by Harry De Cosemo at St James’ Park

NEWCASTLE UNITED suffered defeat in the first match under their new Saudi Arabian-backed consortium on Sunday, but the 3-2 defeat to Tottenham Hotspur was overshadowed by a fan collapsing in the first half.

Play was suspended just before half time while he was treated by paramedics and medical staff from both clubs before being stabilised and taken to hospital.

It may have been a new era, but the pressure could now tell on manager Steve Bruce, who took charge of his 1,000th game amid a barrage of jibes over his future from both sets of fans.

St James’ Park was full, ready to celebrate the end of the 14-year reign of the unpopular Mike Ashley. Amanda Staveley, Mehrdad Ghodoussi, Jamie Reuben and governor of the Saudi Public Investment Fund Yasir al-Rumayyan were welcomed with a strong reception before kick-off.

There were also protests against Saudi involvement outside the stadium owing to the kingdom’s human rights record. A van with a picture of Jamal Khashoggi, the journalist widely believed to have been murdered at the hands of the state, circulated.

Bruce refused to be drawn on whether he’d still be in a job by the time Newcastle travel to Crystal Palace on Saturday.

“I’ll wait until [the owners] see fit [to talk],” he told reporters on Zoom. “We’ll see what they have got to say. You’re going to have to ask someone else [about my future].

“We were beaten by the better team after a wonderful start. Problems we’ve had for a while were there for all to see, unfortunately.”

The atmosphere was raucous: Wor Flags, the fan movement known for creating dramatic displays before games, returned after more than two years away in protest at Ashley, and they set the tone for Newcastle.

Top scorer Callum Wilson, making his return from injury, headed in an opening goal just two minutes in. Javier Manquillo lifted in a cross from the right byline, and the striker was there to take his first chance.

Soon the match settled though, and on 17 minutes, Spurs midfielder Tanguy Ndombele curled in a brilliant leveller from the edge of the area.

And just five minutes later, Spurs’ Harry Kane finally opened his Premier League account for the season with the help of VAR, after he was initially called offside as he dinked the ball over Newcastle keeper Karl Darlow.

Once play resumed after the medical incident for seven minutes of stoppage time, Spurs added a third through a close-range tap-in for Son Heung Min.

The second half was not much better for Newcastle, with the crowd more subdued, and those on the pitch as passive as they have been for much of the season. 

Spurs, too, dropped a gear, smart enough to see that Son had netted the clincher before the break and that their energy was best saved for midweek European excursions.

The Magpies’ miserable afternoon continued by dropping to 10 men after substitute Jonjo Shelvey had been sent off for two bookings, before an Eric Dier own goal halved the deficit late on.

If the new owners weren’t sure already, the size of the task they were inheriting was laid bare to them.