THIS time last year, Newcastle United were sitting in 15th position in the table, with talk of a potential takeover stuttering to a halt. Their manager, Rafael Benitez, was grumbling about a lack of investment, while their owner, Mike Ashley, was instructing his recruitment team to look for cut-price additions. The more things change on Tyneside, the more they really do stay the same.

This has been a wasted 12 months for the Magpies, with so much effort and emotional energy expended to achieve next to nothing. The root cause of that is Ashley, an owner in name only, who continues to insist he is desperate to sell. Until that happens, it is hard to see how Newcastle can progress.

At least Benitez is still there – for now – and his stewardship of the club is the main reason why the Magpies continue to find themselves in the Premier League.

2018 started with the now traditional early FA Cup exit, but Newcastle’s league form in the spring was excellent, hauling them away from relegation trouble. February’s home win over Manchester United was a notable highlight, and by the time Newcastle rounded off their season with a thumping success over Chelsea, they had clambered into the top half.

That should have been the springboard for a forward step, but summer investment was minimal and the squad continues to lack top-class talent. Ki Sung-yueng and Fabian Schar were astute cut-price additions, but hopes of a record-breaking deal for a striker ended when Salomon Rondon joined on loan.

A tough run of fixtures at the start of the current campaign plunged Newcastle into trouble, but back-to-back home wins over Watford and Bournemouth were crucial, and the Magpies head into their final game of 2018 five points clear of the drop zone.

Unless the ongoing takeover talk actually amounts to something in the next couple of months, maintaining that gap to the end of the season will be another huge achievement.


HIT OF THE YEAR

RAFAEL BENITEZ

It couldn’t be anyone else. So much at Newcastle United is wrong – but they survive thanks to having one of the best managers in the world.


FLOP OF THE YEAR

AMANDA STAVELEY

There have been some poor performances on the pitch, but Staveley proved the biggest disappointment of all. For once, Mike Ashley was right when he branded her a ‘complete waste of time’.


GOAL OF THE YEAR

SALOMON RONDON (vs Huddersfield, December 15)

There have been some excellent individual strikes, but this was one of the finest team goals scored by anyone this season. Newcastle broke from one end of the pitch to the other, with Javier Manquillo eventually teeing up Rondon to sweep home.


MOMENT OF THE YEAR

MIKE ASHLEY’S INTERVIEW ON SKY NEWS

It might well amount to nothing, but when Ashley claimed a takeover deal was ‘closer than ever before’, a wave of optimism swept across Tyneside.


2018 RECORD

P38 W12 D9 L17 F37 A42 Win Ratio: 31.6%