Steve McClaren is confident Newcastle United’s directors will remain loyal to him as he attempts to recover from an appalling start to the season.
Newcastle, with eight games gone, are bottom of the table and waiting for their first Premier League win but there is a recognition the former England coach faces a particularly tough challenge and a sense that real progress, albeit slow, is being made.
As a member of the club’s board as well as the head coach, McClaren is involved in planning for the January transfer window with Lee Charnley, the managing director, and believes he has the continued backing of Mike Ashley, the owner.
“I have the belief I have their loyalty and as long as we continue making progress, which I believe we are and they believe we are, then we keep going,” he said before Sunday’s home game against Norwich. “You don’t have loyalty if people think: ‘This ain’t going to get any better.’
“We’re planning together. We realise that the next transfer window is going to be very important for us – it’s going to be huge. We’ve talked a lot. They absolutely realise this is a tough job. There’s no feeling that everything in the garden is rosy. Even if we win a few games, there needs to be changes.”
Outwardly at least, McClaren has remained calm and seems unperturbed by even the most provocative inquiry about his abilities. Asked if he, or anyone else, had questioned his position, McClaren was unequivocal. “No, absolutely not. We’re progressing but we haven’t won, so that creates pressure,” he said. “This is Newcastle, so there’s always scrutiny on you. Always. From day one – but I’m experienced enough to know how to handle it and it’s not really a problem. The problem is bloody winning football matches.”
Although the perilous league position and the need to reverse the team’s near year-long decline make short-term strategy the priority, McClaren has a good idea of those players he would hope to offload in January. “We want players here who are committed to what we’re trying to do,” he said. “It’s about who is with us, who is not? We’re getting a fair idea.”
One man he wants to keep is Tim Krul but he fears the goalkeeper’s absence until next season with a ruptured cruciate ligament could cost Newcastle dear. “It’s a massive blow for us,” he said. “Tim’s a vital player, very important, and he’d get us 18 or 20 points a season. To lose that is devastating. It just seems to be one disaster after another here but you have to get on with it. We have players with talent and ability – once we get over this hump we will win games.”
