If ever Newcastle United was summed up in one player, Jack Colback would be the name that fans would identify to expose the shambles that the club currently are.
During the game, Martin Tyler claimed that no one was more surprised to see Colback back than the club, who thought his contract was up this summer.
What other club on the face of planet earth would not know what contracts their players are on?
The fact he is back in the first team – having been forced to train with the reserves, before being shipped out on loan to Nottingham Forest last season – shows how ridiculous the club’s summer non-activity has been.
If he had hoped to catch the eye of the new manager Steve Bruce with a scintillating performance, he failed miserably.
He ran around as the game passed him by for most of the time, and when he did get on the ball, he almost exclusively refrained from making a forward pass.
Jack Colback should not be close to Newcastle’s Premier League squad
If Colback is anywhere near the Premier League squad at St James’ Park when the season starts, then it will be hard to see how Newcastle will be seen as anything other than relegation fodder come May.
Fans were, rightly, dismayed at at the sight of the flame-haired midfielder wearing the black and white shirt again, and here are a few of the fans’ reactions:
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