Not too long before Nick Pope’s terrible injury ended his season, I wrote a piece for The Mag about goalkeepers at Newcastle United.
I suggested in that piece that the excellent James Trafford take his place.
Perhaps I should take responsibility for Nick Pope’s demise in the Gallowgate six-yard box since I accepted a replacement?
Fill your boots if you buy into that hocus pocus nonsense.
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The problem with Newcastle United’s goalkeepers is becoming worse.
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Not too long before Nick Pope’s terrible injury ended his season, I wrote a piece for The Mag about goalkeepers at Newcastle United.
I suggested in that piece that the excellent James Trafford take his place.
Perhaps I should take responsibility for Nick Pope’s demise in the Gallowgate six-yard box since I accepted a replacement?
Fill your boots if you buy into that hocus pocus nonsense.
In the piece, I expressed my belief that Pope was an excellent shop stopper and expressed my respect for both those skills and the crucial role he has played in Newcastle United’s evolution under Eddie Howe.
but I did attract notice.
The Mag’s comments section can be a cruel place at times. The article received positive reviews in part, but it was harshly criticized by many commentators. It seems to me that some people rarely read past the headline when posting, which is understandable given that everyone is free to express any opinion they may have.
Trafford’s ability to play with his feet and stop shots makes him a strong candidate. He is ten years younger than Nick Pope, at age 21.
Young Trafford has conceded more goals than Pope did at Burnley, but even though both Burnley teams finished near the bottom of the division, Sean Dyche and Vincent Kompany had very different football ideologies, with Kompany’s more expansive style possibly giving opponents more chances to get past the Burnley defense.
Like everyone else, I sincerely hope Nick Pope recovers fully and quickly. However, Pope’s injury has highlighted Eddie Howe’s shortcomings as Burnley’s backup goalkeeper, and should Burnley sneak into the Championship, I hope he takes advantage of that.
What of the next five months though?
It’s no accident that since Pope left the field against Man United in early December due to some discomfort, we have been leaking goals like a sieve. That brings my total to 18 in 8—and that’s not even accounting for the four penalties Chelsea stowed away at Stamford Bridge during the League Cup quarterfinal.
Following a fruitful loan period that began in January 2018, Rafa Benitez acquired Martin Dubravka permanently from Sparta Prague in May of that same year for a relatively low £4 million.
Ironically, his debut came against Man United, who will regrettably be mentioned once more in this piece. We secured a much-needed victory that day thanks to his flawless record and two outstanding saves from Michael Carrick and Anthony Martial in the first half and last minute, respectively. Matt Ritchie scored the game’s winning goal. During that game, I also observed that Dubravka had better distribution than the frequently criticized Karl Darlow, who he replaced.
Dubravka, a constant relegation candidate, was one of NUFC’s best players and did a fantastic job considering the pitiful sum that brought him from the Czech Republic. He played in goal as part of a well-organized defense under Benitez, whose stern defensive strategies were all the more necessary given the lack of elite talent on the team.
It happened then, and it happens now.
In contrast to previous seasons, Newcastle United’s defense finished the previous season tied for the second-best in the Premier League, and the amount of goals we gave up was ridiculous.
When Eddie Howe first took over in early 2022, we were able to escape the relegation zone, but even though he scored five goals in two memorable games—the Etihad and Tottenham Stadium—Dubravka didn’t always play to his full potential. In his defense, though, those in front of him also performed poorly in those contests. But in my opinion, it was his careless positioning at Goodison Park that let Alex Iwobi score a winning goal in the 99th minute and showed why keeping Dubravka in goal wasn’t going to work. Thus, no
surprise that Eddie pounced for Pope, acquiring him for a relatively meager £10 million, after we had sentenced Burnley to their fate in May 2022.
I won’t go into detail about the Man United situation that resulted in the Wembley selection last February, other than to mention that I recently read an article in The Athletic in which Dubravka at least showed some humility in regards to the entire subpar incident. But it was unbelievable that he ever believed he was good enough to play for a team that finished higher in the league than us and denied Newcastle United any silverware.
Regarding the Cup Final, Loris Karius didn’t play poorly in my opinion. Though it’s difficult to say, I don’t think he’s nearly as good as Pope; the young player has endured a great deal since that horrific night in Kyiv in 2018, and that Wembley game is still the only competitive game he’s ever played for us.
Eddie Howe has to find a replacement as soon as possible if the Slovakian is really our number two. It is evident that Eddie believes Dubravka is the better option, ranking him far ahead of the journeyman Mark Gillespie.
I’ll leave you thinking about this.
Many have praised Dubravka, arguing that Liverpool could have and should have had a few more goals as a result of his heroics at Anfield.
My son was a goalie, and he hardly ever received a MOTM trophy when his team triumphed. Indeed, there were a few instances in which this did occur, but they were uncommon. When their team scores a ton of goals in youth football, the goalie typically receives a ton of accolades. The MOTM award is typically given because the keeper is exceptionally busy and their team would have been even more embarrassed without them.
That’s what I observed at Anfield. And it’s because they don’t trust the player who plays behind them that seasoned campaigners like BDB, Sven, and Fabian suddenly appear uneasy.
In order to ensure that we win this “must not lose” game, we urgently need to keep a clean sheet on Saturday.
Since rejoining the first team, Dubravka has only kept one clean sheet, and that came against Fulham, who were reduced to ten men as early as the 22nd minute due to a red card for Raul Jimenez.
I sincerely hope he can get another at the Stadium of Light, but in terms of his long-term chances, I think the jury has already deliberated and given a clear decision. HTL.
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