Newcastle’s failure to retain the services of manager Rafael Benitez over the summer sparked uproar on Tyneside and Steve Bruce’s appointment as his replacement did little to dispel the fury.
However after a worrying start, things have taken a turn for the better for the Geordie head coach, whose return from his opening 12 Premier League games stands up against those of his recent predecessors.
Here, the PA news agency takes a look at the Magpies’ first dozen games in each of their last 10 top-flight seasons.
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Goals for: 11
Goals against: 18
Points: 15
Finishing points: ?
Finishing position: ?
After a tough run of fixtures which included a 5-0 drubbing at in-from Leicester, Bruce’s men have responded to beat Manchester United, West Ham and Bournemouth to add to their earlier scalp at Tottenham.
2018-19
Manager: Rafael Benitez
Wins: 2
Draws: 3
Defeats: 7
Goals for: 9
Goals against: 15
Points: 9
Finishing points: 45
Finishing position: 13th
Benitez had to wait until the 11th game of the season to taste victory over Watford, but a strong finish to the campaign which saw his side beat eventual champions Manchester City at St James’ Park helped ease them to safety.
2017-18
It was not always plain sailing for Rafael Benitez on Tyneside (Nick Potts/PA)
Manager: Rafael Benitez
Wins: 4
Draws: 2
Defeats: 6
Goals for: 11
Goals against: 14
Points: 14
Finishing points: 44
Finishing position: 10th
Successive early victories over West Ham, Swansea and Stoke looked to have got the Magpies going, but they won only twice more before Christmas and needed big results against Manchester United, Arsenal and Chelsea during the second half of the campaign to secure a top-half finish.
2015-16
Head coach: Steve McClaren
Wins: 2
Draws: 4
Defeats: 6
Goals for: 13
Goals against: 22
Points: 10
Finishing points: 37
Finishing position: 18th (Relegated)
Wins over Norwich and Bournemouth did little to calm the nerves under former England boss McClaren and by the time he was replaced by Benitez with 10 games remaining, the damage was done despite a January spending spree which saw Jonjo Shelvey, Andros Townsend and Henri Saivet added to the mix.
2014-15
Alan Pardew enjoyed a decent start but did not see out the season (Adam Davy/PA)
Manager: Alan Pardew
Wins: 5
Draws: 4
Defeats: 3
Goals for: 14
Goals against: 15
Points: 19
Finishing points: 39
Finishing position: 15th
Successive victories over Leicester, Tottenham, Liverpool, West Brom and QPR got Newcastle off to a belated start, but Pardew, who had increasingly become a target for disillusioned fans, called it quits on New Year’s Eve leaving number two John Carver to preside over a difficult second half of the campaign.
2013-14
Manager: Alan Pardew
Wins: 6
Draws: 2
Defeats: 4
Goals for: 17
Goals against: 17
Points: 20
Finishing points: 49
Finishing position: 10th
A return of 20 points from the first 36 available represented a solid enough start, but the £19million January sale of midfielder Yohan Cabaye to Paris St Germain – which ultimately cost director of football Joe Kinnear his job – and the club’s failure to replace him proved costly.
2012-13
Manager: Alan Pardew
Wins: 3
Draws: 5
Defeats: 4
Goals for: 13
Goals against: 17
Points: 14
Finishing points: 41
Finishing position: 16th
The effects of a run to the Europa League quarter-finals bit hard into Pardew’s resources and his team’s league form suffered. They eventually limped across the finishing line with only arch-rivals Sunderland buffering them from the bottom three.
2011-12
Demba Ba inspired Newcastle’s best start of recent years (Clint Hughes/PA)
Manager: Alan Pardew
Wins: 7
Draws: 4
Defeats: 1
Goals for: 18
Goals against: 11
Points: 25
Finishing points: 65
Finishing position: 5th
An oasis in an otherwise largely barren wasteland, the 2011-12 campaign saw a team fuelled by the goals of Demba Ba and later January signing Papiss Cisse go unbeaten in the league until the middle of November and secure their highest finish since the Sir Bobby Robson era.
2010-11
Manager: Chris Hughton
Wins: 5
Draws: 2
Defeats: 5
Goals for: 21
Goals against: 16
Points: 17
Finishing points: 46
Finishing position: 12th
Returning to the Premier league after a season in exile, Hughton’s men bounced back from an opening 3-0 defeat at Manchester United to trounce Aston Villa 6-0 and later hit Sunderland for five, although the Irishman was gone by December and it was Pardew who guided them home despite the £30million sale of star striker Andy Carroll to Liverpool in January.
2008-09
Manager: Kevin Keegan/Chris Hughton/Joe Kinnear
Wins: 3
Draws: 3
Defeats: 6
Goals for: 15
Goals against: 20
Points: 12
Finishing points: 34
Finishing position: 18th (Relegated)
A season of of turmoil saw Keegan walk out after three league games to be replaced, following a brief cameo from Hughton, by the controversial Kinnear. His own departure after heart surgery prompted owner Mike Ashley to briefly hand Alan Shearer the reins, but ultimately to no avail.
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