Would supporters of any other club be expected to stump up their hard-earned cash for season tickets in the wake of a catastrophic relegation not knowing who will be in the manager's seat, let alone the chairman's office and on the playing field on the opening day of the season?

Today, the bulk of Newcastle United's players reported back for pre-season training.

Yet many could have left St James's Park by the time the new Championship season kicks off, such is the need to reduce a crippling wage bill.

Players signed just a few short months ago on multi-million pound contracts are being touted for sale, though takers could be few and far between.

And just how coaches Chris Hughton and Colin Calderwood, in temporary charge until a manager is appointed, are meant to motivate them is anyone's guess.

A year ago, then manager Kevin Keegan had set about making his squad the fittest in the league, believing that could give his under-strength squad an edge in what he knew would be a gruelling season.

However, 12 months on, strength and conditioning coaches Mark Hulse and Robbie Elliott have tendered their resignations, and who can blame them?

This time around, the club faces a 46-game league campaign – eight more than last term – yet the players could be ill-equipped for such a demanding season.

United's long-suffering supporters are used to Newcastle stumbling from one crisis to the next, yet the turmoil which has engulfed the club since the last day of the season is surely unprecedented.

Managerless and rudderless, the odds don't look good on a swift return to the Premier League.

Shearer, meanwhile, can only watch in frustration, having been ready to start work more than a month ago after his spell as caretaker boss ended in heartache at Villa Park.

There's a job to be done, and Shearer's more than willing to do it, but, as ever, everything's conspiring against United at a time when everything needs to go right for the club to climb out of the Championship at the first attempt.

Elsewhere, Newcastle's rivals are well advanced in their own plans, though Keith Harris, in talks with at least two serious bidders, is hopeful of some progress by the end of the week.

Among those interested in taking over United is former chairman Freddy Shepherd, and while his departure was widely welcomed by fans two years ago, their experiences during Mike Ashley's disastrous tenure have clearly rehabilitated him to some extent.

Shepherd, however, doesn't have the financial muscle to rival the foreign owners who now dominate the Premier League.

Still, the club needs to get there first, and the continued woes of Leeds United – who remain in League One – is a sobering one for those who think Newcastle are too big a club to spend any length of time outside the top tier of England football.