Apart from that, I really appreciate the performance of the management who can bring Newcastle to this point. In the Premier League now they are one of the competitors that cannot be underestimated, as well as when it comes to the Champions League. The beginning of their rise after Newcastle had enough money to make big changes.
Well, a club that has enough money should be able to do like this, and make the best use of it. Because if they do something right with the money they have then it will bring improvement also for the performance of the club's game.
Which again brings us to the surprising fact that Newcastle never misbehaved like Chelsea in the transfer market. I remember when they had their new investor and everybody thought that Newcastle United will be turned into a new Manchester City, but even more than that because the investor is so rich. But to everyone's surprise Newcastle is very moderate given how resourceful they are. This is why began to like the club. They are very grounded and focus on development and they are successfully doing that. Chelsea is the best counter example out there of how things should not be done. But I think Newcastle is still missing a few nuances to really become a title contender in the Premier League. The same applies to their appearance in the Champions League, but i mean they are around and kicking and they have all chances until they get eliminated. See Inter Milan last year.
What they do is very inversely proportional to what Chelsea does, indeed they both have the same money but the problem is the way they use it is different. Newcastle in my view is a simple club, they move quietly and one example is when there is no big news about them in the transfer market. They also bring in players who they need and deserve to fill their shortcomings only.
I am surprised when you say they are transforming into the new Manchester City, but that is also true as long as they can consistently create a solid foundation like Mancgester City did before.
But I think that the solid foundation you are talking about also involves a world class coach like Pep Guardiola. I sometimes ask myself where Manchester City would be today if instead of Pep Guardiola Manchester City would have hired Graham Potter or Pochettino. I can't prove it of course, but I am sure that Manchester City would by far not be as good as they are today and have been for such a long time.
As we are talking about Chelsea, it just happened again to them that they are about to waste a 2-0 lead against Arsenal in their PL game despite playing so well.
I am now looking forward to the next round of CL games and this one Newcastle vs. Dortmund is a key game for both teams in this group.