Kevin Keegan knows exactly where to lay the blame for Newcastle's poor season that last night saw them go down with one game to go. And unsurprisingly to most it's at the feet of owner Mike Ashley.
Last night Sunderland ran Everton ragged in a 3-0 win that easily could have been more as Sam Allardyce's side piled more pressure on Roberto Martinez but more importantly relegated both their fierce rivals and Norwich City from the Premier League with one match to go on Sunday.
It's a sorry state of affairs for the Magpies who essentially sealed their fate last weekend when they failed to beat Aston Villa in an atrocious 0-0 draw. The fact they are the only side not to beat Villa at least once in the whole Premier League might just prove a point, seriously between us we could probably put together a side that could beat Villa- I'll go right back, anyone else volunteering?
It's the second time in just a few years that Newcastle have been relegated and quite rightly owner Mike Ashley is getting criticism from many fans, especially his appalling decision to keep Steve McClaren in a job for as long as he did which ended up being very damaging.
Talking about their relegation to BT Sport their former manager Keegan really stuck the boot into Sport's Direct owner Ashley saying:
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"It is mismanagement from the very top...The owner has had quite a lot of years of making a lot of mistakes.
"They are going to have to go down and regroup. That's not going to be easy.
"You have to look at Mike Ashley and say he hasn't handled the decision-making very well or he's given the responsibility to people and they haven't handled it very well.
"You make mistakes in football and you get punished, especially in the Premier League now.
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"The owner has had quite a lot of years of making a lot of mistakes. They are where they are and I think they will go down, but they'll bounce back."
Keegan, who finished second in the Premier League during his first spell in charge at the club, also blamed transfer policy adding:
"They bought players for the future but sometimes maybe you have to buy players for the present. It's all right having a few good young players from France but can they play in the Premier League now?
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"If they can't - don't buy them or certainly don't play them. A few of them have found it very tough and the confidence goes and then even good players start to look pretty poor."
Too rub salt in the wound the man who relegated Newcastle last night as manager of rivals Sunderland was Sam Allardyce, the man who Ashley sacked when he first bought the club with his side in 11th in the league, what they'd do to finish there now.
Some good news for fans of the Tyneside club, Ashley once said he'd sell the club when they won some silverware so if they go and win the Championship...
(h/t Mirror)
Featured Image Credit:Topics: Football, Premier League, Newcastle United