'Perhaps it's time to refresh everything'

The world as we know it seems split down the middle. Howe in or Howe out?

Unfortunately, the delineation between the two seems to have taken on the names "happy clappers" or "bedwetters". Neither moniker is particularly appetising to me, on account of my being a grown adult.

Once again, Newcastle lost in the league this weekend. Once again, Newcastle failed to keep a clean sheet. The run of form we're on hasn't been this bad since 2021 under Steve Bruce. A horrible fact to have to contemplate, but a fact nonetheless. It does not dampen one's bed to acknowledge that.

The season from a league perspective is largely finished, I think. I've been happily clapping my team but my hands are sore and we keep losing games. We may yet make something of the FA Cup, though we have to beat Manchester City this weekend to do so.

Still, we've done that once at home this season, so it's not impossible. If we do, I assume we'll somehow draw the Spanish national team in the next round.

We also remain in the Champions League. But the fatigue and the injuries and the lack of creativity on the pitch points to a bigger problem.

Can Eddie Howe solve it? It might be bigger than him now. I've had a lot of faith in him - he has earned it - but perhaps it's time to refresh everything.

I'd like to see it work, and maybe it still can, but it feels like the chance is slipping away.

I think I can eke out another week on the fence, and let the performances on the pitch speak to me. Fingers crossed.

Find more from Charlotte Robson at the True Faith: Newcastle United Podcast