I’ve caught some shrapnel this week because I wasn’t prepared to do the obligatory fawning and gushing over Newcastle for winning the same League Cup as Luton, Swansea and Birmingham.
I am pleased for Newcastle and their fans are remarkable but I wasn’t going to act like a gurning buffoon because a state-owned club winning a trophy is greeted as a fairytale.
I’m also grounded in realism about the challenges facing Newcastle next. How can they become a dominant force when they are stymied by Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR)?
Clubs like them aspiring to be in the top echelons have no margin for error with any major decision, including buying players.