It's a bit silly arguing about our hypothetical squad that is very unlikely to be put together but I'll indulge for the fun of it.
You don't think that squad is better than Newcastle's? Looking at that first 11, which Newcastle players do you think would get in there?
Yes they had a great 2nd half to last season and have subsequently strengthened. However, I don't think it's guaranteed it'll translate to similar results this year. We can attest to this having finished second, signed Varane, Ronaldo, Sancho and ended up 6th!
Another reason Newcastle did so well was most teams approached playing them expecting to win. I imagine that will change this year.
Also, A huge part of why we underperformed last year was because we had an inferior team to most, this is very different to having inferior individuals. I would argue that with that squad, the only two teams with better individuals would be City and Liverpool. Us, Chlesea and Spurs would be in a similar banding and we would be better than Arsenal, West ham, Newcastle, Wolves and Leicester, next band.
This is where ETH has to prove his worth, it's his job to turn that squad into a team and I have faith he'll be able to do it.
Yes I agree that it'll be the toughest season...possibly ever. however, this applies to everyone, not just us.