Newcastle United's 2-0 defeat against Man City felt like the story of the Magpies' 2023 in a nutshell. Man City had just one more shot on target than Newcastle yet the clinical champions scored two goals at the Etihad. Newcastle, in contrast, failed to find the back of the net. Again.
In truth, Newcastle did not even force Ederson into action from some promising situations. Anthony Gordon lost his footing at the crucial moment when played through early on; Sean Longstaff took too long to pull the trigger inside the box; Callum Wilson failed to properly connect with Kieran Trippier's knockdown on the volley; and Joelinton was unable to get his foot on the end of Joe Willock's teasing cross.
As competitive as Newcastle were, in the final third, the visitors looked every inch a side who had only scored three goals in eight top-flight fixtures. No matter how many intense finishing drills are repeated in training, this team appear drained of confidence in front of goal come match day.
