Newcastle have the worst two goalkeepers in the Premier League and club must be ruthless

A good goalkeeper in the Premier League is worth its weight in gold.

Unfortunately for Newcastle, talkSPORT’s Jack Cunningham believes they have the competition’s duds on their hands, which goes some way to explaining why they sit 13th in the top flight.

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Nick Pope and Aaron Ramsdale are the Magpies’ top two choices between the sticks.

Pope was one of the first major names to join Newcastle’s revolution under Eddie Howe as he arrived in June 2022 while Ramsdale is on a season-long loan from Southampton, with the option to buy in the summer.

Although Ramsdale arrived largely on the premise of being Pope’s back-up, the former Arsenal gloveman has stepped in perhaps more than he thought.

To date, Pope has made 34 appearances for Newcastle across all competitions this term while Ramsdale has featured 23 times.

Unfortunately for the duo, they have not been overly convincing between the sticks, so much so that talkSPORT’s Cunningham labelled them ‘two of the worst goalkeepers in the Premier League’.

Bottom of the class

“Even if Howe had a better season, if we had a better goalkeeper, we would have gained about 10 or 12 more points,” Cunningham said.

“Pope and Ramsdale, at the moment, are two of the worst goalkeepers in the Premier League. Most of the goalkeepers in the league, I think, are better than Pope and Ramsdale.

“I get it, he (Pope) was a good shot-stopper. He’s not even that anymore.”

Cunningham was especially critical of Pope’s work, or lack of, for Elliot Anderson’s goal during Newcastle’s 1-1 draw with Nottingham Forest last weekend.

Anderson blasted home from the near post, with Pope flapping his left arm in a futile attempt to make a save before collapsing to the ground.

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Cunningham felt the goal was ultimately emblematic of a player who should move on for the benefit of all parties.

“I don’t think it’s necessarily his fault,” Cunningham said.

“But I think he’s become a sign of that loyalty to a player who shouldn’t be starting any more. He should be on the bench or he should have been sold.”

Although Pope’s best days may be behind him, analyst Adam Clery is wary of binning off the players who helped curate the culture at Newcastle following Howe’s arrival.

How Pope could earn a stay of execution

“I do think we are a bit guilty as a fanbase of occasionally falling into this trap of looking at players that are not in our dream 11 and going, ‘They have to go, we have to get rid of them,’ Clery said.

“Nobody was shedding a tear over Sean Longstaff going, for example.

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“But my worry is not that we end up becoming a Bournemouth, it’s that we end up becoming a Chelsea. The culture of the club ends up getting eroded.

“Eddie Howe’s built an incredible culture at the club. The way the players would dig in and how much they got it, how much they embedded themselves in the region and how much they love playing for Newcastle.

“He built that, and he built that because he has a squad full of players who understood what it means to play here. That drives standards behind the scenes.”

Which goalkeeper could Newcastle target this summer?

With Ramsdale expected to be heading back to Southampton and Pope facing an uncertain future, attention will soon shift towards who Newcastle may target in the summer.

One name expected to be heavily linked to the Magpies is James Trafford, who came close to joining last year but ended up at Manchester City instead.

But talkSPORT understands Newcastle, along with West Ham and Aston Villa, will be eyeing up Trafford once again as they look to secure a long-term goalkeeper.

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