Newcastle manager chase heats up!

robustyoungsoul wrote...

Being a fan of this team is like being in an abusive relationship. More often than not you catch a beating, but every once in awhile you're told that you're loved and come crawling back, hoping THIS time, everything will have changed.

It never does.

Posted by: robustyoungsoul  | January 16, 2008 1:17 PM

Anonymous wrote...

Deschamps bought Boumsong when Juventus were in Serie B. He would probably be fine in that division.

Posted by: Anonymous  | January 16, 2008 1:20 PM

Beerbandit wrote...

Big dipper? It's more like Oblivion at the moment :(

Posted by: Beerbandit  | January 16, 2008 1:22 PM

barry Harper wrote...

The ghost of Alan Shearer won't go away.
He's a wise man, he knows what to do and will bring an experienced team in with him. Lets give him a chance as he can make us truly "UNITED".
Any other appointment will always have AL touted as his replacement which undermines the person in the role. I'll be singing his name tonight.

Posted by: barry Harper  | January 16, 2008 1:32 PM

Stephen Buchan wrote...

Sort it out Newcastle as soon as possible. It seems everyone in the country has has a say on this matter and it is beginning to get tedious. The bookies must be coining it in. We need a manager quickly, we are 6 pts from the bottom three, the transfer window has 2 weeks left and we are in desperate need of points & signings!!!

Posted by: Stephen Buchan  | January 16, 2008 1:49 PM

fred wrote...

keegan says he loves the club and i think would consider if asked. shearer looks as though he would work under a new manager by saying he would be "willing to help in any way i can" so why not give the fans what they want. the fans didnt want big sam or souness and thats why they didnt last. why not give them what they want

Posted by: fred  | January 16, 2008 1:50 PM

Carl Wilson wrote...

Boy is the club in a mess at the moment, and it all started a few years back DAMN YOU PARTIZAN BELGRADE!! I cant help thinking that if we won that damn penalty shoot out we would have still been sitting in the top four. Very thin line between success and failure when you think about it.
Some of the names that have been mentioned for the manager of this great football club are strange to say the least. Harry Redknapp and Didier Deschamps, how many cups do they have between them, oh yes thats right zero. If this is the calibre of manager were looking at then we might aswell give Alan Shearer the chance, at least he knows the club and the local area. And most importantly i just cant see the fans turning on him after 8 months surely he'd be given at least 2 seasons.

Tricky one vs Stoke tonight but im not too concerned about what happens(sure id like a win of course)my main concern is the league, we are only 6 points off the drop and desperatly need to beat bolton on saturday, if we dont we may be in serious danger of "doing a leeds".

Posted by: Carl Wilson  | January 16, 2008 1:50 PM

micepie wrote...

There doesn’t have to be a crisis if we don’t panic.

I think that the Stoke result is far less important than the Bolton one. It would just be a morale boost to get a good result tonight, but being in the FA Cup isn’t hugely important.
It’s a case of doing the best we can in the league this season and building for next year.

Who’d have thought that at the start of the season, after most of us were excited about the BSA appointment that we would be as we are now, but performances for most of the season have been woeful and if Ashley wants to see Keegan-era football at the Toon I doubt it would ever have happened under Sam, I’m afraid.

Posted by: micepie  | January 16, 2008 1:59 PM

John From Essex wrote...

I wouldn't read too much into the fact Mark Hughes maybe looking to sign Amdy Faye or the fact Deschamps may have signed Boumsong. Sir Bobby Robson was rumoured to have been looking at getting Boumsong as a replacement for Woodgate when he was sold, before he was disgracefully sacked by that former idiot and fool of a chairman who didn't know what he was doing and didn't have the sense to have a long term plan in any form to take the club forward.I ask you-Souncess-Roeder??? As replacements for the sacked Sir Bobby?? But back to the present. Boumsong did a job for Juve from what I'm told and is probably better suited to the way football is played over there. As for Mark Hughes and Amdy Faye, I don't think he is a mug when it comes to signing players. He has an excellent record in the transfer market. From the reports I've read it's only a trial, and I'd be highly surprised if he impressed and was signed after that. I just hope that the next manager we do sign is a top draw manager like Houllier, has an excellent scouting net work, is able to sort out our youth policy and make it a conveyor belt of talent for the first team eventually, the way Man U's was originally, and Arsenal's is now, is given substantial time to get it right and real transfer funds consistently over a period of time, and can deliver that first trophy since 1969 that we all crave as toon fans. For me Martin Jol doesn't fit the bill, either does Keegan, as he's had his day. I know I will probably be shot down in flames over that, but those same fans who may shoot me down in flames now, will soon know that I'd be right when we're not progressing again under Keegan a second time. I'm not belittling what he done for the toon. I was a season ticket holder during that time and thought he could do no wrong,untill work forced me to move south, but it would be a backward step if he was appointed again. For me I hope we get Houllier, or Mark Hughes, or even David Moyes which looks unlikely. Mouriniho would have been my first choice, but it looks like that will never happen. But believe me, when I am able to move back up north and come out of exile from the hidious south, I'll have a new season ticket, and be there again cheering on who I hope will be our new top manager.

Posted by: John From Essex  | January 16, 2008 2:00 PM

SuperMac wrote...

The Fans are the selling point of this club! So if we scare the hell out the players- managers a like- we are doomed to fail. Because at the moment that is our PR stance! Our product may not be that bad ? Fact is the media have out marketed us. So we have to remarket ourselves! Stop booing-take your anger home with you-then hope for a better next week. If you have to say something make it constructive ! Come up with ideas. Because in football indeed in life things do not always go according to plan ! Come on Newcastle ! Please Mike pull a rabbit out of the hat.

Posted by: SuperMac  | January 16, 2008 2:03 PM

John Foster wrote...

I read on one comments site that NUFC should look no further than "Billy Smart" as he's used to running a circus. As an individual fan I don't expect to have any say who gets the Newcastle job, However I do feel that the fans should be listened to when thet express concerns about the names currently being linked with the club. Please pick a manager the fans are happy with or we will be back to square one. We keep saying we are a top team so lets aim for the starts and that can mean only one person. Yes, The chosen one !!! Give it a try Ashley, Jose would make the perfect "Ring master" for the TOON....

Posted by: John Foster  | January 16, 2008 2:03 PM

Billy wrote...

Big Dipper? I guess so because you could not write a soap opera with this story line.
The start of the season heralded great things for Newcastle United, a new owner, a "professional" chairman and it would seem a transfer kitty due to the fact Mike Ashley did not need the money generated by the cub. The only unresoved position was that of the team manager. Now given that the present incumbents are hard nosed business types and given the fact that the previous manager was not their choice, why then did they go along with the appointment of so many back room staff and also the purchase of Joey Barton. Now dont get me wrong, on his day Joey has the potential to be one of the best midfield players in the country but for a board unsure of their manager supposedly then why would they take the risk.
There is no point harping on about the length of time BSA was in the job because that is now a thing of the past, the thing that gets me is why the board either made the decision to let him go or put him in a position which was untenable before they had a replacement. It has to be some business plan where twice a year your business gets the opportunity to re-equip and expand only for you to decide this is the point that the manager has to go without a back up plan.
Confidence is everything not only in business but especially in sport. Newcastle United have the chance to change their fortunes with the upcoming appointment, the right man will lift not only the players but also the supporting puplic. A word of warning however the legendary patience of the Geordie public has limits. No matter what the outside world thinks about them being demanding, how many other teams can boast of fifty thousand plus watching what has been served up lately.
Over to you Mr Ashley and Mr Mort, let's just see how commited and ambitious you really are.

Posted by: Billy  | January 16, 2008 2:13 PM

Squidgy wrote...

Mike Ashley and Chris Mort insist they want an experienced manager for NUFC. However, past history has proved that this is not always an ingredient for success. there are a great number of names being 'bandied around' but what we do not need is a mercanary - we want someone who has the club at heart - that man is of course Alan Shearer. He may not have the experience but neither did KK and look what he brought to the toon. C'mon Mr. Ashley - put away your business head and give Alan Shearer the job at least until the end of the season and take it from there.

Posted by: Squidgy  | January 16, 2008 2:15 PM

Paul Patterson wrote...

I think the word farce sums it up perfectly.

It’s clear now that Redknapp was first choice and that was a disaster narrowly avoided, so who do we get next? You have to rule out a hungry, young British manager because they don’t seem to have the technical ability to take on, what is now widely regarded as the hardest job in football.

The sad thing is, after Redknapp turned it down, you usually go down in the quality of managers you look at next, we, bizarrely seem to be going up.

I’d love Mourinho to get the job, but I feel I may have to wait for the next time we’re looking for a manager to realise my dream of the Special one, as the club needs to be built up before he’d come anywhere near.

This time round I feel we need to go for Ottmar Hitzeld, he has all the credentials to manage ANY club and would be a perfect way to attract a calibre of player we have lacked for years.

I’d love to see Alan Shearer get the job at some point, but he needs to disappear for a while and observe the game, which you can’t do when your playing.

Paul.

Posted by: Paul Patterson  | January 16, 2008 2:20 PM

Keir Waugh wrote...

the crisis is described in four words...Newcastle United Football Club...would it be us if we were organised, top 6, under a long serving manager? not since the days of Sir Bobby, this is sadly what we are famous for and thats how it will stay until someone stands by a manager for more than 24 games!!

Posted by: Keir Waugh  | January 16, 2008 2:26 PM

Ronnie Lambert wrote...

My head is spinning after the last few days of candidates proposed and then rejected by the fans, but it's sold many Chronicles I guess and revealed the depth of the collective Geordie heart. And it is, that we basically want a Geordie running things, be it Shearer, Keegan (his father was a Geordie and he is as close as it gets) or both. That ' Dream Ticket ' would electrify the place and the home crowd would again become that twelfth man, again creating Fortress St. James' '. Yes it would also need big money to secure the best players, but I honestly believe they would come under that formula.

Posted by: Ronnie Lambert  | January 16, 2008 2:30 PM

Paul Whitbread wrote...

Now that Alan Shearer has publicly stated his desire for the job, it seems a no-brainer to appoint him, regardless of lack of managerial experience, when comparing him to the other names supposedly in the hat. Did Chris Mort's lack of experience running a football club preclude him from his current role?

Posted by: Paul Whitbread  | January 16, 2008 2:38 PM

Andy Gibbins wrote...

Big Dipper is the right expression. We need the right appointment and we need it quickly. My short list is as follows and I would be happy with any one of these

Hughes
Houllier
Shearer

Posted by: Andy Gibbins  | January 16, 2008 2:53 PM

somerset_mag wrote...

Newcastles season is hanging by a thread? Well if we do progress beyond Stoke, that thread will be well and truely severed in the next round. End of.

Posted by: somerset_mag  | January 16, 2008 3:01 PM

supporter sth tyneside wrote...

lee the players have made their own crisis helped by the media and some fans. the media will continue their mischief, but only the players can really turn it around. no one was very good against man.u but what has happened to shay given, we all know he is a top keeper but he has had a rotten season. beaten yet again from outside the box, i would be interested to know how many times that is including free kicks. along with his own poor kicking and lack of command on crosses i think it is time to give harper a try.

Posted by: supporter sth tyneside  | January 16, 2008 3:06 PM

Peter wrote...

As I said before, Lee, there are only two candidates to my mind: Lippi and Hitzfeld. Either of those would satisfy me. Both of them applied when Robson was sacked, but Freddie decided to appoint a manager he could do "business with". Quite what that business was, I don't know, but perhaps the Serious Fraud squad of the City of London Police do.

In any case, the more you explore these two, the more you'll realise how well they could do. Both have won the Champions League and both have won league titles with different teams. Lippi also has a World Cup winner's medal to boot.

Hitzfeld took an unfashionable and poor team in Borussia Dortmund and in his first season finished 2nd in the league and got to the UEFA Cup final. He also delivered regular last 8 appearances in European Football in his 6 seasons, a Champions League win and a Bundesliga title. At Bayern, in his first stint, he delivered 4 league titles, a 2nd and a 3rd and a Champions league win. He also was a beaten Champions League finalist. Hitzfeld also delivered 2 German cups.

If Keegan did get the job, I wouldn't be unhappy, but I'd prefer the safety of a proven winner in Lippi or Hitzfeld. One thing Keegan has in his favour is he knows the area, and he knows what football means to the Toon. He is a great man, a fantastic motivator and every team he has been with have scored record amounts of goals.

All I had hoped is that Ashley would have had someone in charge for tonight's game or definitely by Saturday. The league position isn't bad, it's a little precarious, but we can still qualify for Europe if we get our acts together. Whoever comes in, will doubtless have been told to bring a list of January transfer targets. We need another striker and a playmaker. Apart from that, there is nothing I have seen that suggests we're not good enough to climb the table.

Posted by: Peter  | January 16, 2008 3:12 PM

Ben wrote...

Hi Lee I Agree with you we are in a total mess, if we do appoint a manager in the next week or so, especially if he is from abroad I cant imagine they will have any time to buy or sell,And as the current circumstances show we do lack quailty especially in the middle of the park.
I honestly cant see why we are looking at the likes of Deschamps, a man that has left both other clubs he has been at within 2 seasons,or the likes of hughes who has achieved far less than Big Sam ever has, The only managers abroad I would be happy with who have proven track records are van Gaal, Lippi, Jose(who wouldnt come) Hitzfeld and Houllier.They all have a good pedigree. If not either of those options surely we finally have to give Shearer a chance, surely he is a far better candidate than the likes of hughes! He meets all the criteria we need, but importantely he meets the main 1 i my eyes, He would give the club and the fans the huge lift we have all been waiting for since souness was appointed, I just have the feeling that Mort and Ashley are looking at all the wrong criteria for what this club needs.
We are in a great danger of missing a chance to give this club the boost it needs, both long term and short term in the stands and on the pitch.

And if not Shearer why not Keegan? he would also give us a lift and HAS been succesful here in the past(I would take 2nd and european football now wouldnt you?).Lets hope we get it right this time because I would hate to be in the same position in a year AGAIN.

Posted by: Ben  | January 16, 2008 3:18 PM

Duncan Baines wrote...

I commented on this website that we were in crisis after the second half of the Portsmouth home game! That was when the crisis started.

Posted by: Duncan Baines  | January 16, 2008 3:25 PM

John Harris wrote...

Let's not pretend our season isn't already over whatever happens against Stoke.

Does anyone seriously believe we can beat Arsenal away in the next round?

This season is now simply about avoiding relegation (no certainty when you look at our run-in) and making sure we appoint the right manager who can hit the ground running in time to be ready for next season.

Posted by: John Harris  | January 16, 2008 3:30 PM

DANIEL RIDLEY -- TORONTO wrote...

LEE: I APPRECIATE YOUR COMMENTS RE: THE SIR BOBBY AND ALAN SHEARER TEAM CONCEPT.

I REALLY LOVE THE IDEA OF TWO GEORDIES PAIRED TOGETHER...... WITH SHEARER ALWAYS BEING IN THE MIX TAKE YOUR PICK FROM, SIR BOBBY, KEVIN KEAGAN(half a geordie) STEVE BRUCE, JACKIE CHARLTON, POP ROBSON OR ANY OTHER PROVEN GEORDIE MANAGER -- HOWAYMAN BONNIE LAD!!

Posted by: DANIEL RIDLEY -- TORONTO  | January 16, 2008 4:10 PM

Anonymous wrote...

In my opinion NUFC sadly epitomizes what is happening generally to top level English football .. too many foreign players and coaches are coming in and offsetting the game's natural balance demanding ridiculous amounts of money and creating confusion both on and off the pitch .. it's no wonder the lads can't deliver the goods ! There should be more focus on developing the youth team and bringing local talents up through the ranks. Howay the Toon !

Posted by: Anonymous  | January 16, 2008 4:24 PM

Peter Dawson wrote...

well lads Kevin keegan got the Job..Howay the Lads!!

Posted by: Peter Dawson  | January 16, 2008 4:36 PM

Geoff Forster wrote...

Lots of interesting comments.

In response to John Harris - Yes I do believe we can beat Arsenal in the next round. No disrespect to Stoke meant,they were unlucky not to beat us first time round. I'm hoping another Birmingham City result isn't going to happen tonight.

We can beat anyone on the day if the motivation and tactics are right.

:-) come on the Toon!!!!

Posted by: Geoff Forster  | January 16, 2008 4:42 PM

lee johnston wrote...

KING KEV IS BACK !!!!!!!!!!!

Posted by: lee johnston  | January 16, 2008 4:43 PM

Geoff Forster wrote...

Wow Just heard King Kev is returning.

Now we can really get back to where we should be and play some good football too!!!

Keeeeeeegan!!!!!

Posted by: Geoff Forster  | January 16, 2008 4:45 PM

Geoff Forster wrote...

Wow Just heard King Kev is returning.

Now we can really get back to where we should be and play some good football too!!!

Keeeeeeegan!!!!!

Posted by: Geoff Forster  | January 16, 2008 4:46 PM

Davecabezo wrote...

Looks like the fans have got what they wanted. Keegan & Shearer

Posted by: Davecabezo  | January 16, 2008 4:49 PM

ActionSteve wrote...

I think it will be Keegan...
;)

Posted by: ActionSteve  | January 16, 2008 4:57 PM

tony cro wrote...

Man knows he understand us, we are the BEST, we will get there
common the Lads

Posted by: tony cro  | January 16, 2008 5:12 PM

NORTHSHIELDSMAGPIE wrote...

KEVIN KEEGAN!!just heard..Shearer no2??? unbelievable, i can only imagine he's goign through a mid life crisis to take this job back on:0) but its sensational for to have him back. One thing is gaurenteed that he wont take any warming to because we are right behind him. I hope Ashley gives him some decent ammo to fire, cash. Let the good times begin !! this fella will hopefully raise the roof again. Well done Ashley, he has gave us the man most wanted..now let the games begin...

Posted by: NORTHSHIELDSMAGPIE  | January 16, 2008 5:49 PM