Did Chelsea defeat show exactly where Newcastle are these days?
It was a far cry from Portsmouth and Liverpool at home but also a million miles from the feel-good factor injected via wins over Fulham, Reading and Sunderland.
But Newcastle United's 2-0 home loss to Chelsea was a real mixed bag for the Toon Army.
The pre-match atmosphere and the crowd's first class showing throughout the game proved exciting times may well be lying in wait.
Yet - and a point that was pressed home by Kevin Keegan - in the post-game press conference, Newcastle are still a long, long way behind the top four and with a slight sniff of dejection around Special K afterwards, it seems that the defeat against Chelsea has ended up being somewhat of a reality check.
Are Newcastle miles away from the top four? And is a top five position - the same one that cost Sir Bobby Robson his job - best thing Toon fans can hope for?
It's still fair to say that even with this squad and a few additions, whether they are world class or simply capable of consistent performances at this level, United can have the better of most teams outside the top four next season at St James's Park.
Such titantic struggles against teams like Derby, Middlesbrough and Blackburn may well be a thing of the past and when the sun is shining in August, Newcastle teams managed by KK usually start well.
Who knows? Even a couple of victories against teams inside the top four may come if we have a good day and they don't turn up.
One thing that must change is United's poor away form next year.
Or a place in the bottom half will once again be ours.
There is still one game to rectify that a little bit of course in the final fling at Goodison Park and Everton will be a team United will be up against next year if KK's hopes of fifth place next year are to remain in tact.
Yet tonight after a great first half then poor second period followed by a mini lap of honour or lap of appreciation whatever you want to call it, Newcastle almost summed up the season in 90 minutes.
An inability to finish teams when the team is on top followed by failure to weather the storm when the opposition have their spell in the game.
Perhaps it would unfair to have a go at the front three today given that they have fired in plenty of goals in recent weeks.
But the Chelsea game was proof that maybe the current midfield just don't have enough creativity in them to get some change out of the opposition when it isn't happening in attack.
Final conclusions can be made after Everton next week but for now football at St James's Park has ended in defeat on a day that never just quite caught fire for the Geordie Nation.
WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THE FINAL HOME GAME OF THE SEASON?
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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.
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Agree with nearly everything you say, except in today's match it wasn't a case of the opposition having "their spell."
Chelsea did what they often have against inferior opposition - they built up a head of steam, took a stranglehold on the game, then finished the job.
You can't let a team build up that kind of impetus without getting punished. We just weren't good enough to cope with their momentum.
As you said, a big part of the problem is the midfield. Not only can they not get anything much when it doesn't happen up front, they are the main reason it doesn't happen against quality opposition.
Still, can't wait for next season.
"But the Chelsea game was proof that maybe the current midfield just don't have enough creativity in them to get some change out of the opposition when it isn't happening in attack."
Absolutely.
You know, at the end of the first half, I was pleased. In fact, we were on top for the first thirty minutes, though without creating much in the way of chances. However, we barely touched the ball for the first 15 minutes of the second half. You can big up Barton al you want, but he is still caught ball watching, he's still slow, and he's still caught on the ball far too easily. Maybe you need to be honest about this.
Smith had absolutely no positive imapact on the game. Nice lad - these days, anyhow, I'm sure - but he's not Premier League class.
The worst sub, however, was Duff. I'm assured he was genuinely good, but these days he's leaden footed and has no idea when to part with the ball. Charlie should've been on before him.
Geremi? I've defended him lately, but there was no defence today. If Milner is fit, he should've been playing. On the other hand, when Geremi went off did you notice a decline in quality of the corners? Who actually says he has to take every corner anyhow?
On to Chelsea. Sorry, but I hope Man U beat you. You are undoubtedly a quality team, but you cheat. It probably wasn't a fee kick that led to the first goal and your time wasting and behaviour was shameful. We shouldn't be booing off a player of the ability of Drogba, but we did and he deserved it. I'm also disappointed the ref didn't see through more ofthis kind of behaviour, considering there's such an obvious public history of it.
Onto next season. Geremi, Cacapa, Shola (permanently) Duff, Smith and Carr have to go. Given must be rotated with Harper. We need one good central defender, cover for left (Enriquez was poor today) and right back; one player with vision and flair in midfield; one striker with pace. Of course, if Charlie decides to quit the club that nurtured him, we'll need a fast left-sided midfielder. And Emre, Owen and Viduka fit.
Do I think we'll get all this? Sadly not. However, we may have lost deservedly to Chelsea, but we should beat Everton, should've beaten Portsmouth, should've beaten West Ham (who obviously went to sleep for four minutes this weekend instead of two :), and we should've beaten Blackburn. We ought to be able to push our way into Europe next season.
If you must say it, then my answer will be a definite NO!
Yes, yesterday's abysmal second half seems to correspond to the old Sam days but despite the loss, I think KK has already learn one good thing about the current squad and that's the option of Viduka.
Viduka is not the fastest, hardly handled situations near the box well for the first half and definitely a minute character compared to Oba's and Owen's contributions but no matter what I just cant see Newcastle winning without him...
Is it a mere fact or is it truthfully Newcastle suffers without a physical giant in the center of attack? My thoughts says 'yes!'. Viduka has the job of holding players, and most of all, heads the ball from defenders to the two strikers who will then score the goods. He himself will feel he hasn't contributed but the mere presence is already a factor.
KK switched him on second half, understandable...he knocked his Achilles but I think he had no other choice than to play A.Smith. He is the worst player yesterday on the second half. Hardly ever moves, attack or passes and definitely calmed Chelsea's nerves. The fact is, we were playing with ten men!
Faye, Taylor, Jose and Beye are not gods and can never defend so much pressure so I think they are absolved from the blame in the second half hell performance. Barton and Butt contributed well to the defense but still one man stading up front and his name is not Oba, not Owen but yes, you got it right, Smith! The most dangerous player in the field, in Chelsea's favor...
After Geremi switched out, Newcastle begin more momentum and although they did conceded again, Duff actually done more in crosses than Geremi. Where is Milner when you need him?
The sad truth is, Newcastle cant play without Viduka, the only strongman in attack, they cant play with BOTH Smith and Geremi on the field (One is bad enough) and certainly MUST buy a backup for always-injured-Viduka.
Berbatov will fit much in this picture although the chances are very slim...so I'll vote for an equally high risk Dean Asthon to cover as backup for Viduka. Certainly Ashthon makes another Viduka right down to the injury part but they both cant be injured at the same time...right?
A risky gamble but if no one is bought in that can be better...I'll go for him.
Do you hear yourself? finish teams?
Did anyone in the world expect Newcastle to 'finish' chelsea? or Man U.. or Arsenal.. or teams with big budgets or well managed squads full of players kept focused under single managers and given proper direction - all things newcastle know NOTHING about.
give KK two-three years and then see what happens.
Ryder's reply: Yes, finish teams off.
Time for a serious reality check, We were fighting for premier league survival and playing poorly, then a run of wins against mostly poor opposition got us clear but challenging for a top spot is a bit much. Keegan doesn't "talk or communicate" with AShley, doesn't think he has any money to spend and the top teams spanked us good and proper this season. Lets not get carried away, unless some serious money is spent, Keegan has his hands tied Ashley is at best " strange" and has no business plan in place the town are his toy and he will get bored with them watch
I was filled with optimism for the close season until i heard KK post match interview yesterday. He feels we cant compete with the 'big' 4 and cant attract the best players. What are we to hope for? Was he making a point to Ashley to show him some money? With him saying that it will hardly help us attract players, they'll think we've no ambition and go elsewhere. Why havent we given Owen another contract?
One thing that did scare me was KK saying we'll battle on with the players we've got. That means we'll be seeing Duff flying down the wing, Geremis excellent free kicks/corners and midfield flair and the prolific Smith banging them in from every angle....or not.
I think has KK shot himself in the foot here. Who does the transfer dealing with the players these days? No one could sell the club to players like KK, his enthusiasm and persona shines through but do we now rely on Wise and that other fella? Are they the real reason we lost out on modric and woodgate?
One thing i admire KK for is speaking his mind but this time I somehow feel let down by the lack of ambition hes shown, whether hes been told something from upstairs remains to be seen.
Watching yesterdays game i thought we shouldve been winning at half time but our lack of quality highlighted second half.
As i have said before -things are not as bad as people make out (when it is bad) and it is not as good as people make out (when it is good).
The facts since KK came back are simple:
We have failed to beat Man U, Arsenal, Villa, Blackburn, Liverpool, Pompey, West Ham and Chelsea.
We have not lost to Bolton, Boro, Brum, Fulham, Spurs, Reading and Sunderland.
Simply put we have not beat any team in the top half of the league and we have not lost to any team in the bottom half. It is ridiculous to say that this team is any other place than where it should be in the league.
5th is a pipedream without massive investment in the squad - the others are not just going to wait for us to catch up. The vibes from KK is the requisite investment is unlikely to materialise.
Another point from Monday. I hava always said the 'three up front' will unravel against the top teams. We are going to need to play with more width which rules out the existing front three.
Pragmatic times ahead methinks.
A final point. 'We can challenge for 5th' is the new mantra. It is a shame what is happening to English football when clubs such as Newcastle, Everton, Villa, City, Sunderland, Blackburn, Pompey, Spurs - with 40 league Championships between them have a horizon for the forseeable future which extends to 5th place. Oh to be the tallest Pygmy!
we aint as good as chelsea,thats all we learned from yesterday,but we all knew that didnt we.We should have taken a lead into the second half,but we didnt and they began to dominate once viduka had gone and we couldnt keep possession.Duff and smith are useless and we should get rid,hopefully to the mackems.All this we already knew and i still had great optimism for next season.....UNTIL.....i heard KKs post match interview,how depressing was that???just what was he trying to say and why was he saying it,does he know something we dont? dont like it....one little bit.
I agree with a people saying that 4 3 3 will not work against the top teams and yesterday showed it. Without Viduka we crumbled. I agree that Ashton would be an excellent addition but his injuries are worrying. Berbatov would be the best for this but yeah thats not gonna happen. I'd love to see Jimmy Bullard come in for Barton or Butt hes just such a quality player and his set pieces are pretty good.
The second the referee blew the half time whistle I knew our chance had gone, we had to capitalise on our great first half.
We get to half time still 0-0 and Chelsea bring on Frank Lampard
We bring on- Alan Smith (Very slow handclaps)
We go a goal down and they bring on Andrei Shevchenko
We bring on Damien Duff (Tumbleweeds blow across the pitch)
2-0 down,- Nuff said.
It wasnâÂÂt through lack of effort, simply we have far less resources at our disposal than Chelsea, we had on the bench, two players living off name only (Smith and Duff) and a player who doesnâÂÂt want to be there (NâÂÂZogbia) hardly a cavalry than a white flag at the fort gates.
Andy- to expand on your point- Fifth isnâÂÂt exactly a âÂÂPipe dreamâ itâÂÂs not an unrealistic a dream as people make out. This result doesnâÂÂt change much, just highlights what needs to be done- everyone beats this drum that to qualify for Europe we actually have to beat members of the top four- Simply not true!
Look at this season, we have contributed 4 points to the âÂÂLets Save Derby CountyâÂÂs Premier League Status Campaignâ and weâÂÂve chucked three points away against Portsmouth at home, Aston Villa snatched a point here, Bolton nicked a point, as did BoroâÂÂ
ThatâÂÂs why we arenâÂÂt in Europe this season- It doesnâÂÂt matter that we got tonked by twelve goals against Man United, or Liverpool smashed us for seven, the only positive result was the home draw against Arsenal, that was a good point, not the oneâÂÂs we picked up against Smoggies, Bolton etc.
What we do against the big four is virtually irrelevant, I hope people wake up to that fact, as we are a million miles away from them at present, until we can beat the teams down the bottom, itâÂÂs pointless looking to break into Europe.
IâÂÂm confident we will see major money spent- after all we were willing to spend ã20m on an untested Croatian?
Chelsea was a test too far for our swamped Midfield three, Butt canâÂÂt cope on his own, with Barton failing to make a stamp on the game and GeremiâÂÂs passing as âÂÂaccurateâ as ever, we were hardly going to outpass them- then on came Alan Smith and Damien Duff. That was us down to nine men.
As strange as though this sounds- I donâÂÂt think the back four needs all that much done to it, maybe a solid centre back to replace Taylor/Faye when for, suspension or injury bites and cover at Left Back (My Choice would be Risse) the main problem at the club is the terminal decline of the midfield- IâÂÂve just explained itâÂÂs faults, but the defence usually gets a bad name as an easy cop out.
Still. . . I Trust Kevin Keegan.
Paul
I for one am delighted at KK's post match interview. Newcastle have at long last figured out how to play poker with the big boys. For too many years NUFC (FF in particular) have massaged their own egos by grandstanding about how they're one of the big spenders in this and any other league. This is a level of idiocy I've never quite understood.
Would you tell a car salesman how much you have to spend the minute you walk on the forecourt - of course not, and if you did you'd deserve to have every last penny taken from for in exchange for the second rate product you've just acquired (this analogy ring any bells for anyone?).
In short the longer the question how much have we got to spend rumbles on the better for NUFC.
I just get the feeling the club is up for sale to the right buyer at the right price.
Solvent in the premiership and a toy that is possibly becoming boring to the owner.
Reality is mid table again or major spending (a gamble) to get into the top 6.
Thought Steve Bennett did a great job for his employers yesterday kept the league going...oh and one question Kev why did we play so deep at the start of the second half tactical or overlooked as it happened.
Top 5 is not a disapointment it is the best we can do.....some of you will remember KK's first stint under Sir John Hall, he spoke then about a European Super league and how Newcastle had to be part of it.....well unfortunately Fat Freddie Shepherd ensured we well and truely missed that boat....now that door is shut and the super league is here.... it is not a coincidence that the same teams play in the champs league every season....it is a self fulfilling prophecy. They get all the champs leagues riches and they attract all the best players....well done Sir John for seeing it comming....shame on you Freddy for losing our place....Mr Ashely how bad do you want back in? Mr Abramovich bad?....I doubt it!
very disappointed in kk after match comments. "soldiering on with what we have" is hardly going to inspire the players or the fans. kk has built his reputation on optimism and building confidence. that downbeat interview helps nobody. in fact in the first half we were really quite good. also i note steven taylor saying after the first goal the heads went down. i thought and had hoped those times were gone. come on lads we have only lost a game to a very good side, yes top 4 is unrealistic but top 6 would be a great start, and just remember which teams are playing in the final of this years FA cup.
When I was in short pants and playing junior football in Newcastle some 50years ago, we used to dread playing Montagu and North Fenham Juniors, Heatn Stannington Juniors and Parsons Apprentices, they were the Man U Chelsea's and Arsenals in our little world. They got the best players all the time, when a promising schoolboy came along he joined one those teams. Not ours or any at our level. It was a case every year of who will win the Youth Committee league out of those three. They could offer winning cups, being picked up by a league scout and other such delights. Sound familiar? Sorry Kev its not a new situation I found it 50 years ago.
KK has only said, IMHO, what a lot of NUFC fans think. We are a middle of the table team, at best, at the moment, and until there is serious investment in better quality players we will not progress. For next season we will have to pick from players not wanted by the Top four and the teams playing in Europe. Modric(?) is hopefully not an indicator of what might happen. We can match the likes of Spurs in terms of wages and transfer fees but unless we offer something else - e.g. playing in Europe or reasonable chance of winning a trophy - we won't get the good players to come to SJP.
To get NUFC to where we all want them is not a next season job but will take the remaining three years of KK's contract.
PS Slightly off the point - but is MO stalling on his contract to see if anybody is interested?
"the main problem at the club is the terminal decline of the midfield- IâÂÂve just explained itâÂÂs faults, but the defence usually gets a bad name as an easy cop out."
Agreed. And we have loads of midfielders: the always injured Emre, the useless Smith and Duff; the fading Butt and Geremi; the underachieving Barton; the want away Charlie; the underused Milner. Sadly, it's only the latter that should be in contention.
Alan Smith was the reason we lost to Chelsea.
Snapper what a great piece, really brought it home that there is nothing new under the sun, I remember those days also. Well done
Weve needed creative midfielders for a while now and even with nicky butt having a blinder yesterday it still comes down to strickers not taking chances. Owen could of had 2 goals and a good stiff at 3 but N'zogbia is far better than smith and duff put together.He should have replaced Viduka who looks slower every game, Put martins in the centre and N'zod left wing. We will struggle to bring in stars who arent just up here for the cash.
Our good run has come to an end but Chelsea are the only really good team we've played in that time. This mini-run also coincided with the absence of our so called creative players, Duff, Emre, Milner and Nzog. Would we play better or worse with them? The crossing of Milner and Nzog is at times woeful and possession is invariably lost. It's good to see that under KK the long ball over the defence (mainly from Enrique) to Oba is being used. If he's as fast as everyone says he is, why has it taken so long to play Craig Bellamy type balls to him?
PS What is the point of Alan Smith? Viduka gets a lot of stick for being overweight, slow and immobile but his contribution is far greater - it was as if we were playing with 10 men when he was replaced by Smith. And as Paul Patterson rightly observed, it was then down to nine when Duff appeared.
The damage to the Premiereship is already done, sucess, by the top 4 has put them out of reach of the rest; their financial clout and attractive fixture list, makes them the aspiration of all class players. We get the dross; if we,re lucky.We will have to spend very ,very big to get any class, international, of quality to come to NUFC. Just how much is Mike Ashley, going to spend on this lame duck. The squad is barely Championship standard.
Here,s a reality check.
VIDUKA...never fit cant player for 90 m.
OWEN.....half the player that he was.
MARTINS.needs serious brain surgery.
BUTT.... end of an era.
DUFF.... lost the plot,get rid.
N,ZOGBIA. wants to be away,cash in.
GEREMI.. His career is at an end.
CACAPA.. Not Prem class, too light.
ROZENHAL. Never quite made it, did he.
EMRE......A complete waste of space.
AMEOBI... Lets hope we get lucky,poor.
SMITH.... Words fail me. brain dead.
It easy to see KK,s frustration, as he trys to build up a collection of misfits & crocks.
The supporters have been wonderful , throughout a dreadful season. We deserve much better quality but it will cost a fortune to rebuild this team, to challenge, for top honours.
John Best you need serious brian surgery or get off the staff you are smoking before you post a negative blog which is baseless. When the team was wining in the last 8 games everybody was saying great things about Owen, Martins, Barton and others they loose a game agianst Chelsea a team that is in form beat Manu, Liverpool and Arsenal recently and suddenly all our players are shit come on we really have very impatient and unrealstic funs. I believe the frist half we dominated and should easily have been up by 2 goals which would have changes the outcome completely. We have a mid table team that if we add 3 quality players in the right areas we will be able to qualify for Europe next year. I do no beleieve this game by itself tells us how far we are from the top 4. I also believe the 4-3-3 worked very well in the first half we then lost Viduka which changed the formation to more of 4-5-1 as MO and Smith where playing more in midfiled than attack, besides we all know the 4-3-3 fromation will not work with Smith in the mix. I persoanlly would have replaced Viduka with Caroll to maintian the 4-3-3 formation. In the second half the started pressing our midfiled becuase we were not attacking with Smith being on the picth he cuased more confusion to our players than stopping Chelsea players.
ANways I hope KK gets the fund and the 3 to 4 quality players we need for next year.
SO.. KK's comments on Monday seems to have depressed the toon nation, but john, championship standard? I think thats going a bit far.. lets not forget that for 45 minutes we matched, and dare i say 'outplayed' the champions league finalists... And although I agree with the assessments of some players, I fear you missed some from your list
A reality check (glass is half full)
Viduka: Class. Injury prone, Share position With ASHTON next year. (~hope)
TAYLOR: England u21 captain, future nufc captain. must be the Corner stone of any future Toon side.
BEYE: Is there a better right back in the country at the moment? And will continue to improve.
ENRIQUE: THE BULL! Accomplished, A star in the making, just needs a little more time.
OWEN: heartbeat of the side at the moment,. extremely intelligent.
BUTT: needs replacing, Alex Song?(arsenal reserves)
GEREMI: terrible, what does he do well?
BARTON: Promise is there, but needs to show more going forward.. quickly.
OBA: we MUST keep him, must be first choice, opens doors for MO & VIduka (ashton!) CLASS.
N ZOGBIA: Let him go, If he doesn't really want to wear the stripes)(Kazinga Lua Lua can step up)
DUFF: lost it (should bring 4 mill)
SMITH: not good enough( should bring 5 mill)
GIVEN: best keeper in premier league
HARPER: best no 2 in premier league
MILNER: more consistancy and he'd be a better player than Bentley
EMRE: Our only true class Midfielder(when he's fit) would start in any side in the league.
KEVIN KEEGAN: The chosen one
MIKE ASHLEY: The funniest, fattest, most genuine club owner in the country.
...So it's not all bad!
I have faith in KK and honestly believe Big Mike will back him in the Market.. He wants to stand with the Fans and watch some of the best players in the world (Not just Away at Man U!)
P.s FAO Dennis Wise..
Summer shopping:
1.) Daen Ashton (relace Duke)Very 'shearer like'
1.)Micah Richards(dream team alongside Tayls!!)
2.)Alex Song (replace Butt)
3.)David Wheater (replace Faye)
4.)Alex Pato (maybe unrealistic)
5.)Alonso (replace geremi)
6.)Fraiser Cambell (maybe the new Cole)
7.) Ronaldinho ( take a chance..)
Add another four top starlets (giving Jimenez something to do)
And we can all Dream again... I would love it.. just love it!!
Don't get too down on yourselves, Newcastle is not that bad a team.
True, you have several players that are well past their prime, but you put up a good show in the first half and were unlucky not to be a goal ahead at half time. Martins was very lively and played well off Viduka though once Viduka was gone you had no one to hold the ball up.
Any team is going to have problems in midfield against Ballack, Lampard and Essien. They are all world class. Ballack has only plaid half a season this campaign and is really on form at the moment. Essien is like the Duracell bunny, he just keeps going, and Lampard, well he's Lampard - killer through balls and the ability to pop up in the box to finish.
Your midfield looked weary. Butt is getting on now, Parker - I don't know what to make of him, he reminds me of Joe Cole - he had tremendous potential but then went off the boil for a couple of years, Cole came back with a vengence, maybe Parker will too.
Geremi can blow hot or cold, he was a good servant at Chelsea and put in some important appearances but he too is getting past his prime.
Duff is good if you can keep him fit.
I think you have a great defender in Taylor, he had a good game and closed down Drogba several times.
But when you look at the squad overall, there are several fading stars (Owen, Butt, Viduka), some above average utility players, and some would-be stars whose careers have kind of gone astray (Parker, Smith, Duff).
Keegan is probably right, you need to spend some money but you need to spend it on young, quality talent that you build a team around for the future.
Yes we're miles away from the top four - but let's have a bit of a reality check here. Our unbeaten run has been ended by Chelsea who needed to win to keep their title hopes alive.
For my money, KK is THE reason for that unbeaten run which was amazing given the circumstances. KK has already achieved a significant amount in his third coming.
I was pretty surprised how pessimistic (or maybe that should be realistic?) KK was post-match. Kev you've had bugger all time this time around - how many of these players are yours?? If you get us into Europe next year that would be a massive achievement - never mind the top four.....yet. If we are going to break the top four I think Kev will need to look into extending his contract. He seems intent that he's only going to be for 3 years - which is worrying.
Fantastic news to see we will never get to see Carr in a black n white again.
the question is how much is ashley willing to pull out? hes got his manager, now isnt it time to BACK HIM, and let him do his stuff?
we all know how much the fans love keegan,we all believe ther isnt a better man than him to take us forward once again, hes the younger Bobby Robson !
now back him with your cash, or i'm not renweing my season tickets bcos its just no point.
arent you (john best) being a bit harsh on owen? bet u wont have his name on tha t list if he had taken one or two of the chances agaisnt chelsea.
Oba.. blah blah surgery? sounds like u need one more.
BUTT.... end of an era? hes one of our player of the season!
Chelsea fan here. I just wanted to add my support to those who are calling for Dean Ashton. Viduka, despite his lack of pace, is still a scary player who can make a big difference. Dean Ashton has the same physical presence and I agree with the comparison with Shearer - same type, at least. If he could get clear of his injuries he'd be perfect for you guys and hopefully England's first choice CF in the next few years.
By the way, despite the headlining Drogba, I think Chelsea's midfield is its major strength and I agree that that's where Newcastle lost it.
I'd love to see the Carling Opta Statistics (or whatever they are called now) in relation to the amount of times Geremi has given the ball away to the opposition? Fair enough, you could excuse the poor lad for his confusion on Sunday because he was playing against his old team mates but what about the other games? Whilst we're on, why not obtain the statistics for the number of times Geremi has hit the 'first man' with free kicks and corners and the number of tackles he's pulled out of this season. Bin him!! As for Sunday's game generally, has anyone forgotten that Owen had 3 excellent opportunities to score during the day. How would the game have panned out had he done so? As for the comments of 'Beau Maverick', was he at the game? Jose had a great game, good defensive work and some lovely distribution. For 'Beau Maverick' read 'Beau Jest'!
Laugh? I almost didn't.
Yeah, I was at the game and he was poor. I rate him highly, but not in that game. Charlie isn't adequate cover for him and we need another left back for cover. Most of the midfield need clearing out, however.
Obviously hit a few raw nerves there lads; we have done well recently against abject mediochrity and the skill of Kevin Keegan.The squad is as bad as I previously stated.How many clubs are knocking on the door, to buy our so called stars ???N,Zogbia, is being linked to a move to London; other than that we would struggle to get a real bid for any of the others. NON of our squad are top 4 material (FACT).
NO WONDER KK LOOKS PI$$ED OFF, mid table is a miracle.Top marks to Chris Hughton for his input to the improvement of the back 4.
Honestly... We are quite a distance from playing off teams like Chelsea.
Why? People always complain on Newcastle`s star players, like the whole team should be able to match any top team in the world. But come on, Duff,Smith,Geremi,Faye,Butt... They`re not the kind of players you crush the big four teams with.Our midfield is a bloody joke compared to these and IÃÅœm not talking about Milner or Barton, they got what it takes.
We need a creative midfielder who can handle the premiership pace, like our new target Miguel Veloso or his co-op Moutinho at Lisbon. Why not cash in on Aiden Mcgeady too?
And the defense? It`s just too shaky, we need a big powerful leader to help Taylor (who still is a great talent to keep) but I don`t wanna see a 30 year old wash-off stumbling about, the need for more young hungry talents have never been more important.
Left-back:Taye Taiwo, Wayne Bridge
Center-back:Michael Dawson, Vincent Kompany, Modibo Diakite
Right-back: Phillip Ifil, Nedum Onohua, Stephen Whittaker
Midfield: Miguel Veloso, Joao Moutinho, Mbark Bousouffa, Gareth Barry, Stewart Downing, Peter Whittingham, Tom Soares
Attack: Really no wishes, but if Smith goes I think Darren Bent, or maybe Bafetimbi Gomis would fit nicely.
About Keegan`s comment.
Is it so hard for all Toon fans to get down to earth a little? IÃÅœm a burning geordie fan, but I know when times are good and when they`re bad. Keegan=Good, Last five years=Very BAD.
KK`s got to talk down any further high-flying speculations about titles until we have the squad and results to prove we are one of the top teams.
Much has changed since the Shearer days let`s just face that and let good times roll onto next season.
A good coach is an realistic coach, and that`s what Kev is. Maybe he`s tired of the London-based chit chat about us being a under-achieving club, but the fact remains that we are, and will be top three again soon. He just needs the time to build up what turbulent times and lack of guidelines have destroyed, namely the greatest and most entertaining football ever played in the premiership.
Let`s keep hopes up for next season and the summer transfers, I think Mike Ashley got what it takes and Keegan is the right coach for Newcastle!Period!
Forgot to say how much I really despise the non-talented Alan Smith, 6m for a player who can`t shoot,can`t pass,can`t run or even tackle without getting a card, that`s the kind of buys we should be scared of this summer!