Eight months ago, Newcastle United were ripped apart on home soil by the Premier League champions. A whipping against Manchester City is no surprise - there was another to come in May after all - but the 4-0 defeat at St James’ Park last December laid bare all of the Magpies’ problems.
If the new regime did not know how much investment was needed in January before this fixture - they certainly knew afterwards. A four-man defence of Jacob Murphy, Jamaal Lascelles, Ciaran Clark and Matt Ritchie were given a tough afternoon by Pep Guardiola’s star-studded line-up.
Wingers converted into full-backs exposed the Toon backline - and where the priorities needed to lie in the transfer market. The defeat left Newcastle three points adrift from safety despite playing two games more than 17th-placed Watford.
READ MORE: Newcastle United to tell Real Madrid to forget Bruno Guimaraes interest
From that defence, only Murphy has featured for Eddie Howe’s troops so far this season. A paltry 16 minutes from the bench is all he has been granted, with Martin Dubravka also deposed from his goalkeeping spot for Nick Pope.
Defensive stability was the bedrock of Newcastle’s survival strategy from January onwards. For context, that heavy Man City defeat meant United had conceded a staggering 41 goals in 18 games. A sturdy backline would go on to concede a further 21 from 20 outings after adding Kieran Trippier, Dan Burn and Matt Targett to their ranks.
The Magpies have continued their steeliness by keeping back-to-back clean sheets in the opening two games of the campaign. As it stands, Newcastle and City are the only two sides yet to concede a top-flight goal in 2022-23.
A resilient defence has built the platform for Dan Ashworth & Co to improve the club’s attacking options. In less than one year, Newcastle’s weakness has become their strength - and vice versa.
Guardiola should discover the Magpies are no longer an easy nut to crack when he descends on St James’ Park this weekend.
READ NEXT
- Match verdict as Nick Pope justifies big Eddie Howe decision
- Pope shines and Joelinton strong: Newcastle player ratings
- Callum Wilson talks about life at Newcastle's under-construction training ground
- Brendan Rodgers drops fresh hint to Newcastle United on James Maddison
- Newcastle transfers state of play as Howe has already commented on Benfica star
