Former Premier League striker Noel Whelan has ripped into Steve Bruce's management at Newcastle United.
With the Magpies without a win in six and two points outside the relegation zone, they face real threat of playing Championship football next season.
Despite Bruce being under pressure from fans for a long time, the Magpies hierarchy have stuck by the beleaguered manager, much to the surprise of Whelan.
Speaking to Football Insider, Whelan says Newcastle's displays cannot get any worse than they currently are.
He said: "The wheels have been coming off for quite a while, there’s no doubt about that.
"On the field, it’s absolutely woeful. It’s shocking, it really is.
"It looks like there’s absolutely no confidence in that club whatsoever. Steve Bruce keeps saying he’s not going to walk away. Will a change at this moment do much? I’m not so sure.
"It can’t get any worse. He’s not getting the best out of the players. They have injuries, I get that. But you’ve got to find that energy, that way of geeing them up somehow. It doesn’t seem like he’s able to do that.
"That’s a really worrying thing that you can’t get the players to do the basics – putting effort in, working hard, running hard.
"Before you even think about your flair and your link-up play, you’ve got to tick one box and that’s ‘are we working hard?’
"At the moment, he’s not even getting that. That’s ringing relegation alarm bells. At least Fulham are working hard, working for the manager.
"When you look at Newcastle, they look like a sinking ship. They’re going only one way and that’s right down."
