Newport County’s League Two Season Opening Deemed Satisfactory

Nelson Jardim believes his developing Newport County team can be reasonably content with their initial performance in the League Two season. Newport currently holds the 14th position in the standings after 14 league matches under Jardim, who is in his first season as an EFL manager, having taken over from Graham Coughlan. The Exiles are positioned just three points shy of the play-off spots and maintain an 11-point lead over the relegation zone. Head coach Jardim stated, “We have played 14 games now, not even a third of the competition, and we have 19 points.” He added, “I think we are doing fairly well. We have to keep pushing and being positive, knowing that this league is very difficult. We have to remain calm and adjust what we need to adjust each week to make sure we are competitive.” Newport’s defensive record had been a point of concern in the early stages of the Jardim era, with 24 goals conceded in his initial 12 league fixtures. However, the Portuguese coach feels his squad has demonstrated signs of improvement after achieving consecutive clean sheets, with Saturday’s goalless draw against Fleetwood following a 2-0 victory at Gillingham. Jardim further commented, “We have to take the positives which is back-to-back games without conceding goals. That shows the team is growing, being more competitive and hard to beat. That’s something we are looking for and will give us a foundation for the future.”