Tiote: Can't touch this.An early return for Arsene Wenger’s side after our last meeting ended up, deservedly, with a share of the spoils after Newcastle came back from 4 goals down – a first in Premier League history.
A late 5:30PM kick off for the Toon after an eventful first day of football. Bolton sit at the top of the table after trouncing newly promoted Queens Park Rangers 4-0, Wolves sit in second place after a 2-1 victory over Blackburn Rovers, followed by Liverpool, Norwich, Sunderland and Wigan – all of which scoring 1 goal a piece while Aston Villa and Fulham drew without finding the back of the net.
As it stands, Newcastle stand 14th in the league while Blackburn and QPR opening their season in the relegation zone. (more…)
Mike Ashley: Playing a dangerous game at NUFC?With the new season just a few short hours from kick off, Toon fans everywhere take stock of the events of the past few months and are no doubt wondering what kind of start we’ll have given the merciless squad upheaval.
Since the transfer window opened Geordies have sat around with baited breath hoping for some good news to pop up on the Sky Sports News Ticker. Needless to say, it’s been a rollercoaster ride. [Neil] Taylor, Gervinho, Gameiro, Cabaye, Erdinc, Nolan, Marveaux, Ba, Barton, Routledge, Enrique, Crouch, Defoe, Long, Beckford, Lovenkrands, Bendtner, Benayoun – and that’s just the players we’ve bought, sold, are supposed to be selling or been linked with that I can think of off the top of my head!
Toon fans are a rugged lot and we’ve put up with enough of the proverbial for us to be able to pick apart a rumour from a genuine story and gladly celebrate when we are linked to a top player; at least somebody out there thinks we can sign Messi for an estimated £8m.
Still, taken into account our outgoing transfers (Nolan, Enrique, Routledge) and comparing them to our incoming (Cabaye, Marveaux, Abeid, Ba, Obertan) – I’d usually say we’ve done pretty well! (more…)
Not far to reach for the stars!There’s no arguing that Fraser Forster is a ‘huge’ talent, as he towers a good several inches over the tallest of his Newcastle defenders. But is he good enough to attract the likes of Arsenal and Tottenham scouts?There have been several rumours this weekend after a dearth of speculation over player departures, (well it is that time of year), and one relates to the big fella from Hexham.
He’s had a number of impressive displays in the junior and reserve sides and was pushing Tim Krul as back-up to Steve Harper. However, after Krul’s return from loan to Falkirk, it was Forster’s turn to go out on loan to gain some match experience.
And he’s been out at Stockport County, Bristol Rovers and Norwich City, where he remains on loan until the end of the season.
A commanding and able goalkeeper, though still relatively inexperienced, Forster is highly regarded in these parts by the experts.
But with first team opportunities at a premium, could Forster’s head be turned by the bright lights of the big city? (more…)
Jack just the ticket?The rumours have been rife for a good week or so and probably mooted by optimistic supporters long before, that Newcastle United could be in for Arsenal’s highly-related Jack Wilshere. And according to our local press, he could well be on Chris Hughton’s radar.
Recently Arsene Wenger spoke to press and suggested that one option is to loan out the midfielder to a Championship club. And considering the lack of creativity in the side, it would seem a good option for Chris Hughton to try and bring Wilshere in, particularly as there may be no permanent incoming transfer alternatives in January.
Wenger admitted that it’s an interesting option for Wilshere to go out on loan to a team in the second tier and is keen for Wilshere to get more first-team football, saying: (more…)
Here to save the world!With the air thick with takeover talk, real or imaginary, now feels like a good time to throw in a spanner, or two. It is widely acknowledged that, under impossible circumstances, Chris Hughton and his staff have done an astounding job thus far managing Newcastle United. With a pre-season filled with doom-laden mutterings of “Doing a Leeds”, crashing though the divisions and into financial meltdown….while nothing of the sort has transpired. There’s still time yet, of course, but to the untrained eye all in the garden looks rosey.
Let’s make an assumption. Let’s assume that Barry Moat’s bid goes sailing through and, within minutes, we have the mighty Alan Shearer at the helm. How do the collective feel about that? Is he a white knight riding in to save us or an egomaniac sating his need for attention, and doing us more harm in the process? As Stardust (and David Frost on ‘Through the Keyhole’ ) would say….”Let’s look at the facts”.
His managerial record:
Played 8, Won 1, Drew 2, Lost 5.
….it’s not great, it’s not even mediocre. But, is he really to be judged on eight, end-of-season, scrambled bunfights with a dispirited squad, and a ton of behind-the-scenes pressure? Arsene Wenger said, at the time of Shearer’s appointment, that any manager coming in, with 8 games left, and expected to turn things around. Well that man wouldn’t be a manager, he’d be a magician. (more…)
