So... yes... cautious optimism for Newcastle United. Whoever thought that would happen?
Three weeks ago, a victory for Newcastle at Aston Villa that saw the club deliver an impressive performance to see off the Birmingham side. One of the club's most solid defensive performances was allied to an impressively concise attacking display.
Granted, it was helped by a terrible Villa display that rarely had the fizz of their other displays - most notably their recent victory over Manchester City - but it looked as if Newcastle had turned a corner.
What happened next has followed a depressingly familiar pattern.
Yet another home defeat by Hull City was followed up with by a desperately poor showing in the first half at Everton. Sadly, an improved second half display was not able to yield a comeback victory, but people who were at the game said it wouldn't have been a deserved result in any case.
It all appears to have led to yet more doom and gloom for black and white stripe wearers. The usual conspiracy theories JFK - Joe Fucking Kinnear - is about to return are back, as are other rumours. Chief among them was the surprise rumour Alan Pardew had attempted to resign after the Everton game, although these were denied.
It seemed unlikely Pardew - one of football's proudest men - would walk away. But after the testing mess of 2012-13, this season had to go a lot better.
Perhaps it could have been a good idea to strengthen a weak defence. After conceding a club-record number of goals in a Premier League season, an extra full back was a requirement. This was exacerbated by the departures of Danny Simpson and James Perch, while Ryan Taylor's season long injury thins the numbers further.
Instead, the only legitimate options are many people's pick for the two weakest links. Mathieu Debuchy and Davide Santon are the two full backs but both attack way more than they defend, which often leaves the flanks excessively exposed to counter attacks.
Debuchy in particular has copped criticism, with his poor positioning exposed for two of Hull's three goals in the recent defeat and his defending generally seen as the weakest link. Fans have largely been on a downer following after he conceded a few penalties after signing
But at least he showed some signs of improvement at Goodison Park, with analysis showing him as one of the few Newcastle players to play anything approaching well in the game.
The defender copping the most flack was Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa, who in the space of a year has gone from being captain of the French champions in the UEFA Champions League to being part of a defence barely capable of avoiding the Championship.
Amazingly, it took Mike Williamson to stabilise the defence for the second half. Williamson was a big punching bag for fans last season after a catalogue of belief-defying blunders, but a commanding aerial performance from the Portsmouth defender hinted he might not be finished yet.
It raises questions after the club's defence has continued where it left off. Although it has managed two Premier League clean sheets - more than this stage last season, and more than table toppers Arsenal - the potential for catastrophic failure remains high.
Fans just don't know what, if anything, is the best combination. Each combination of the four centre backs (Fabricio Coloccini and Steven Taylor, as well as Williamson and Yanga-Mbiwa) seems to have one good game followed by at least four bad ones.
Although the team improved, it wasn't enough for what would've been an unlikely comeback.
As a result, a lot of improvement has to be done. But the fixture list is hardly ideal for such a moment, with games against Liverpool, Chelsea and Spurs all coming up. And this is before a Capital One Cup tie against Manchester City and the possibility of Chris Hughton's remodelled Norwich City nicking a victory at St. James'.
But its the Tyne-Wear Derby on October 27th that promises to decide much of the team's direction for the campaign. Derbies have previously dictated momentum for the Toon, with the 1-0 victory in August 2011 at the Stadium of Light arguably the foundation for the unbeaten run at the start of the 2011-12 season.
Conversely, the humiliation against the Black Cats in April has seen the team in an almost-universal downhill direction since. Only 3 wins in 11 Premier League matches since that dark day is a terrible return, although Sunderland's record of just 1 win in the post-Derby time period makes for equally grim record.
At this rate, this game could well decide which team is in for a painful struggle. Although form and logic seems to suggest the Toon should win against a Sunderland team devoid of inspiration and luck, we cannot count chickens.
Its a brutal and testing time for Magpies fans. Victory at Cardiff on Saturday - a harder ask than it looks, as Manchester City found out - is essential ahead of this run or else it could be a long and tough autumn for Magpies fans.
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