It's always strange to hear about a 69-year wait for glory, such was Newcastle's before winning the Carabao Cup on Sunday. I should know, I grew up a Cubs fan. Most fans don't know the whole thing, and the players certainly don't. They're only directly responsible for the seasons they played that didn't include any silverware. Putting the entire weight of a wait like that on them is folly.
And yet, they assuredly hear about it all the time. They're asked about it by the media, the fans assuredly remind them, it's probably mentioned when they're introduced to the club and shown around the training ground. They don't play in obliviousness of it, that's for sure.
How much extra weight is it for them? Is it more or less than carrying on the traditions of teams that win regularly? It's probably different for different players. Some embrace it, some shirk it, and most probably don't even think about it in that way most athletes can be so singularly focused. That's how they got where they are, after all.
Whatever those answers may be, that burden is gone now, and Newcastle United are a different beast than Newcastle United have ever been. It seems that teams that end droughts like this, in any sport, are the ones that embrace it and cherish the opportunity to be the ones that breakthrough and are remembered forever. Watching Joelinton snap into a tackle on every inch of the field and roar afterward certainly is the very definition of that.
This is a brand new Newcastle United
Growth isn't linear, especially not now in the Premier League. When the Saudi PIF took over Newcastle years ago, the thought (and fear) was that they would instantly become the new Man City (or Chelsea). It doesn't work like that anymore. When Man City became an extension of an oil-state, only Chelsea could compete with them financially. Newcastle live in a world where City and Chelsea have their money, Arsenal and Liverpool are run efficiently enough to run with them, and some of the smartest teams in the world are in the Premier League making life harder.
Combined with PSR, Newcastle could create a first 11 that could play well enough in the Premier League two seasons ago to qualify for the Champions League, but not instantly build the depth to do that year after year, yet, while playing in that competition. That takes time, and more so in a PSR world where Newcastle still had to lose Elliot Anderson and Yankuba Minteh before this season to comply. Newcastle were always going to kind of yo-yo while working their way up.
Which means Newcastle are more than money. They've had to work with what was on hand, and that's down to manager Eddie Howe. Even some of their big purchases are something more due to his work. Anthony Gordon's price tag elicited chortles and sneers, as at Everton he just looked like a player who could run really fast in a straight line and then fall down. He's now one of the league's most devastating wide forwards. Joelinton's transformation from a misfiring striker to a wrecking ball in midfield is complete. Jacob Murphy has 23 goal contributions in the last two seasons. Howe has brought Lewis Hall and Tino Livramento from kids to England internationals.
It's another step. A trophy and a very good chance of qualifying for the Champions League again. Which might allow them to hold onto Alexander Isak and Bruno Guimarães, two players rumored to be out the door if they don't get the Champions League. Holding them would allow Newcastle to add instead of replace.
But it can't be ignored how they got to take these steps at all. Isak, Guimarães, Gordon, Sandro Tonali aren't at Newcastle if it wasn't for Saudi money. We know where that money comes from, and what else it has funded. PSR may have prevented Newcastle from immediately crashing into the penthouse of world soccer, but it hasn't erased what it all means. It will always sit uncomfortably on the shoulder of Newcastle, no matter what they do.
This isn't totally fair to Newcastle fans, who have basically only loved a club as much or more than anyone in the world. They suffered through the previous owner, Mike Ashley, who did his best to destroy the club, getting them relegated twice. Newcastle never had any business in the Championship, and yet a Scrooge-like Ashley managed it on multiple occasions. Newcastle fans didn't deserve that, either.
"Sportswashing" is pretty complicated. We know the aim of the PIFs of Saudia Arabia or Qatar is to blind the masses on the outside with their running of clubs like Newcastle or PSG. Maybe fans of those clubs turn a blind eye, but it only makes the rest of us even more aware of those nations' abhorrent treatment of women, the LGBTQ+ community, migrant workers or a host of other issues. Those don't get changed by how they spend money but how they get it in the first place. Is that really up to Newcastle supporters?
That's the new burden Newcastle carry now as they progress up in size in the Premier League and possibly Europe. Will it be any heavier than those 69 years? Chances are it won't, because how can players carry all that? Whatever the answer is, Newcastle have taken their next step. There will be setbacks again, but overall, this is Newcastle progressing. it's their new world, with new burdens.