Saints (h) ST forwarding/resale/member sale now
Spurs (h) ST forwarding/resale/member sale now
Bournemouth (a) ST sale now, 58pts
Wolves (a) ST sale Mon 12.08.2024, 120pts

Sela Weekender:
Cup of cheer. Again.

Newcastle  1  Stade Brestois 29  0

Newcastle's second home win in as many days saw them retain the Sela Cup on Saturday; a revised format making the meeting with Brest a winner-takes-all tie. 

Eddie Howe's side just about deserved the silverware that came their way thanks to a well-struck effort from Harvey Barnes - the French visitors having more sights of goal overall but failing to take advantage.

Clad in the white third kit and with a different XI to that which had overwhelmed Girona on Friday, United again got off to a positive start and led after 15 minutes.

Lloyd Kelly's perceptive ball down the left found Barnes and he cut in on to his right foot before burying a low effort into the far corner of the Leazes goal.

Leading the line on his debut, new arrival William Osula swept the ball home in the 23rd minute but had strayed offside when latching on to a fine ball from Barnes.

The visitors had several near misses; Martin Dubravka defying Jonas Martin and Jordan Amavi while an effort Pereira Lage fell narrowly off target.

Action after the break was minimal with nothing of note from Newcastle in an attacking sense, the absence of Alexander Isak and Anthony Gordon profound and Trevan Sanusi unable to prompt anything as he was afforded some pitch time for the second day running.

There were more valuable minutes in the legs for the Magpies though as United's public pre-season programme concluded successfully, especially Joe Willock whose 88 minute contribution was his longest outing of 2024.

One last-ditch clearance left Fabian Schar limping and he played on for a time before hobbling off, but Howe was unconcerned by that when speaking post-match.

Multiple changes to the Brest side failed to inspire an equaliser that would have taken the contest to penalties; Kieran Trippier collecting the trophy from Darren Eales and lifting it in unison with Bruno Guimaraes.

That followed the presentation of the inaugural Women's Cup to Newcastle United Women, who shared four goals with their AC Milan counterparts earlier in the day before triumphing 4-3 in the shootout.

PS: Down on the south coast meanwhile, Friday's foes Girona lost 2-3 at Bournemouth while next Saturday's opponents Southampton drew 0-0 with Getafe.

Team: Dubravka (Vlachodimos 46), Trippier (Ashby 68), Schar (Stanton 82), Kelly, Lewis, Harrison (Sanusi 46), Guimaraes, Willock (Munda 88), Almiron, Osula (Hernes 68), Barnes.
Subs n/u: Gillespie, Emerson, Heffernan, Shahar.

Goal: Barnes 15

Brest: Bizot, Lala (Zogbe 72), Chardonnet (Ndiaye 73), Le Cardinal, Amavi, Periera Lage, Martin (Mbock 72), Magnetti (Camblan 72), Camara, Le Douaron (Kante 88), Del Castillo.
Subs n/u: Coudert, Ajorque, Lees-Melou.

Crowd: 33,760 - 1,802 more than were present for the previous evening's victory over Girona. Around 30 fans were in attendance supporting the visitors and were accommodated in Level 7.

Eddie Howe said:

"A really tough game today. We weren't quite at full speed and a lot of players needed the game because they haven't had the minutes. We looked a bit rusty and slightly off, technically and tactically."

On William Osula:

"I loved the goal - the pace, the run, the finish. He didn't know he was offside and I'm still not sure he was. 

"He hadn't trained a great deal because he'd had concussion so there was some rustiness. You can see why we brought him to the club."

On Jamal Lewis:

"While he's still here we'll treat him with the respect he definitely deserves from how he's conducted himself. 

"He's had a good pre-season but there is a chance he could end up leaving. We'll work with him to find the solution he wants for his career."

On transfers:

"Difficult to say exactly what's going to happen. These things aren't exactly in my hands and I'm not really dealing with them, now we have other people in place to take control of those situations, allowing me to focus on coaching the team.

"They have to make sense, whether that's a positional need or something becomes available in the market that we really like. 

"Of course, you're looking to strengthen the group and improve the first team."

Referee: Tony Harrington.

VAR: n/a

Stats:

There was a club debut for William Osula, sporting the 18 squad number that had been vacant since the close season departure of goalkeeper Lorius Karius.

Along with first pre-season outings for Martin Dubravka and Kieran Trippier, that took the number of players utilised in pre-season to 37 - excluding Sandro Tonali.

French sides @ SJP - PL era:

2024/25 Brest won 1-0 (FR)
2023/24 Paris SG won 4-1 (CL)
2019/20 St. Etienne won 2-1 (FR)
2012/13 Bordeaux won 3-0 (UE)
2003/04 Marseille drew 0-0 (UE)
2001/02 Troyes drew 4-4 (IT)
1996/97 AS Monaco lost 0-1 (UE)
1996/97 Metz won 2-0 (UE)

Sela Weekender:
Magpies well stacked!

Newcastle  4  Girona  0

Match action

Match report

Giveaway:
Hat winner
 
Newcastle-based Football Bobbles have restocked their bucket hats, including a reversible design inspired by the 1996/97 season home and away kits.   

Made for NUFC fans by NUFC fans, the Shearer hat  comes in three sizes online here

We had one to give away and asked which non-league side Alan Shearer faced and scored on his comeback from injury in 1998.

It was of course Stevenage Borough (we accepted Stevenage) and from our bulging sack/inbox the winning entrant was randomly selected as David Thompson*.

* there are several readers of that name who entered: the winning David Thompson is in receipt of an email confirmation. If that wasn't you, unlucky. 

PS: The special offer on the Shaka bucket hat for just £14.99 expires on Friday week (16th). Use promo code openingday at checkout.  

Update:
Guehi still an Eagle 

Update: With no public progress over his proposed move, Guehi was among the Palace players who held an open training session at Selhurst Park on Thursday.

The Eagles host Nantes in a pre-season kickabout on Sunday.

Earlier: The usually well-informed Athletic writer David Ornstein has divulged Newcastle's negotiations with Crystal Palace over central defender Marc Guehi.

The 24 year-old England international who has two years left on his current contract at Selhurst Park. A bid of £60m has been claimed in the media.

Born in the Ivory Coast, Guehi moved to South London as a youngster and was picked up by Chelsea at youth level and progressed through their academy (emulating current Magpies Tino Livramento and Lewis Hall).

Making two League Cup appearances in the 2019/20 season during his time at Stamford Bridge, Marc was loaned out to Championship side Swansea City - returning to South Wales for the 2020/21 campaign.

An £18m transfer then took the defender to Crystal Palace in July 2021, gaining his first England cap the following March.

Update:
Striker signs 

Newcastle confirmed on Thursday that they had completed the signing of William Osula from Championship side Sheffield United.

The 21 year-old Danish-born striker joins in a reported £10m deal, although the fee is officially undisclosed.

Speaking to reporters Eddie Howe said:

"He's a player I've known since Jason Tindall's time at Sheffield United really. We've been tracking him for three years. He excites us. Raw ingredients to become a great centre-forward. Good physical profile at 6"3, 6"4 and good technical skills. Areas of his game need to develop but he's coming to the right place to do that.

"It's a very tricky situation. We have two outstanding centre-forwards and to find someone to compliment them isn't an easy job. To find a young striker to develop, he won't have two better to learn from. He's coming to a healthy environment.

"Financially, it has to work for us as well. It's a good deal for us. We've got a lot of work to do with him but he's a good character."

Osula's most recent competitive appearance for the Blades came from the bench during their 1-5 Premier League loss at St. James' Park last April. 

He netted twice in pre-season for them but didn't feature on Friday against Huddersfield Town, as the finishing touches were put to his Tyneside switch.

Sky Sports News report that the deal is a £10m initial fee with £5m in add-ons, prompted by Callum Wilson's latest injury setback and a lack of forward cover from the club's academy.

Debuting for Sheffield United in the Championship in March 2022, Copenhagen-born Osula played and scored in a training ground game against Newcastle U21s in July 2022.

That was then followed by a report in the Sheffield Star newspaper that the Magpies held an interest in signing the player, although no more was heard after that.

Loaned out to League One Derby County soon after, William netted five times in all competitions for the Rams, returning to Bramall Lane last season to score three goals (all in the FA Cup). He made nine PL starts and a further 12 substitute appearances without netting.

He's set to become the third Danish-born player to appear for the Newcastle in the Premier League, after Jon Dahl Tomasson and Peter Lovenkrands. 

Older readers meanwhile will recall Benny Arentoft, Benny Kristensen....and Frank Pingel. 

2024/25:
Second kit launch date

NUFC confirm that their red and blue change kit will be officially released in the UK on Tuesday August 13th.

Eagle-eyed NUFC.com reader Neil Rutherford spotted the shirt anyway on sale last month in a sports shop near Times Square in NYC, USA.

2024/25:
October live PL games

Premier League fixtures selected for live UK TV broadcast have now been confirmed until the end of October. Two of Newcastle's three scheduled games that month have been altered as follows:

Sat 05.10.2024 Everton (a) 5.30pm Sky
Sat 19.10.2024 Brighton (h) 3pm no UK TV
Sun 27.10.2024 Chelsea (a) 2pm Sky

96 tears:
"Love It..." offer

Following a successful run there last year, "Love It If We Beat Them" returns to the Live Theatre on Newcastle Quayside from September 10th to the 28th.

Rob Ward's play mixes football and politics against a backdrop of Newcastle's fruitless pursuit of the 1995/96 Premiership title.

NUFC.com readers can buy tickets for just £19.96 by using promo code NUFC here. 

The discount also extends to personal callers at the box office but is only valid until the start of the PL season on August 17th. 

2024/25:
NUWFC @ SJP
 
Newcastle United's Women's team will play two home league games at Gallowgate this season as follows:

Sun 17.11.2024 Southampton (h) 2pm
Sun 23.03.2025 mackems (h) 2pm

(The first Tyne-wear meeting of the sides will be staged at the stadium of plight on Sun 13.10.2024 @ 2pm).

NUWFC season tickets online here
NUWFC fixtures online here

2024/25:
Academy success

Following a training camp in Spain, Newcastle U18s continued their pre-season preparations on Tuesday with a home friendly against Blackpool.

The Magpies ran out 2-0 winners, thanks to goals from Sean Neave and Matty Taylor.

Old boy:
Fratt's my boy

Matt Ritchie has completed a free transfer return to former club Portsmouth, following his exit from SJP.

Now 34, the Hampshire-born midfielder made the first of 10 senior competitive appearances for Pompey in the 2009/10 season before making a permanent move to Swindon Town in 2011.

Newly-promoted Portsmouth kick off their Championship campaign at Leeds United on Saturday, with Ritchie and fellow former Magpie Elias Sorensen in line to make their first appearances.

2024/25:
Mariners fail to 
make net gains

South Shields  1  Newcastle U21s  1

Match report

2024/25:
Tokyo drift

Yokohama F. Marinos  2  Newcastle  0

Match report

2024/25:
Academy updates

Ahead of the new season, Newcastle remain busy in the transfer market at youth level. Here's what we know - or not - about the incomers so far:

Officially announced:

Aaron Epia (defender) Everton
Ezra Tika-Lemba (defender) West Ham
Miodrag Pivas (defender) FK Jedinstvo
Kayden Lucas (striker) Clevedon Town

Others yet to be announced:

James Taylor (goalkeeper) Hemel Hempstead Town
Rory Finneran (midfielder) Blackburn Rovers
Kyle Fitzgerald (midfielder) Galway United
Mo Sedibeh (striker) Bradford City

Both Fitzgerald and Sedibeh featured as trialists for Newcastle U21s against South Shields on Sunday.

News outlets in Ireland report that Fitzgerald will play on for Galway until his 18th birthday in January when his contract with the Magpies is concluded - following the example of defender Alex Murphy who moved from Galway to Newcastle in July 2022 aged 18. 

Moving on to the younger age groups, last week's U15 game in Japan featured two 14 year-old recruits:

CJ Afumuzor (midfielder) Portsmouth
Les Yeutembip (defender) Charlton Athletic

It's also reported that United have signed up:

Theo Benjamin (position tbc)

2024/25 U18 league fixtures are online here

The youngsters open up with a home meeting against Boro on Saturday August 17th at 11am.

2024/25 PL2 league fixtures are online here

Their elders meanwhile host the mackems on Monday August 19th at 7pm. The venue for that is currently listed as Whitley Park.

Premier League:
Man City (h) ticket
sale information 

Ticket sale dates for Newcastle's home game against Manchester City have been confirmed as follows.

A reminder that ticket sales are restricted to members, but a limited sale on a first come, first served basis now follows the ballot.

Full details of that are online here

Manchester City (h)
Ballot open: Tue 27.08.2024 @ 10am
Ballot closes: Thu 29.08.2024 @ 10am
Ballot winners notified: by Thu 29.08.2024 @ 5pm
Ballot winners purchase open: Fri 30.08.2024 @ 10am
Ballot winners purchase closes: Sun 01.09.2024 @ 10am
Ticket forward/resale: Mon 02.09.2024 @ 10am
Member sale opens: Tue 03.09.2024 @ 10am

2024/25:
Away tickets: no change 

NUFC have divulged the details of their recent away ticketing survey. The main points are as follows:

No change to the loyalty point system, with points only applied to season ticket holder accounts once it has been confirmed that it was used to gain entry. 

Spot checks of ID to continue unchanged, with the manner in which they are conducted to be subject to review.

No change to the situation where away tickets can be transferred, but further consultation to take place over a possible limited change to that rule.

The full document is online here  

Update:
Transfers

First team arrivals and departures:

Inbound:
Odysseas Vlachodimos Nottingham Forest
John Ruddy unattached
Lloyd Kelly unattached
Lewis Hall Chelsea
William Osula Sheffield United

Outbound:
Elliot Anderson Nottingham Forest
Yankuba Minteh Brighton & Hove Albion
Paul Dummett unattached
Matt Ritchie Portsmouth
Loris Karius unattached
Kell Watts Cambridge United
Jeff Hendrick unattached