Newcastle Under-19s have lost every game in Europe, but does that tell the full story?

Sean Neave put his hands on his hips and stared, visibly frustrated at Ulrich-Haberland Stadion, in the shadow of the BayArena. One of the brightest prospects in Newcastle United’s youth setup had been the best player, but was on the end of a frustrating, narrow 2-1 defeat to Bayer Leverkusen.

For the sixth — and final — time in the UEFA Youth League, Newcastle’s Under-19s had played and lost. Again.

Across fixtures which mirror the opening half-a-dozen matches of the first team’s Champions League campaign, Newcastle were defeated on every occasion. The aggregate score was 17-6 against.

They finished the league-phase campaign pointless and third-bottom of the 36-team table, above only Qarabag of Azerbaijan and Bodo/Glimt of Norway, on goal difference alone.

Those are the bare, unquestionable facts, and nobody at the club is pretending that such results were what they anticipated.

“The black and white of it is we’ve had six different challenges and come up short,” Adam Lawrence, the head coach, told The Athletic, the only UK media outlet present in Leverkusen. “We haven’t done well enough results-wise relative to what we’d want and expect.”

So how concerning is that? Does it matter that Newcastle are failing to win matches in this competition? And will lessons be learned?

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Two years ago, when the competition was in its previous format of four-team groups, Newcastle also started their debut campaign with three straight defeats.

Yet, to the surprise of many outside the club, they recovered to go unbeaten in their final three matches, drawing 2-2 at Borussia Dortmund, winning 2-1 at European giants Paris Saint-Germain, and then impressively overcoming Milan 3-1 on Tyneside, having been embarrassed 4-0 in Italy during the opener. They finished a point above PSG and three behind second-placed Dortmund.

This time around, that improvement in results never came. In that sense, it is unarguable that Newcastle have regressed.

But as Steve Harper, the club’s academy director, told The Athletic earlier this year, at youth level, winning is not everything.

Newcastle’s aim is to produce players either capable of populating their first team or of a high-enough quality to be sold on for a profit, which means challenging them by exposing youngsters to older age groups sooner, or allowing the best players to head out on loan when the opportunity arises, both of which can actually weaken the side.

The final results alone do not offer a fair reflection of Newcastle’s performances, either. They have been more than competitive.

Against Barcelona, the reigning champions, Newcastle may have gone 3-0 down, but they fought back to 3-2 with nine minutes remaining, and the visitors were desperately holding on at Whitley Park.

When Athletic Club visited, Newcastle twice equalised and only a lapse in concentration cost them in a 3-2 defeat. At Marseille, there was little in it and only a 95th-minute second made it appear like a comfortable 2-0 victory.

Then, in Leverkusen, Newcastle had the two best chances, but neither Neave nor Joe Brayson could take them and they were punished.

That has been a familiar theme throughout. Three defeats were by a single goal, with Marseille also a tight affair, and they controlled large spells of matches.

But goal concessions just before and after half-time hampered their campaign, as did failing to take their chances. Ultimately, Newcastle’s lack of a clinical edge in both boxes at crucial moments cost them, which can partly be explained by a relative lack of experience at this level, but also suggests a further elevation in quality is still required.

“There have been similarities throughout,” Lawrence said. “We started games well and had rhythm and created chances, but we conceded at key moments and didn’t score ourselves. The lessons have been the fine margins in these elite competitions.”

The only tie in which they were evidently outclassed was the 5-1 humbling by Benfica, who scored three times inside 20 second-half minutes and could have had more.

Benfica were last year’s runners-up and are among the favourites for the competition — they finished second in the group phase — and it could be argued that Newcastle have been unfortunate with the quality of opposition faced. Athletic finished sixth, Barcelona eighth, Leverkusen 17th, and Marseille 22nd — all advancing.

But it is the 2-0 defeat at Union Saint-Gilloise that stings the most. That was the only game The Athletic was unable to attend, but the verdict inside Newcastle is they simply did not show up and were surprised by a team that finished 31st.

“Benfica is the only time we’ve been heavily beaten,” Lawrence said. “We’ve been competitive in games, but understanding how or what is needed to turn tight results into wins has ultimately been our harsh reality.”

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Considering Newcastle’s results only on a macro level would be shortsighted, ignoring the academy’s wider purpose.

A promising cohort have been given invaluable opportunities at European level, including Neave, the 18-year-old forward, Leo Shahar, the 18-year-old right-back, and Park Seung-soo, the 18-year-old winger Newcastle signed from South Korea this summer.

Some may argue that trio should be on loan — the likelihood is some will be sent out in January, as has been the long-term plan — but Neave and Shahar regularly train with the first-team squad, so Eddie Howe has benefitted from having them around to bolster numbers, and they have hopefully profited individually from greater time around the senior setup.

On the day Lewis Miley became the youngest player to score for Newcastle in the Champions League against Leverkusen, another of his siblings made their under-19s bow. Mason Miley, the third brother, came on in midfield, and the 17-year-old displayed his technical skills.

Sam Alabi, the 16-year-old midfielder who Newcastle signed from Oldham in 2023, is an England Under-17 international and insiders believe he has a big future. Alabi has already trained with the first team and he was named in the matchday squad for the Champions League defeat at Marseille last month, while gaining minutes in the Youth League, too.

Other 16-year-olds — and even 15-year-olds — have received game time. Goalkeepers George Mair and Romain Dowell are England Under-16 internationals. Alfie Seldon, the 16-year-old winger, also featured.

There is much anticipation surrounding Newcastle’s present under-14s through to under-16s, pointing towards a potentially brighter future. Theoretically, once those teams grow a little older, Newcastle hope they will have an even more competitive under-19 side.

Ross Wilson, the sporting director who arrived in October, is keen to further strengthen the youth sides by complementing local talent with signings from the UK and across the world. Sprinkling in those signings should aid those already within the setup.

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Just as Newcastle had a hiatus from this competition last season, there is no guarantee they will get an opportunity in next year’s Youth League.

Their participation is entirely dependent upon the first team qualifying for next season’s Champions League.

“We want to be testing our players against the best teams,” Lawrence said. “We can’t assume we’re going to be in this competition every season, so we’ve got to try to grow and make it count when we get these chances.”

The aim inside Newcastle is that they will not merely be competitive next time around, but actually record some victories, too. Winning all their matches is not their ultimate goal for their under-19s, but losing all six games was not envisaged either.