Newcastle quick and slick but lacking you-know-who

The temptation is to say that Newcastle missed Alexander Isak.

- RICHARD JOLLY AT VILLA PARK

Aston Villa 0

Newcastle United 0

But perhaps they missed Hugo Ekitike or Benjamin Sesko or Joao Pedro or Liam Delap, or any of the strikers they had hoped to recruit to replace the one who wants to leave. Or maybe even Yoane Wissa or Nicolas Jackson, the sixth- or seventh-choice options who could end up arriving as plan F or G or somewhere still further into the alphabet. And who, as the Newcastle fans who used to idolise the Swede launched into a chorus of “One greedy bastard”, they may prefer now.

Life after Isak, or without the on-strike striker, began in predictable fashion for Newcastle, without them scoring in a match that conformed to the orthodox wisdom. It is scarcely breaking news that Isak is an outstanding centre-forward, that Newcastle have not signed a successor or that they are a lesser team while they linger in limbo. A stalemate was defined by who wasn’t there as much as who was. Because, if Aston Villa were actually the more underwhelming side, Newcastle were the team who should have won, only to be undermined by their own toothlessness. “Goals were the only thing missing,” said Eddie Howe.

There is no guarantee they would have won with a specialist striker. “It is easy to say but you have no way of knowing,” said Howe. But there was a probability, especially as Newcastle were up against 10 men for the final quarter, even if that numerical advantage was a consequence of stand-in striker Anthony Gordon’s speed. Even with midfielder Boubacar Kamara ending the match as a makeshift centre-back, Newcastle never looked like finding a winner. A debilitating saga may have already cost them two points.