That sinking feeling
Newcastle United were tonight plunged closer to the relegation zone following an easy win for Liverpool at Anfield.
The Champions League chasing Reds dominated the clash with United and had the game wrapped up before the break following goals from Jermaine Pennant and Fernando Torres.
Skipper Steven Gerrard killed the game off as a contest and although Newcastle rallied a little Liverpool could have still won the contest by a bigger margin.
United were unable to field Joey Barton due to bail conditions meaning Charles Nâ≢Zogbia returned to the side in a packed midfield including Alan Smith with Damien Duff in an advanced role behind former Kop hero Michael Owen.
Liverpool rested some of their stars ahead of the trip to the San Siro to face Inter Milan but Rafa Benitezâ≢s still had the luxury of playing Fernando Torres and Steven Gerrard.
At a rain lashed Anfield Newcastle had the first real chance of the game on 10 minutes.
An Nâ≢Zogbia corner found the head Abdoulaye Faye who forced Jose Reina to steer it wide of the upright.
But two minutes later Liverpool, inevitably, struck back and in-form Torres found space down the right before lashing in a shot right-footed which required Harper to turn round the post.
Newcastle held firm again on 21 minutes when Gerrardâ≢s low drive went straight into the arms of Harper despite the greasy surface.
The Magpies then wasted a good chance just ahead of the 30 minute mark when John Arne Riise fouled James Milner on the corner of the penalty area only for Nâ≢Zogbia to send a wayward effort into the Kop.
Gerrard tested Harper once more with eight minutes left of the half as the Toon stopper saved with his feet.
But Liverpool grabbed the lead with two minutes left of the half as Torres played in a pass for Jermaine Pennant but Enriqueâ≢s attempted clearance only managed to clatter off the former Arsenal player and looped over Harper to open the scores.
Newcastle were forced to make a change straight after when Milner injured his foot in a 50-50 with Lucas moments earlier with Keegan forced to replace him with Geremi.
Yet United couldnâ≢t get off the field before the break without suffering further damage as Gerrard slipped in Torres who rounded Harper and slotted into the empty net for 2-0 during first half stoppage time.
Sadly for United Liverpool started the second half the way theyâ≢d finished the first and five minutes in Torres returned the favour to find Gerrard who burst through into the penalty box and stabbed past Harper for 3-0.
This resulted into shrieks of â∠Âgoing down, going downââ¬? from the Kop with Newcastle shattered by three goals in eight minutes either side of the break.
Unitedâ≢s response was a tame shot from Nâ≢Zogbia on 56 minutes but Harper was called into action straight after as he scooped over yet another effort from Gerrard.
Before the hour Keegan replaced Duff for Oba Martins as United tried to somehow limit the damage.
Martins was handed a chance on 68 minutes when Enriqueâ≢s long ball picked out the Nigerian striker who cracked a shot straight at Reina.
Martins then â≠with Liverpool content to play out time - woke the Anfield fans up when Enriqueâ≢s long throw found Martins again with the African walloping a 40-yard shot off the Liverpool bar.
LIVERPOOL: Reina, Riise, Gerrard (Kuyt 66), Torres (Crouch 72), Benayoun, Alonso, Pennant (Hyypia 79), Arbeloa, Lucas, Carragher, Skrtel.
Subs: Itandje, Babel.
UNITED: Harper, Beye, Enrique, Taylor, Faye, Milner (Geremi 43), Butt, Nâ≢Zogbia, Duff (Martins 57), Smith, Owen.
Subs: Cacapa, Forster, Carroll.
Crowd: 44,031
Older/Newer
« And Smith scores his first for Newcastle! | If you don't like the truth - look away now »
36 Comments
Leave a comment
Profile
Lee Ryder - Proudly born and bred on Tyneside, the Chronicle's chief sports writer has followed the fortunes of the club over the last three decades as a Toon fan and football writer.
Latest Premier League video
Email alerts
In association with
Follow my RSS feed
Follow me on
Complete this statement "NUFC are a big club because..............."
Ryder's reply: Because somebody from London who has a host of football teams to choose from in the smoke, good and bad, has gone to the trouble to write this!
Well we all saw it coming really just better hope there is an improvement when we go to Birmingham. I think if we aren't able to beat Birmingham then its time to get really worried. If Fulham keep losing then that would be great and Boltons fixtures don't look good for them. We just need all the points we can get and we should just about make it. But for the love of god Kevin please drop Smith. He will never score. If it were up to me I'd play Martins and Caroll but that won't happen. Also I'd throw in some of the reserves like Lua Lua and Edgar atleast they would play their hearts out. Owen doesn't cut it as captain in my opinion. I'm looking forward to Emre's return atleast then we might have some creativity.
Why does Kevin Keegan persist with Alan Smith? He is the worst player I have seen in a long time at Newcastle.
PLEASE DROP SMITH AND SELL HIM IN THE SUMMER.
Im starting to wonder if there is a clause in Smith's contract saying he MUST play all games if available.
Absolute joke and disgrace to the shirt.
As for the rest of the team, equally pathetic performance today.
Ryder's reply: Surely this isn't the time to start attacking one single player?
Depressingly inevitable were my sentiments listening to the Liverpool game today - but one important thing did come out of it: because if any of our players were labouring under the illusion that we were only ever 'flirting' with the relegation dog-fight, then - considering results around us - today's final whistle should have dispelled that myth and signalled both the wake-up call and a call-to-arms.
We are in the mire. We are wading, wallowing and widdling in it. This is for REAL now - and all associated with NUFC can no longer afford the luxury of flippant words and phrases like 'what if' or 'possibly' or assuming that '36 points might be enough this year'. Because judging from the recent rallies by most teams down the Prem basement - even (horror of horrors) our potential scapegoats Fulham and Reading - the magic '40' will still be the benchmark. Which means we need (breathe deeply) 12 big ones.
Now I beseech Keegan, who I love and admire, not to leave it too late to freshen things up and experiment (namely with our promising youth). The winnable games are few. I'd put my house, if I had one, on Smith etc retaining their berths against Birmingham next week - but if we lose that one which is eminently possible when WILL he change it? In a six-pointer against Fulham, who often do frustratingly well at St Jame's?
Do others agree with me that the youth should get their chance sooner rather than later? Personally, I thought Liverpool was the ideal chance to blood a few from the start - I thought we had nothing much to lose - and that was exactly what transpired.
Quite surprised Rafa Benitez fielded his two best players in Gerrard/Torres against us before their big game at Inter midweek. Would he have done so against Fulham or Reading - cos I doubt it.
I hope certain of our players took note of this and understood that Benitez clearly has a healthy respect for their reputations, even if it is increasingly doubtful if they do themselves.
Oh well. At least we're in for some blood-pounding, heart-stopping thrills between now and May. And the beauty is, our destiny is still firmly in our hands. Come on lads! Never say die.
All I know is we have a defence and we have an attack but we have nothing in between the two-no link up-no ideas.We desperately need Emre to be fit for Birmingham.
Duff was as abysmal and anonymous as last week and should be dropped.N'Zogbia was largely ineffective.Beye and Faye played well at the back and Smith ,as usual, gave 110%. I am disappointed by the continual criticism of Smith as he is a class player in a struggling side.
However I have faith in Keegan and Terry Mac and most of all I have faith in the players.We will not go down.
HAWAY THE LADS!!!
Well, thatâ≢s it, exactly what we all expected, a resounding defeat.
For 40 minutes we looked ok, but really Liverpool were playing with us and once again, we started the game with 10 men-
Lee you ask- surely this is not the time to attack one single player?
Well yes it probably is, as it's so bloody obvious- Ten men before we started- SIMPLE AS THAT.
Martins did more in one split second than Smith OR Owen has done in ten games.
Lee- Please- ask whoever you have to at the next meeting- Does Alan Smith have a clause in his contract that clearly states- ââ¬ÃÂMust play if fitâ≢ as that is the only explanation for the total disregard for current and historical form, with reference to this total disgrace of an excuse for a footballer.
The others were hardly great, but hardly stood a chance anyway- Duff, Smith and Owen are now WELL, WELL, past it.
The result doesnâ≢t matter, we are not going to need to stay up off the back of a win against Liverpool at Anfield,- itâ≢s Birmingham, Fulham, Sunderland and Reading that Iâ≢m now sweating over.
Once again Lee- ask the question.
Paul.
keegan is a flop and so is the newcastle team!!!! They are a joke, everyone is laughin at them!!!! what makes me laugh is that the newcastle fans thought they had chance to get a result against liverpool, how deluded and fickle can u get!!!! im sorry newcastle are not a big club, they havnt won any thing for more than a half century, and the fans are so impatient, thats hy newcastle are in a mess!!!!
I agree with Paul. Martins surely must start next week and if Smith is picked ahead of him there must be a clause in his contract. If Keegan thinks he needs a goal and then they will flow from Smith then now is not the time to test that theory. Go with what works. Martins is our top scorer and Viduka has often played well with him. At the moment Owen is ineffective as the quality of service is not there. If we survive then maybe Owen still has a place in the squad but only when we have quality service. Martins and Viduka can make their own chances. I want Emre back desperately but you just know Barton will for some reason unknown to the rest of us be picked ahead of Emre.
I expect the same team for the Birmingham game as against Blackburn; same team and same result.
Does anyone have any real confidence that we will pick up the points we need for safety? If so, it can only be from blind optimism. There is no fight or spirit in our dis-jointed "team". As soon as one goal is conceded we just capitulate. Birmingham are no world-beaters, but I can't see us getting a result down there. It's a sad state of affairs when we have to rely on the likes of Bolton, Reading, Birmingham & even the Mackems to have a poor end to the season. Big Sam has a lot to answer for. I just hope that KK sees that we need to change the midfield, which in my opinion is the route of our problems. They don't support the forwards & don't protect the defence. I would play Edgar alongside Taylor or Cacapa, with Faye playing as a holding midfielder. Drop Butt & allow N'Zogbia to link defence & attack. This would be a better blend than our current set up.
Lets just hope, (and it is only hope), that we can survive & rebuild in the summer. KK is the man for the job. Fingers crossed for the rest of the season.
hi folks
i am a hk guy now studying in Dublin....i am planning a visit to SJP on the 22nd when we play fulham....can anyone tell me what time i needa be in newcastle? thanks a million...
P.S. i agree with everyone that thinks alan smith shld be dropped...btw ,he shares the same first name with Big Al..what a shame...
a packed midfield who were out of their depth could not create anything for owen to build on.i never supported the 2nd coming of kk.i think he has lost touch in the game which has changed so much since his last managers job.he cannot go out and buy like he did due to the transfer window and conversely he cannot get rid of the team he's stuck with.definite worries now re relegation especially with our goals for and against.kk promised to give the young blokes a chance should the STARS fail.why persist with smith and owen ?no goals for and plenty against.has emre got the same injury as viduka? what a waste of such good players(at other clubs) i cannot see anyone wanting to come to the club with the abysmal showing week after week.maybe ashley is going to have a fire sale.come on magpies fight for your premiership lives.
A dismal result again but lets face it, we were expecting it...
Smith gave more than any player though it wasn't enough. If he thinks he had given 110% then try giving 200% because thats how much he needs to be in the arms of Newcastle supporters.
Quite frankly, we lost only through sheer luck and weakness in the left. Duff should have came down to defend but didnt and left Enrique to take the blame. Let's face it, our left side is totally exposed at Anfield.
I for one will not look at the first half goals as they were all a fluke, luck and glory to Liverpool. They must have been bribing some force to gain so much luck. The first goal as seen was never done in professional football, only god knows how it happened, but credit goes to Liverpool!
And as for some supporters like Sam, please soak your head in alcohol and burn it up. Your poor comment in this area is not welcomed and never will be. If you want to support this club, give relevant reviews that will not blame someone for no good reason. You are nothing than a pest in this comment box. Are you a Mackems in disguise?
KK needs to field Martins now. Yesterday he should have favored Martins for N'zogbia. Yes, why not Smith? Because despite his dismal performance, he showed more than Zog and Owen combined!
Why not Owen you ask? Because despite his low number of touches and performance rating, he make a good target man for the defenders to mark, leaving our wings open. This means we need some height to those corners we get.
Please win the next game, or at least field in a team that can measure something in weight against them.
There is no question in my mind there have to be a cluase in Smith's contract for him to play in attack more than Oba and Viduka. How is it possible two coaches KK and Sam make such a horrible decesion every game, or is it possible it is becuase Ashley is dectating he play to ensure British/English attackers in MO and Smith play most of the games hope I am wrong. The midfield was wide open agian leaving the defense exposed we have no holding midfielder Butt is a spectator he passes the ball ones a while, NZobia and Duff where really bad today no creative no pace.
MO and Smith lookk at the stats I belive zero shot on goal forget about creating thier own chances, I for once thought they were practicing going up and down the field with out triping.
I agree with the comments that MO requires a lot of quality service since we do not have a team to provide it then he should be replaced by Oba and Caroll/Viduka. I als believe MO as a captain does not inspire anybody same problem Geremi had, may be make Faye captain he is driven and ahs the presence.
Well for some reason mu gut feeling says we will stay up but I worry that KK might not be the right coach to take us to the next level next season from what I have seen so far in terms how he is dealing with primadonna players.
I must say if next game Martins do not start then i'm 100% sure there's a clause in Smith contract or MA favours him!!!
If we dont get Smith out, we got no space for Martins.
Look at what he did in just few minutes!!!
All Smith and Butt did was chasing L'pool players backside!!!
Damn i hope Smith enjoy smelling the players backside. Duff is also finished.
Only 3 players deserve to be in the team is Habib Beye, Obafemi Martins and mmaybe Emre..the rest are hopeless!
Look at Reading they beat Man city 2-0. HHow are we going to beat them ?
I will continue to pray form far away in Asia.
I hope Lee you can clarify the matter on why has Smith always play and not even being sub!!!!!!!!
Please clear the matter.
Farez
Singapore Magpie Fan..........!!!
If Wigan or the Mackems pick up points it might just hit those that remain deluded - we are EYEBALL DEEP in turd.
As to Cockney Spiv - mate it depends how one defines a "big club" - or is that nuance a little too much to get your head round? In terms of finance, Newcastle United has consistently been in the top 20 for years. Add our supporters and, by most people's standards, SJP - you've got a pretty big club relative to almost every other in English league football.
But if being a big club comes down to actual success (which I happen to think is hugely important) obviously Newcastle United is errrr....lacking. The vast majority of you lot are pig ignorant when it comes to football outside of London so look these dates up - 1927, 1955, and 1969. No wait - that would entail doing something more than putting your scarf on for match day right.
Lee - like many others, I don't blame our season on Smith but come on, he has been absolutely abysmal. Smith's not the only one by any means, but he's certainly up there with the worst.
I agree with everyone. Martins needs to start every game from now on. I was suprised he started on the bench. Carroll deserves his first start, my felling is that Owen and Smith are there on reputation alone. KK needs to be strong and show some real leadership and pick those who have the passion to win.
Faye should have that holding midfielder role instead of Nicky Butt who has been poor. Faye played really well against Chelsea in London in which we were robbed of a well deserved draw. I hope Lamine Diatta does well for us.
We also really need Viduka and Emre to play regularly.
I feel so sorry for players at the back, people may say that they are woeful (and yes they could play better) but Newcastle's system of defence at the moment is just the back four (whatever happened to defending as a team) - I have been a fan for many years now and have never seen a more crappier side play, yet the "quality" in the team should suggest at least a 10th placed finish.
We can't realy on any miracles. So COME ON NEWCASTLE!!
The result is not the issue. We all knew we would lose; but we all had a little voice inside us whispering a hope that we might push them and might even score the first goal, or even two! (I did anyway).
The problem is the team that played and how they played. Kevinâ≢s team selection and tactics are starting to look like amateur night. He seems to have decided that consistency is the key and is playing the same ââ¬ÃÂolder headsâ≢ week in and week out. But the result is a predictable consistency of poor performances and poor results and being consistently outplayed.
Kevinâ≢s decision not to select Obafemi is a DISGRACE. Why on earth select a player who hasnâ≢t scored since 2005 over our top goal scorer and a player with such obvious determination and opportunity? WAKE UP KEVIN! Use Smith as a super-sub. He can play anywhere (he played a lot of yesterday in defense) and has bags of energy and enthusiasm; just the player to bring on at 70 minutes.
COME ON KEVIN! You need to work hard on the training ground at developing a creative and attacking midfield. The players looked uncomfortable and uncertain and quite frankly lacking in any ideas about how to score a goal. We need to develop an attack that will strike fear and uncertainty into any team. At the moment we are a joke; puffing and panting around the middle of the park without any clue or direction.
To be honest, despite leaking so many goals, I think our defense looks ok. I thought Enrique had another great game, and he shouldnâ≢t feel responsible for that goal. Habibi and Faye looked assured and even Taylor did the business. Our new signing can only help.
But I will lay money on Barton, Butt, Duff and Smith being selected for the next game. Kevin is showing he either hasnâ≢t got the nous or the balls to select anything else. I wish he would select some of the younger players. And I wish he would select on form not size of contract! And FOR GODâ≢S SAKE KEVIN, please select Obafemi!
VERY DISAPPOINTED IN YOU KEVIN!
beaten by a better side as expected.Another peice of shocking luck for the first and on another day martins thunderbolt goes in,ifs and buts dont win games tho(no pun intended).Martins has that bit of a spark about him to make a difference,he would be the FIRST name on my team sheet.Sick of going on about smith,i cannot fathom the logic in playing him.Milner had all day to get rid of the ball and he wouldnt have got injured,it wasnt a 50-50 lee.I still think we will be safe but i think itll be more a case of there being 3 worse teams (dont ask me who they are)than us playing good football.Blind optimism again,i must be an idiot.I watched the game in a boozer in durham,the majority were wearing LFC colours and ranting on(yet not a scouse accent to be heard),whats wrong with people in the head that they need to support teams from the other end of the country???????makes me sick....clowns...HOWAY THE TOON...
Hi all....well so far my predictions ( and concerns) have all come true. As a toon supporter for over 40 years I was swept up like most on the wave of euphoria when KK returned. Then realism set in. The next 2 games are absolutely CRUCIAL if we are to stay ahead of that 3rd relegation spot. It only needs one of those bottom teams to get a couple of wins and then we will be really struggling. Regarding team selection playing 2 wingers without an out and out target man does not make sense. Where is Ameobi, Viduka, Carroll?. And we need more pace in the side. Martins has to be a starter, if just for that. Did you see his 40 yarder hit the bar?. Smith has been a huge disappointment, but then how many ex ManU players go on to be as good at other clubs?. No matter how we mix and match the current squad I cannot see them up for a relegation fight. Allardyce has much to answer for with what he has done to the squad we had, but thats history now. I guess all we Toon supporters can do is just keep supporting our team - there is nothing else we can really do to help KK with his task!......
Well i guess that was well expected, we are playing a team well above our ability and anyone who didnt know that does now. But this is not our crunch games and we know who they are. But although we have some tough games coming up between now and the end of the season have a look at reading,boltons,wigan,sunderlands, even middlesborough.(on skysports.com) They are in for a big fight too. We need to stay positive and hang on in there till the end. but now we know we are in a fight and it may just be the kick up the backside the players need. At least kk will get the lads fired up i am sure of that. Come on the toon lets get stuck in!!!!
Once upon a time, before NUFC became the elephants graveyard for clapped out,has beens, and never where's.
There appeared a young manager from Middlesborough call Cloughie.
He took over humble Hartlepool, and got them promoted for the first time in their history.
He then went to dying Derby, won everything, and then made Nottingham Forrest the best team in Europe.
His achievments has only been bettered by Wenger at Arsenal, (the best manager in England since Cloughie.)
Next in line was Martin O Niel, Utd could,and should have grabbed him, ?
They did'nt, and the rest as they say is history.hundreds of millions of pounds blown since 1955, and won nowt, How not to run a football club.
Newcastle WILL get relegated for the simple reason that the majority of the players dont give a toss.
Nobody wants Smith (100% effort, 0 goals and also close to 0 assists) dropped more than me, but what about dropping Duff too? He has been terrible since we signed him. Roeder said that signing him would improve Nzogbia (who had been playing brilliantly in the last third of that season) - ridiculous!
Keegan = Allardyce
On tactics and team selection
keegan's appointment now strikes me to being a publicity stunt by mike ashley
Keegan 'we are going to attack liverpool'
so what do we get, 4-5-1 formation where ALAN Smith is DM for crying out loud
he is the worst player i've ever seen play for this club, in recent times i've seen maric, marcelino, des hamilton, andreas andersson
at least the names i mentioned actually scored or had good games for this club
smith must have a clause saying he must play, or keegan has lost the plot if he picks him on form
i wud have shola playing instead and that is saying something
owen need's to buck his idea's up cos he look's finished as a striker, no pace, too predictable in front of goal
martins HAS to play v birmingham or keegan should leave straight away
also steven taylor is being found out, his positioning on the 2nd and 3rd goal s is schoolboy like
Ryder's reply: Michael you make some very good points but are you sure that getting rid of a manager at the moment would be the answer? Surely KK has to have time and space to get his own team in place before being judged.
Lee - Maybe I can't blame everything on Smith, but come on, he is simply not good enough.
He can't pass, can't shoot, and can't even tackle, so what does he bring to the team?
We need to GET REAL, Liverpool could have beaten us by 5, 6, or even 7 goals yesterday, but Rafa took pity on us.
We were never in the game, and to be fair, we never are at Anfield, I was there last season to watch us beaten 2-0 with an abysmal performance.
This is fast becoming a huge farce at NUFC, Duff, Butt, Smith, Barton, all need to be shipped out at the end of the season, they offer nothing and are past it.
Barton is purely a thug.
I'm not on any bandwagon here, I expected nothing other than a comprehensive defeat at Anfield, especially with Torres in the side, although we certainly lacked any form of luck, it was a shame we didn't hold out until half-time. I'm glad that fixture is now out of the way.
I agree with a lot of points made here, but the major one is the baffling selection of Smith ahead of Martins.
The longer this goes on, the more I'm actually coming around to the absurd possibility of this clause in Smith's contract. I think we need an answer to this from somewhere, and it will be a disgrace if it turns out to be true; of course the best way to clear this up would be for Martins to start for Smith next time out.
I don't blame Smith alone, I think there are many factors which make up our current situation, but I can't see how he justifies playing ahead of Martins. I can't see us winning again without Oba involved from the start. We need to take the lead in games, because we've seen all season what happens when we lose the first goal. Bringing him on at 3-0 down is completely pointless, aside from proving that he should've started.
I've said for weeks we need Oba's ability to grab a goal out of nowhere, and yesterday he very nearly did exactly that, the problem was the game was long gone before he even got on.
Not many positives for me, other than:
-Martins getting on for twenty minutes to prove why he should be a constant starter.
-Another good showing from Jose Enrique at left back, despite a lack of support from left midfield.
-Steve Harper doing well to keep the score down.
Let's hope Emre shakes off that injury and Smith stubs his toe on the stairs before next week.
don't think, that smith is the biggest problem newcastle faces right now; he lost a step since keegan made another one of his unlucky moves, in trying to motivate owen by handing him the captain's armband, but smith is not worse or better than the rest of the team. he lost his knack for goalscoring at old trafford and he is for sure no playmaker at st.james; he is best suited in a role similar to nicky butt, but two of them in midfield is one too much when you don't have any kind of creativity in this area. the best newcastle has to offer there are emre and barton - players no big club would ever consider to sign these days (like most of the current squad). given allardyce's philosophy of football, maybe it made sense to sign all those defenders and forwards in summer, but you can't play this game without having one or two playmakers to control the flow of the game (especially with milner out of form and n'zogbia thinking about london?) - for sure not against the big 4 (where every single player is right now better than the best newcastle can line up today).
but given the performance against blackburn, the quality of the team may be good enough for the rest of the league to fight successful against relegation - as long as some players start to realize, that they are already halfway down (something - i think - smith does).
the dilemma newcastle faces will nevertheless remain the same: think big, act small and always a hero just around the corner no coach can live with. even if keegan might fail in his second stint (don't think so, but you never know) and fans might stop crying for their messiahs and the revival of the glory old days, every new coach will have to deal with shearer and (especially in tougher times) the wish of the fans, that the second legend should return to newcastle - this time as coach (as unproven and risky this option might be).
and that're the major problems of newcastle these days: 1.) they don't get the first rate players, 2.) they don't search for the best available coach and 3.) every coach other than shearer or keegan doesn't get time, 'cause of the things that happened long ago or might happen in the future. ... maybe point 3 is the reason point 2 exits, otherwise the appointments of souness, roeder and allardyce can't be explained (and perhaps that's the reason, too, they sacked robson, 'cause 2 legends in the coaching corner are already more than most clubs might be able to handle; no need for a third one *g*).
smith might be a little bit out of form and out of position, but he is for sure not newcastle's biggest problem.
greetz from austria
Yes - NUFC are a "big club" re the level of support it receives. However, at the current time not only is it a bad football team - it has been for many years an extremely bad run business. Millions have been wasted in buying players which simply do not perform, sacking managers, appointing new managers etc. The current wage bill is 72% of the turnover - this is not recommended. It is likely that 36 points will be enough to survive. Are NUFC likely to win 3 more games? If you go down it will be a financial disaster. The number of season ticket holders will plummet. Will it be a "big club" if this happens?
Ryder's reply: Yes, that last time we were in that division we still attracted full houses for games against Cambridge, Brentford and mighty Millwall
We lost, we expected to lose, so lets move on. (What I didn't expect was the Reading, Fulham and Wigan point pickups.)
The games agst Birm and Fulham are now MASSIVE. We can't use the same tactics, formations, etc, because they have failed us so badly. We need to play OM, not because he will necessarily deliver the goods but he might bring something fresh to the team. I am now becoming so desperate I want the following to happen before the end of the season:
* Spurs still in the UEFA Cup
* Ports concentrating on the FA Cup final
* Chelsea in the CL final
* Everton fate is settled by the time we come to play them.
If these events occur it might give us a little edge!
Let's keep on hoping but is it my doom & gloom but are the other teams in the bottom half playing with more grit, determination and skill than we are?
Hi lee - I agree we all need to be behind Kev and the players now -but hey come on Lee -can we really expect to survive if we cant score goals -and since leaving Oba our top scorer out makes that situation more possible -what can we do? I see the blog is now almost totally united in dropping the useless Duff-well I have said since his first games for us he should never have been signed -all that did was make Charlie unsettled and thats a great pity because he was really beginning to come into his own down the left and looked a certain class future act. Please lee tell me why two manageres have placed so much faith in Duff -I repeat what I have said many many timesnow on this blog -the guy cant score goals -his crosses are weak and crossed more in hope than accuracy {when he does manage to cross }and he fiddles around on the ball more than a hapless teenager-Martins can score goals, Emre can get the odd one MO cant score without service-unless we get goals there is no way we can win games and precious points-Smith gives his all -but I feel that wont help either as he also cant score goals. If we lose the next two games it may be too late for any remedies-and we will if we dont score goals. Big Sam has a lot to answer for his team buying was awful -Geremi -no legs Viduka -no desire and never fit-Cacapa -surely the shambles was having a laugh here at our expense- Barton -seen more of the bench than Viduka -except its a different bench. If we do survive and thats a big if its going to cost mega bucks to get what we need -and we get nothing for getting rid of what we have -who would want them?.
To survive in relegation battle we need drop Smith, Barton & Butt.
Right now. Otherwise it will be late.
VERY Disappointed in KK. I think nobody expected him to be the same stubborn like Sam. Wake up Kevin. Plese forget about your personal preferences. Think about NUFC.
Regards
Vic
The entire Newcastle squad looks to have two players with the speed to open a defense - Martins and N'Zogbia. One, N'Zogbia has been played out of position the whole of the season. The other, Martins, seems to have been wiped out of KK's mind. We heard how excited KK was to have Martins, but yet he hasn't started a game since KK arrived (granted, he was supposedly injured). He has been healthy and is still sitting on the bench. Similarly, KK claimed it was a great situation to have Geremi playing so well in Africa, yet he is nowhere near the field until he is absolutely needed due to injury. No one can tell me that Geremi would be worse than Butt at this point. Butt is absolute trash right now. He tries, but he does nothing but give away possession at every opportunity.
I think we as Newcastle fans delude ourselves into thinking that there are too many good players in the side for this team to go down, but that is nonsense. There is no team that looks less prepared, less motivated, and less talented than this squad right now. I don't even believe this team is good enough to be promoted from the Championship right now.
As much as we all despised Dyer, what I wouldn't give to have someone like him that can run at a defense right now. How much do we miss Solano AGAIN??? The sad fact is that this team never makes the correct decision in player matters. They sign trash like Barton and give away players like Dyer.
Unfortunately, it does not seem that KK has any idea of how to turn this around right now. How could they let the transfer window close without a signing that could help the first team??
I know this is not about the Mags, But does anyone else think the last 4 in the FA cup have been given an easy ride ? How else can the big 4, and the rest of the PL (with the exception of Pompy) have dipped out of what was once the highlight of the soccer year. ?
People say we may miss the glamour of Chelski,Man U,ect but I for one will not. So lets hope it's WBA v Cardiff or Barnsley, the best thing to happen to footy in the UK for years.
Just a thought Lee, what's a cockney obsessing with NUFC for? I suspect he doesn't live far away from here and he's just a mischievous little monkey.
The players are totally disinterested, this has been the case for some years. KK cant generate the enthusiasm, its clear to see.There will a wholesale clear out once they go down and most of our highly paid layabouts will be unemployed.MILNER & N,ZOGBIA, Will get plenty of offers but are the only 2 , who can be guaranteed employment.owen,barton ,smith,emre & martins ; will be sold for peenuts. BEYE,FAYE CACAPA,ENRIQUE,GEREMI; WILL ALL GO BACK TO THE CONTINENT..amiobe,carr,carroll,duff,butt,are unemloyable and the job centre beccons. It is not difficult to see, why we are where we are; no manager on the planet, could mobilize this squad.Sam did a great job unloading the previous dross; only to land us with much of the same; it could only happen to NUFC.