Alan Shearer has warned Newcastle United fans that they are not going to have a good season and will have to be patient with the Newcastle United 2.0 era.
The pundit and former player has doubled down on his prediction that his former side will finish anywhere between 12th and 15th this season despite seeing improvements in the 1-1 draw with Fulham last time out.
Yo-Yo Season Prediction
After a summer of change saw Matthias Jaissle succeed Eddie Howe as the club's manager and eight signings - all aged 24 or under - ushered into the club to replace senior professionals like Anthony Gordon, Kieran Trippier, Sandro Tonali and Bruno Guimaraes, Shearer believes it will be a 'yo-yo season' this term for United.
However, he has warned the club's decision makers like Jaissle and Ross Wilson that they need to see more of the club's new signings given three of them - Bazoumana Toure, Aladji Bamba and Ewen Jaouen - are yet to make a Premier League start, while Nico Gonzalez and Matias Fernandez-Pardo, who cost a combined £101million, have not hit the heights expected of them.
Patience Required
"I said in the first week of the season about Newcastle that I think we're going to have to be patient with Newcastle this year, as tough as it's going to be," Shearer told Betfair.
"I do think we'll get a result here and there and we'll get two or three, four bad ones, and then we'll be seeing this and seeing that, but I think that this season is going to be like that.
"It's going to be a yo-yo season for Newcastle because of all the new incomings, because of how young and inexperienced the manager is in the Premier League and in Newcastle.
"I just think that's where Newcastle are at this moment in time. So, we're just going to have to accept that it's going to be tough times for Newcastle, but I saw little improvements at Fulham."
Signings Must Deliver
"They'll be disappointed at the score and then conceding so soon after scoring, but I saw little improvements. He changed one or two things in terms of formation and personnel wise. There were little improvements and they would have been disappointed not to have come away with three points.
"I don't think we're going to have a good season. I just think it'll be challenging. I think we'll finish anywhere between 12th and 15th. I think that's what we have to accept with Newcastle, but I think if we can just keep on seeing little bits of improvement every now and again, with young players getting better.
"There's been a lot of money spent at Newcastle and I guess we haven't seen a lot of the players that the money's been spent on, let alone see what they can do. So that, I think, has to come to fruition in terms of at a certain stage of the season."
