John Carver offered to fall on his sword during a meeting with Newcastle managing director Lee Charnley after an amazing 48 hours at St James’ Park.
Sportsmail can today reveal the full disturbing picture of a club in turmoil following a series of meetings between players, management and executives since the shameful 3-0 loss at Leicester on Saturday.
In an attempt to save Newcastle from relegation, Carver told owner Mike Ashley he would stand aside if the club could find a replacement.Incredibly, Newcastle approached Derby manager Steve McClaren to take the last three games of the season, in a desperate attempt to find the points they need to stay in the Barclays Premier League.
McClaren turned down the chance to move to the North East and appears determined to lead another Derby assault on promotion from the Championship next season.
The failure to recruit McClaren, who has failed to get Derby into the play-offs this campaign, forced Newcastle to release a statement backing Carver. But the current boss’s power has been eroded over the past few weeks by the betrayal of senior players.
Yesterday, the squad attended the club’s Darsley Park training centre for a meeting on their own as they look for the win that could keep Newcastle in the top flight.
Coaching staff were excluded from the summit, which was attended by first-team players ahead of a warm-down session and massages for those who played on Saturday.
This is not the first time the players have held a meeting during Newcastle’s depressing run, but the slump has continued. A Newcastle source told Sportsmail: ‘It’s just meetings about meetings.’
Carver has been attempting to develop a siege mentality at the club following a run of results that has left Newcastle two points above the relegation zone.
At half-time at Leicester, it has emerged that the players were deliberately provoked by coaching staff in an attempt to get a reaction after the break.
By then they were 2-0 down following a first-minute goal by Leonardo Ulloa and a 17th-minute effort by Leicester defender Wes Morgan.
Amid fiery exchanges, the players were told they were so bad they would be practising kick-offs in training this week because they had surrendered possession so easily. Just three minutes after the restart, they conceded a third goal when Ulloa scored again, this time from the penalty spot.
Carver fears the worst after his side’s run of league defeats was extended to eight. The manager wanted a response from his players in the dressing room, but he fears they lack the necessary leadership and character going into the final three games.
There have been a number of attempts by the Newcastle boss to provoke the players on the training field, but there is now an air of resignation among the squad. Managing director Charnley, who has been hugely supportive of Carver since he replaced Alan Pardew in January, also met with the coaching staff.
And it has emerged that an administrative decision means young central defender Jamaal Lascelles, who has been on loan at Nottingham Forest for the season, will not be available to face West Bromwich Albion this Saturday.
Newcastle agreed to let Lascelles’ contract at the City Ground run until the end of May in case Forest made the Championship play-offs. In the event, Dougie Freedman’s side finished 19 points behind sixth-placed Ipswich. On top of that, Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa, the 25-year-old defender signed from Montpellier in 2013, is on loan at Roma for the season.
Newcastle will be without Mike Williamson, sent off in disgrace at Leicester, for the clash with Tony Pulis’s side at St James’ Park.
Carver could play Ryan Taylor alongside Fabricio Coloccini at centre half.
Vernon Anita is expected to play at right back against West Brom, with Jonas Gutierrez at left back if Newcastle survive the week without any more injuries.
Although Newcastle’s future hinges on the next three games, Ashley was warned about the potential problems at the club by his then manager Pardew last summer.
During Newcastle’s tour to New Zealand, Pardew expressed reservations about the squad and warned the executive they would face a relegation battle.
Pardew, now in charge at Crystal Palace, has been proved right after a run of defeats that began when Newcastle lost 1-0 at home to Manchester United on March 4.
Newcastle have not won a game since the 1-0 win over Aston Villa at St James’ Park on February 28 and they now face a massive battle for survival.
After Saturday’s clash with West Bromwich, the team travel to relegation-threatened Queens Park Rangers before their final game of the season, at home to West Ham on May 24.
There is an outside chance striker Papiss Cisse, who is recovering from a knee injury, could return for the final two games, but he remains upset about Newcastle’s attempts to sell him in January.
Cisse, who has scored 11 times for Newcastle this season, has not played since Newcastle’s home defeat by Manchester United, after which he was hit with a seven-match ban for spitting at defender Jonny Evans.– Daily Mail