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George Bland
@Gosportoon
lifelong toon fan, and into weight training.
Joined January 2011
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The TOON Café: Why Newcastle Fans Feel the Rules Keep Changing - Opinion by @SlaterTony
Imagine football isn't football at all.
Imagine it's a café business.
For years, one particular café sits on the edge of town. It's popular locally, has loyal customers, a proud history, and a unique atmosphere. But while some rival cafés have enjoyed decades of investment, expansion, prime locations, and national recognition, this one has largely been left to make do.
Then one day, a wealthy new owner arrives.
Not a loan shark. Not a reckless spender. Just someone with deep pockets who wants to invest in the business. they have always wanted to own a cafe, and this one has potential, its a doer upper!
They look at the café and say:
"Let's build a better kitchen. Let's expand the seating area. Let's hire the best staff. a Micheline star chef, Fred Sirieux as front of house, lets get the best staff there is!
Let's make this place compete with the biggest cafés in the world."
Sounds like capitalism, doesn't it?
Not so fast.
The town council steps in.
"We understand your owner has the money," they say, "but we're not going to let you spend it freely. Instead, we'll decide how much growth is acceptable."
The owner points to a healthy bank account.
The council points to a rulebook.
And suddenly the argument begins.
The PSR Problem
Under Profit and Sustainability Rules, the café isn't judged by how wealthy its owners are.
It's judged by what it historically earns.
That sounds reasonable at first.
But think about what it means.
The biggest cafés have spent decades building massive customer bases. They occupy the busiest streets. Their brands are established. They sell merchandise, attract tourists, and enjoy advantages accumulated over generations.
The ambitious café that arrived late to the party is told:
"You can grow, but only at a rate we consider acceptable."
In other words, the very success that made the established cafés powerful is used as the benchmark that newcomers must somehow reach before being allowed to compete.
It's rather like telling a challenger they can enter a race, but only after the race has already been running for thirty years.
The APT Argument
Then comes sponsorship.
The owner of the café also owns another successful company and wants to advertise through the café.
A completely normal business arrangement.
Except the council intervenes again.
"Because you're connected, we don't get to judge whether the deal is real. We get to decide whether we think it's worth as much as you say."
The sponsor offers £10 million.
The council says the deal is only worth £4 million.
The remaining £6 million is effectively ignored.
The money exists.
The sponsor is willing.
The contract is genuine.
But someone else has decided the value doesn't count.
Newcastle supporters have often argued that this creates an obvious question:
Why should regulators be deciding what a willing buyer and a willing seller are allowed to agree is fair value?
The Ladder That Gets Pulled Up
Supporters of the current system argue these rules protect competition.
That is a perfectly legitimate view.
Nobody wants football to become a free-for-all where financial recklessness threatens clubs' futures.
But many Newcastle fans believe something else is happening.
They see rules that arrived just as their club finally acquired owners capable of competing financially.
They see established giants who benefited from years of growth, commercial opportunities, and market dominance now advocating restrictions on those trying to catch them.
To Newcastle fans, it can sometimes feel less like safeguarding football and more like protecting the existing hierarchy.
Like a café owner who spent years building an empire suddenly deciding expansion should be tightly controlled just as somebody else starts improving their own business.
The Real Debate
This isn't really about Newcastle.
It's about what competition should mean.
Should success be determined by attracting investment, taking risks, and growing ambitiously?
Or should growth be limited in order to preserve a more level playing field?
Reasonable people can disagree.
But Newcastle supporters are entitled to ask why a club with willing investors, a global fanbase, sold-out crowds, and huge commercial potential should be prevented from accelerating its development when others were allowed to build their advantages over decades.
The café analogy isn't perfect.
No analogy ever is.
But it highlights why so many supporters look at modern football regulation and see a system where the wealth isn't the issue.
The issue is whose wealth is considered acceptable.
Its anti-competitive, and anti-progress.
And from the black-and-white side of the argument, that's a debate that is far from settled. ⚫⚪
https://t.co/mgp0wtw86U
This should of had hundreds of retweets and 1000s likes' brilliant 👌👌
Strap Yourselves In for the ride of your life.
I'm old enough to remember when Newcastle United wasn't the well managed PL Club it is now.
Newcastle United as a football club, has always been an emotional rollercoaster.
The trouble was, for a long time, it felt like the ride was stuck, or broken. at best stuck on a maintenance loop.
We'd slowly climb the track of hope every summer. A promising signing here. A positive interview there. Maybe this would be our year.
Then came the drop.
A star player sold.
Promises broken.
Ambition parked.
And down we'd plunge once again, hands in the air not through excitement, but because there was nothing else we could do.
I've seen the highs.
I've seen the Keegan dream.
I've lived the entertainers, the love it interview, with title challenges and European nights.
But I've also seen the selling-club years, where our best players felt like passengers waiting for the next exit. I've lived through the Ashley era, where survival became the destination and ambition felt permanently out of order.
For years it was a rollercoaster that only seemed to go one way.
Now, for the first time in decades, I feel something different.
This is an emotional ride of a different kind,
Not the “are we safe yet” coaster,
The "how good can we be" coaster,
It's enthusiasm, not dread.
As supporters, as we start another season, we're once again hearing the clunk of the chain pulling us upwards.
Slowly.
Relentlessly.
Higher than we've been for a very long time.
Of course there will be stomach-dropping moments along the way.
There will be twists we don't expect.
There will be sharp bends, setbacks, transfer disappointments, painful defeats and decisions we don't agree with.
But That's football.
That's Newcastle United.
But the difference now is that the track ahead doesn't disappear over the edge.
or loop back to the platform before the ride starts.
It stretches into the distance, Upwards.
The club has a vision.
The club has ambition.
The club is investing in its future.
And for the first time in a generation, Newcastle United is building a football club designed to compete, at the highest levels.
will it be a straight track? hell no, rollercoasters never are, but the ride makes it worthwile.
Of course some will leave, but because they WANT to, not because they HAVE to.
And, anyone who does want to leave, can do so, but that said we want to be a club where players WANT to stay.
As the CEO says, “If you just want to cheer for the club that’s going to guarantee we will win the league this year, we’re not for you.”
Same applies to players, up here we are grafters, we earn what we have, no free passengers allowed.
Some younger fans might see all this as normal.
some younglings have only seen the post takeover Toon,
Those of us with a few more miles on the clock know just how unusual this feels at Newcastle.
We spent years queueing for a ride that never seemed to start. watching an empty ride from behind the barrier.
Now the restraints are locked.
The lights are flashing.
The music is playing
The train of coaster cars is leaving the platform.
A new manager.
New players.
New ideas.
A continuing evolution before our eyes.
Nobody can promise where the ride ends.
But for once that's not the point.
Because after years spent stuck at the bottom of the first hill, we're finally climbing again.
And as every rollercoaster rider knows, the higher you climb, the more breathtaking the view becomes.
So to every supporter who's endured the false dawns, the penny-pinching, the pain of club enforced player sales and the years of simply making do...
Look around.
Listen to the roar.
Feel the anticipation building.
This club is moving again.
The future is gathering pace.
And my message to every single Toon fan is simple:
Strap yourselves in. Jaissler Ball is gonna be mad crazy, and we here for it!
The safety bar is down, the climb has begun, the excitement is palpable, and Newcastle United 2.0 is about to take us on one hell of a ride. ⚫⚪🎢🚀
@SlaterTony
Thank You, @brunoog97
I always knew this day might come, but that doesn't make it hurt any less.
When Bruno Guimarães arrived, Newcastle United was on its knees, fighting for survival. We as supporters had been through 14 years of Ashley and were almost afraid to dream.
Then along came this mad Brazilian lad who didn't just join the club, he believed in it.
That's what made him special.
Not the goals, the passes, or the moments of brilliance. It was the connection.
The passion.
The way he seemed to love Newcastle as much as we loved him. he felt like one of us.
He helped bring belief back to a fanbase that had almost forgotten what it felt like.
For many of us, he wasn't just a player. He was the symbol of the club's revival.
A trophy followed, and CL games we will all remember. the famous leave as legends quote, that was so pertinent then, perhaps feels a bit hollow now.
So yes, £75 million might make sense on a balance sheet, but football is about emotion, and losing Bruno feels like losing part of the story we all thought we'd see through to the end.
Cloughie once said we don't play football on paper, and never has that been truer than today, and yet we HAVE to play the spreadsheet game too.
Football never stands still. our club cannot either.
Newcastle now embarks on a massive reset. A new manager. New players. A new chapter.
The faces may change, but the ambition remains the same. the passion stays the same.
Bruno's #NUFC chapter is over, but he leaves having helped lay the foundations for what comes next.
We'll never forget the smile, the passion, the badge-thumping celebrations, or the belief he gave us when we needed it most.
Obrigado, Bruno. 👏
You arrived when we were searching for hope.
You leave having helped us find it.
@SlaterTony
Hope, Fear and a New Beginning: A Toon Fan's View of the Summer 2026 - OPINION
Being a Newcastle United supporter has never been easy. We are dreamers by nature, optimists by necessity, and experts in emotional rollercoasters. This summer feels like all three rolled into one.
Twelve months ago, we watched Alexander Isak leave for Liverpool. It was a gut punch. He wasn't just our best striker; he was the player that made you believe anything was possible when he picked up the ball. Every defence feared him. Every fan loved him. Losing him hurt, but many of us begrudgingly came to accept the argument that the money could be reinvested and that the club was thinking long-term.
Now, a year later, we're saying goodbye to Sandro Tonali.
That somehow feels different.
Tonali wasn't just a great footballer; he embodied everything Newcastle fans admire. He worked relentlessly, played with passion, and seemed to genuinely understand what it meant to wear the black and white shirt. Seeing him leave leaves a hole that will be difficult to fill, both on and off the pitch. We shared his emotional journey, his ban, his amazing season, his life.
And yet, despite the sadness, there is still hope. And hope is what Newcastle fans do best.
The reality is that Newcastle remains in a far stronger position than it was a few years ago. We have ambitious ownership, a world-class atmosphere, plans afoot for a new or revamped stadium, Champions League aspirations, and a manager who has won silverware and repeatedly improved players and exceeded expectations.
There is excitement about what might come next.
The money generated from major sales gives Newcastle the ability to reshape the squad. Fans are already dreaming about the next generation of stars. Every rumour sparks debate. Every social media update sends supporters searching for flight trackers and transfer clues. The possibility of uncovering the next Isak or the next Tonali is enough to keep optimism alive.
There is also renewed faith in the recruitment strategy. For too long Newcastle have been associated with panic buys and short-term fixes. That is no longer the case. The club have put in place a management structure that handles transfers correctly, that plans and scouts. Fans want players who fit the culture, the intensity and the ambition of the club. They want young hungry footballers who see Newcastle as a destination, not a stepping stone.
But alongside all that sits a growing fear.
The biggest fear is simple: are Newcastle returning to a club that develops elite players for others?
When Isak leaves for Liverpool and Tonali departs for Spurs a year later, supporters inevitably start asking difficult questions. Can Newcastle truly compete with the very biggest clubs financially? Can they keep hold of world-class talent when the traditional heavyweights come calling?
Those questions have always been uncomfortable because nobody wants us to go back to being a selling club. Waddle Gascoigne Supermac – the list is long.
There is also concern about replacing quality with quantity. Newcastle may have significant funds available, but football history is littered with examples of clubs spending huge sums and ending up weaker. Replacing one world-class player is difficult enough. Replacing two in consecutive summers is even harder.
Then there is the fear of falling behind.
The Premier League has never been more competitive.
The clubs around Newcastle are spending aggressively. Qualification for Europe is no longer an achievement that is a given, for ANY club. One poor recruitment window can undo years of progress, two can destabilise a club.
Supporters know that this summer cannot simply be about balancing books or making profits. It must be about once again building a team capable of challenging the top. This summer’s signings will define how this period is remembered.
But perhaps the overriding emotion among Newcastle fans today is determination. We work best when we are under pressure, the us v the rest has never been truer.
We've seen relegation battles. We've seen years of stagnation. We've seen top players leave before. What makes this era different is that there is still genuine belief in the future.
Nobody enjoys seeing big stars depart. Nobody wanted Isak to leave. Very few want Tonali to go. Yet Newcastle United remains bigger than any one player.
The challenge now is proving that those departures are not the end of the project, but the start of its next chapter, the start of “Takeover Newcastle” v2.0
As supporters, we'll do what we've always done. We'll analyse every rumour, argue over every potential signing, convince ourselves that a random player is arriving on planes spotted near Newcastle Airport and it’s definitely a new signing, argue over who the PiF should be signing, arguing about potential signings we have no chance of signing, but discuss the merits of their talent in the team anyway.
Then as always we’ll arrive at St James' Park with hope and expectation, and bring the noise when the season starts all over again.
Because that's what being a Newcastle fan is all about. The hope, the noise, the passion and aye, the arguing too.
No matter how many setbacks come our way, we always believe with absolute certainty, that thee great team ever is just around the corner. Next season.
And this summer, more than ever, we're hoping we're right. ⚫⚪
NEWCASTLE, UNITED, WILL NEVER BE DEFEATED.
Author: @SlaterTony
OPINION
We needed a complete reset after last season. We became too predictable and Gordon and Tonali were poor at times if we are honest. Gordon’s none penalty goals and assists were pretty abysmal and Tonali’s head was clearly elsewhere for months (1 good season out of 3)
£180m could be a major result for us - we might well have had Barcelona’s and Spurs’ pants down with those fees. Plenty of money to get some exciting young blood into the club. We still need to get them in of course but seem to be making progress now.
We will need to be patient for it to gel but many agreed that a big summer of change was needed. Eddie Howe has a really successful pedigree for developing players. Exciting period ahead 🙏
superb match report on toontalk today
NEWCASTLE UNITED 1-1 MANCHESTER CITY
After the debacle of the Fulham performance, the awful news about Darren Eales, the realisation that we were going up against possibly the best team in the world without a recognised first team striker and with performances this season being uninspired at best, I think it is safe to say 52,000 Geordies turned up at SJP in hope rather than expectation.
I'm never a fan of an early kick off, it always seems to dampen the atmosphere, but the home crowd were pretty vocal throughout as those in black and white gave the sort of performance we've been craving since the start of the season.
Teamwork, dogged defending, a touch of class in midfield and relentless pressing from the front. The 'intensity identity' was back and NUFC were recognisable as an Eddie Howe team once more.
This was the a game that was a joy to talk about in the pub afterwards; six different opinions on who should be POTM and all of them valid - here's my take on individual performances.
Player Ratings:
Pope 8️⃣: Superb save from Bernardo's shot late on to preserve a point. Solid and commanding throughout and kicking better than usual. One poor error that thankfully Gündoğan didn't capitalise on.
Trippier 8️⃣: He may no longer have the armband but this was a leader's performance. Calm when others needed him to be and solid defensively. Not having him take EVERY set piece with Tonali, Hall and Gordon on the pitch was refreshing too.
Schär 8️⃣: A classic Schär display. Oozed class and calmness on the ball. Passing was sometimes not as good as we've come to expect from him but his overall game was excellent.
Burn 8️⃣: Was too easily turned by the impressive Gvardiol for the City goal but otherwise pretty faultless. Made a certain Mr Haaland look distinctly average.
Hall 9️⃣ (POTM): Probably his best performance for NUFC. Superb defending against world class opposition in Bernardo Silva and then Phil Foden, supported attacks down the left with regularity and passing was varied and accurate.
Joelinton 9️⃣: Played the role of destroyer in midfield and did it with his usual Big Joe gusto. Caught in possession once when he shouldn't have been but he dominated an area of the pitch where we have been overrun of late.
Bruno G. 8️⃣: Much improved from the skipper. Second half in particular was excellent as he got on the ball more and effortlessly glided past challenges and regularly played the 'right pass' including setting up Gordon for the penalty incident.
Tonali 8️⃣: His positional play, tenacity and ability to see passes that others can't are second to none in our team. He's a special player and one that will get better and better the more he plays.
Barnes 7️⃣: Probably the only player that wasn't in the MOTM debate. Didn't do anything wrong but went missing for large periods.
Gordon 9️⃣: Relentless. Showed the sort of form that got him so heavily praised last season. Didn't stop pressing and made and converted the penalty impressively. Sign that contract please, Anthony!
Murphy 8️⃣: One superb run, one superb cross and did his bit defensively too.
SUBS:
Willock 7️⃣: Gave us the legs we needed in the middle when others were tiring and booked.
Longstaff 6️⃣: Could have scored the winner but rushed it and shanked his only proper clearance. Positionally great but clearly lacking confidence.
Livramento 7️⃣: Did okay against Doku but has work to do to displace Trippier on current form.
This was a rare occasion where a draw felt like a win. The team we all fell in love with in 2022 was back and hopefully this is the turning point for our performances this season.
Haaland averages 2 goals a game this season BTW...
If we can beat Wimbledon and Everton in the next 2, then we can start to be really ambitious about this season again. Play like this from now on and we'll win far more than we lose. HTL 🖤🤍
Don't agree with my ratings? Rate the players yourself by signing up to the app at https://t.co/9JR5nkzPPI
#NEWMCI #matchreport
NEWCASTLE UNITED 2-1 TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR
Winning football matches is always a good experience - even when you have to 'win ugly' and this was one of those games where the result was much better than the performance. 2 pieces of brilliance; a first time finish from Barnes and a sublime through ball from Joelinton, proved to be the difference on a day where NUFC had to dig deep to secure 3 points.
The statistics will point towards Spurs having a lot of possession in key areas and getting a lot of shots away, however, one superb stop from Maddison's curling effort apart, Nick Pope barely had a save to make.
Dogged defending, battling in midfield and taking your chances when they come along - that's how you win a football match against one of the Premier League's 'Big 6'.
Player Ratings:
Pope 6️⃣: One superb save, should have done better with the initial shot that led to Spurs' goal.
Livramento 7️⃣: defensively sound and a good outlet down the right. Had an input in the build up to the opener.
Krafth 7️⃣ (POTM): Playing out of position but you would not have guessed it. Resolute at the back. Worth noting that his day was probably made easier with Spurs not having Richarlison or Solanke available.
Burn 6️⃣: Poor mistake for the goal and gave the ball away poorly on one other occasion. Otherwise, solid.
Kelly 6️⃣: A largely decent display - great cut back for Barnes' goal.
Joelinton 7️⃣: threatened to lose his head shortly after the equiliser but calmed down to play the pass of the match through to Murphy to set up the winner.
Bruno G. 6️⃣: Not the new skipper's most impressive game in black and white but not awful either. Doesn't look back to his sharpest, yet.
Longstaff 7️⃣: Controversially, the pick of our midfielders here. Covered ground well and got stuck in.
Barnes 7️⃣: Wasn't too heavily involved but took his goal superbly.
Isak 6️⃣: Wonderful chipped attempt in the first half that crashed off the bar and ultimately scored the winner. Offered nothing else of note but if he scores the winner every week, who cares?
Gordon 6️⃣: showed glimpses of his form from last season but still a shadow of what he can produce. Made a good chance for Barnes in the first half after a fantastic first touch.
SUBS:
Murphy 5️⃣: Absolutely hopeless and then made a tremendous run to set up the winner. Football is a weird game sometimes!
Hall 5️⃣: Caught out on a couple of occasions as Spurs hunted for an equiliser late on.
Tonali 7️⃣: Oozes class. His first touch passes and tenacity to win the ball back were both contributing factors to us seeing the game out. He could have a special season for us.
Make no mistake, NUFC were far from their best here, and at times it looked like a draw was the best we could hope for, but as has been the way this season, the Toon found a way to get the job done. If we can win against decent teams playing fairly poorly, God help the opposition when we click into gear. HTL 🖤🤍
Don't agree with my ratings? Rate the players yourself by signing up to the app at https://t.co/9JR5nkzPPI
#NEWTOT #matchreport
Perspective
There is going to be total meltdown if Guehi is in the Palace squad tonight. The negative comments on X about Eales, Mitchell and Howe are quite staggering.
Howe kept us up against all expectations, got us qualified for the CL the next season and to a cup final. Last season despite massive injuries we finished 7th and got to QF of two cups. In the last 3 seasons we have made some excellent signings, Isak, Gordon, Botman, Barnes, Bruno, Tonali, Livramento, Hall, Pope, Tripps. We are in a hurry to get success but we are rightly setting standards as high as our budget allows.
Mitchell came to the club halfway through the transfer window and after we nearly came unstuck with PSR. We have a decent budget but getting top class players and avoiding another PSR mess is very difficult. I would rather sign no one than panic and sign someone sub standard or get into a PSR mess and points deductions.
The commercial side of the club is improving rapidly (Adidas, Sela, Noon and other sponsors secured) and there is more to come. Stadium plans due to be revealed in next few weeks.
We have now recruited top people right across the club and have an effective structure with committed talented people - remember when Charnley was the only director? The transformation in a short space of time is a clear indication of how far we have come and the direction of travel.
It is hard but we have to be patient. Rest assured PIF will make sure the pressure is on every part of the club to deliver and where possible will provide finance. These people don’t do coming 2nd and won’t tolerate missing achievable targets. At last we are being run professionally and are truly competitive.
HWTL 🖤🤍🖤🤍
Should be all over that!!
Heres a better clip of Brereton Diaz moving his head towards Fabiam Schar.
#MOTD @alanshearer @GaryLineker @FA_PGMOL #NUFC
Free to enter toontalk scorecast competition #NUFC
New Twitter account - massive Toon fan looking for followers - will follow back -please retweet 👍
https://t.co/qV8WstW8ZJ. #NUFC
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