Summer business

Much has been made about the end of season review which will take place between Pardew, Ashley and Llambias in the coming weeks. Frankly I cannot see how Pardew can keep his job after our terrible performance this season. He has given no indication that he can return us to the business end of the league. For me he needs to be sacked immediately and replaced by either Rafa Benitez or Roberto Martinez. That is the key to our future sucess. I believe we have a good squad who under the right leadership could be back amongst the top 6.

Below I want to give my assessment of what we need to do to get our club out of the mess we currently are sitting in.

Out

Harper

Simpson

Williamson

Gosling

Jonas - or stay as a squad player

Shola

Loaned out

Sammy

Ferguson

Campbell

Dummett

Innman

Newton

In - Any of the following

Andy Carroll        Starter

Romeu Lukaku     Starter

Edin Dzeko          Worth a bid

Shane Long         Upgrade on Gouffran

James McCarthy   Starter

Scott Sinclair       Upgrade on Gouffran

Loic Remy           Starter

Adam Le Fondre   Impact Sub

Andreas Weimann Impact Sub

Steven Caulker     Compete with Taylor

Demba Ba...        IF surplus at Chelsea
Micheal Dawson

I only want us to buy British based player / players with Premiership experience as i feel this is exactly what we are missed this season.

These additions would allow us to have plently of squad coverage and also would allow us to adapt our tactics and formations for each game.

IF we could line up with the following Squad options next year:

(4-3-3)

Krul / Elliot

Santon / M'biwa
M'biwa / Taylor
Colo / Dawson
Debuchy / Haidara

Cabaye / McCarthy
Tiote / Perch
Sissoko / Anita

Ben Arfa / Weimann
Carroll / Cisse / Remy
Sinclair / Long

Benitez, Jol or Martinez?

In the aftermath of Newcastle's stunning defeat to Sunderland in the Tyne Wear derby the spotlight is well and truly on Alan Pardew. The derby defeat coupled with our overall poor season means the heat is really going to be turned up on Pardew who now must get a reaction out of his squad starting this weekend. Only a strong end to the season and more points on the board will give Pardew a chance of surviving in his job this summer.

If Pardew is to lose his job this summer who are the likely candidates to take over the reins at St James?  We all know Newcastle are ran a little differently in that Mike Ashley has his set structure at the club - we have a vision of how we want out club to be ran and any new manager would have to agree to work under these strict rules. As we saw Kevin Keegan was not willing to work this way and for the second time he left the club.

Like most Newcastle fans I am very realistic and understand the limitations of our club in terms of attracting players and coaches. When looking at potential replacements for Pardew we can obviously rule out any of the top established managers and also the likes of Jurgen Klopp at Borussia Dortmund, Frank De Boer, or Manuel Pellegrini.

For me we can look closer to home as I believe there is quality in our own Premier League. Let me look at three possible candidates.

Roberto Martinez does a good job at Wigan and has recently been linked with the Liverpool and Aston Villa. Credit to Martinez as he does continue to keep Wigan in the Premier league where they are punching well above their weight. Wigan play some nice football, yet always seem to be involved in a relegation battle every year. I worry about him dealing with top players, bigger budgets and the expectation which comes with managing a club like Newcastle United.

Martin Jol is a experienced Premier league manager who has also worked on the continent with Hamburg SV and the Mighty Ajax. Currently working with Fulham, Jol has done a great job with a small club settled mid-table in the Premier league. I am a big fan of Jol and think he ticks a lot of boxes in term of what I want in a team manager. Fulham are known as a side who play football the right way with players who have quality on the ball - Berbatov and Dembele for example, yet Jol also wants his teams to remain solid and hard to beat.

 I feel Jol has ambitions to compete at a higher level than what is possible with a club like Fulham. Just a few years back Martin led Spurs to two top 5 finishes before Gareth Bale arrived and took Spurs to another level. His side played great football, full of young quality players and actually reminded me a lot of the young guns side assembled at NUFC by Sir Bobby Robson.

Newcastle could be a club who offer Jol the chance to get back amongst the top 6 and I would very much welcome him to the St James hot seat and believe he would handle the job and take NUFC to the next level.

The next candidate and ectually my preferred choice for the job is a little controversial. If Mike Ashley is to fire Alan Pardew this summer I would love to see him bring in Rafa Benitez. The currently Chelsea "interim' manager is being given a rough time by the Stamford bridge faithful yet is still doing a solid job in difficult circumstances and looks on course to finish in the top 4 and win the Europa League.

Benitez is a vastly experienced tactician who's reading of the game cannot be questioned. During him time with Valencia he won the Championship twice and won the UEFA cup which is a massive achievement in a league which contains Barcelona and Real Madrid and it will be a long time before we see this happen again in Spain. Following this sucess he joined Liverpool where again he delivered sucess at the highest level with a Champions league victory on a night no football fan will ever forget. Consistent finished in the top 4 and victories in the domestic cup competition's were a key fixture during Rafa's time with Liverpool.

If Newcastle could bring in Benitez it would be a major coup for the club. This could be the perfect situation for both Rafa and our club as we both crave a return to the top table of English and European football.

I have heard people band around names like Gus Poyet, Roberto Di Matteo and Michael Laudrup but i just do not see any of these managers being a step in the right direction or really having the quality to be an upgrade from Alan Pardew.

As we know however football is a funny old game and a few years back we would have loved Martin O'Neill to lead club yet now he is sitting on the managerial scrap heap having been replaced by some young Italian upstart!

i have the feeling we will see big changes at the club in the summer. Players are certain to leave yet the biggest decision the board have to make it whether Alan Pardew is the man to take our club forward or if he has taken us as far as he can.

Sunderland defeat - Pardew's future

I have intentionally waited for the dust to settle on the Derby defeat as I did not to get caught up in the emotion of it all and write a article full of knee-jerked reactions.

Now that four long days have passed since the bitter blow of defeat at the hands of Sunderland I wanted to take a long hard look at this result and where we are heading with this current set up of players and staff.

Sunday hurt. For me any defeat hurts but for obvious reasons this one always stings. I tend not to be one that gets wrapped up in all the Geordie / Mackem hatred. I have friends who are Sunderland fans, I went to University in Sunderland and in general Mackems are not so bad. For me the two derby days are the only time I really care about Sunderland Football club. On any other days they are just another Premier league rival. I have a bigger vision for my club than simply just beating Sunderland. I want our big rivals to be Man Utd, Chelsea, and Arsenal because that will mean we are competing at the top of the table once again.

Sunday hurt not only due to the result, but more to the manner of defeat. The lack of passion, energy and desire was worrying. Yes Sunderland scored 3 top quality individual goal - the likes that have not been seen by those particular players, yet they beat us all over the park and showed are greater desire to take all 3 points and local bragging rights. Di Canio certainly won the managerial battle in terms of tactics, formation, team shape, and a game plan. He obviously had his troops fired up for the battle, and for us to not be able to match that fight is very disappointing.

In the immediate aftermath of a defeat like this the fickle side of Newcastle United fans comes out. Calls for Pardew to leave, and suggestions that our French players have no 'Fight' in them were heard loud and clear  across the World.

Twitter, Facebook and fanzines were buzzing with demands for a change of manager less than a year after Pardew led us to 5th in the Premier league and was awarded the Manager of the year award. Yes Newcastle over achieved last year, but Pardew does deserves credit - you cannot finish 5th in the strongest league in the world on the back pure luck. Likewise a team and manager who achieved so much do not become a bad team 12 months later.

You have to look at the major incidents which have effected our season and how much control Pardew has. We can all agree the Europa League has stretched out squad to the limit. Yes we enjoyed those European nights but we just do not have enough quality in the squad to maintain a challenge both at home or abroad. Is this Pardews fault? for me no. We know transfers and player recruitment is dealt with at a higher level than Pardew. I imagine he has input, yet it is down to the business men to do the deals and provide him with a squad capable of competing. If the 5 players recruited in January had been recruited before the season started i am certain we would not be in this position.

The Fabricio Coloccini issue is completely out of the hand of the manager. For our skipper to be suffering from personal problems and wanting to leave the club is a massive blow. Colo has been our leader and outstanding player for the past few years and losing him has had a big impact on our season. I cannot see how Pardew could have acted any differently. Likewise with the key injuries to the likes of Ben Arfa and the sale of Demba Ba who is yet to be replaced.

Don't get me wrong I am not a big Pardew fan, however I just feel if he is to be criticized then I feel he need to be fairly judged.

Judging him fairly is looking at his management of the team of the field. His selections, tactics and substitutions. Unfortunately for Alan this season he has disappointed a lot of fans with his match day management. Questions can still be asked about his tactical skills and his ability to adapt and change a game with his decisions from the sideline. Where is Alan's plan B? does he have it in him to react, change a game, or win games from a losing position? The jury is still out on him this season.

Pardew has done a steady job since joinging the club in 2011 - me won me over with the way he guided the team last year, however I am unsure of how long he can live off last years success. This season I feel we are back to where we were under Chirs Hughton's leadership. Pardew was brought in to replace Hughton and to take us to the next level. Can we honestly say we are now at the next level? In terms of playing personnel I would say yes, I feel we have one of our strongest squad we have had for a long time with real quality. I therefore look at the manager and the question facing Mike Ashley is whether Alan Pardew is the right man to take this squad forward and reach its full potential.

As we know MIke does not suffer fools and will make the move he feels the club needs to get back amongst the top 6. I have a strong feeling the will be changes in the summer. Ashley is a ruthless businessman who will not hesitate to replace Alan Pardew. The big question for us fans is who would be the right man to replace him?

England picked on current form..

After yet another England disappointment this week I really find myself frustrated as time and time again the England squad and team is picked on reputation rather than current form.

For Hodgson to pick Joleon Lescott and Chris Smalling as the starting centre half partnership is nothing short of a disgrace. I know we have injuries however Lescott does not even play regular first team football, and Smalling is a promising player, yet is still 4th choice at his club.

We keep hearing that an England squad will be picked on current form and will not be a 'closed shop' available to only the so-called elite. Yet time and time again this happens.

For me based on this seasons form I would pick the 11 players below to represent England:This might not be the best 11 individuals but the certainly deserve a call up.

 

Ben Foster

Leighton Baines

Steven Taylor

Rio Ferdinand

Carl Jenkinson

Jack Wilshere

Michael Carrick

Joey Barton

Theo Walcott

Rickie Lambert

Wayne Rooney

Wigan + FA - Disgrace

In one of my recent blog entries I said that our defeat against Swansea left me as frustrated as I had been all season due to us losing a game I felt we dominated, however this changed after our visit to Wigan this past Sunday.

Everything that could have went wrong for us on the day did - from the injuries to the hand ball goal and of course that foul. Actually I do not want to call it a foul - let's call it was it was - an assault.

NUFC went into this game buoyed after our Europa league success against Anzhi yet left the North West with a sour taste in our mouths feeling a great sense of injustice.

Lets get the facts out of the way first - Callum McManaman made a terrible, career ending foul on Massadio Haidara that was not even deemed bad enough for a free kick. This was clearly a red card offence yet 4 officials who are supposed to be at the top of their profession decided this incident did not even merit a free kick. There is the big problem - why did none of the officials make the call we all know this incident deserved? Why did the FA cowardly hide behind their "policies' when everyone, except Dave Whelan knows this was a clear red card.

This shows everything that is wrong with our game. We are ran by a bunch of face-less politicians who never answer a question with a straight answer. I am a big listener of Talksport and yesterday Darren Bailey, the FA's director of football governance and regulation spoke to the presenters and tried to explain the FA's policies are procedures to deal with incidents like we saw on Sunday. As a fan the frustration comes from his continued stance that the FA cannot re-referee games yet we all know that by rescinding red cards they are already re-refereeing games - his whole argument was a contradiction. To make matters worse the linesman who claims to have seen a "Coming together" does not have to have seen the full incident, simple a coming together. Surely this is wrong and is exactly what led managing director Derek Llambias to label the FA's rules as "Not fit for purpose".

If one of the FA's darling's such as Rooney or Gerrard was on the end of such a foul they would have acted differently, likewise if it was Joey Barton, Shawcross, or Tiote who made this tackle the FA would have thrown the book at them.

Roberto Martinez and Whelan have done no favours for their club by defending their player - they are a disgrace. Coming out with lines such as "He is a lovely lad, he does not have a bad bone in his body" etc.. infuriate me - this does not excuse that he committed a terrible foul and needs to be punished. Haidara might be a lovely lad - does he deserve to be I the hospital?

I also hear today that as of yet their has been no personal or official apology made to the young lad. Shocking.

Any creditably the FA had has now gone - fans around the country will all understand the frustration Newcastle United now carry. I imagine Callum McManaman will face the brunt of fans frustrations as they see the injustice and will know that instead of Haidara lying in a hospital bed it could have been a player from any club.

McManaman will be known and targeted for this incident and his reputation in the game is now set. For me McManaman will have to deal with the consequences as a result of his actions.

And don't even get me started on the handball winning goal...

Steven Taylor - England material

Steven Taylor earned the praises of NUFC manager Alan Pardew after yet another fine performance during Newcastle's 2-1 win over Stoke City on Sunday. 

"Steven Taylor was immense," he said. "He was brilliant. It was an England-standard performance. England need to look at Steven at centre-half.


Newcastle's squad was boosted by the arrival of 5 new players in January and all these lads have added so much to the squad yet it could be the return to fitness of the big Geordie defender which proves to be the biggest boost for the season run in. 

Taylor's return also coincided with a time of turmoil as NUFC as club captain Fabricio Coloccini revealed he wanted to leave the club and return to his native Argentina. As we know the club did there best to convince Colo to stay with the club until at least the summer. As fans we were ready to see Taylor and Colo be re-united in a defensive partnership, but we were left uncertain as a result of Coloccini's personal issues.

Regardless of injuries or personal issues we all knew another centre half was a transfer must during the January window. The club delivered in bringing in Mapou Yanga Mbiwa - This lad is class and will go on to be a top top defender for both club and country.

For me all of the panic and disillusion surrounding Coloccini leaving the club is slowly dissolving and I can see a bright future with Taylor and Mbiwa as our defensive backbone. 

On the international stage Taylor is certainly staking a claim to at least earn a spot in Roy Hodgsons squad. England fans have long cried out for a squad picked on current form and not reputations. To be fair Hodgson has shown he is willing to give players a chance - not many of us would have thought Leon Osman would become a regular in the England squad.

With Rio Ferdinand no longer in and around the England squad and with John Terry's injury record there is a problem at centre half for England. Taylor's competition for a place in the squad will be:

Phil Jagielka
Joleon Lescott
Gary Cahill
Chris Smalling
Michael Dawson

I am not saying Taylor is better than all these lads, however other than Jagielka not all are currently first team choices for their club. If the squad is picked on current form then wor Steven should certainly pick up his first England cap in the coming months and of course will the World cup coming up next year what better time to breaking into the Squad.

Taylor is one of us, a real fans favourite. He obviously has a real passion for our club and wears the Black & White with huge pride. To see a Geordie succeed on  a international level would be a huge boost for the club and the city. 

"It would be a dream come true," said Taylor. "I've always said it's the greatest honour for a professional footballer and, for me, it would be the icing on the cake. But Mr Hodgson has the final say."

South Wales Frustration & Eastern promise

This past weekend Newcastle were defeated in South Wales 1-0 by a Swansea team who are having the times of their lives after their recent Capital one cup victory.

To the neutral fan I am sure the win for Swansea would be no real surprise as the Welshmen have an impressive home record this season, however anyone who watched the game will know that the result does not tell the true tale of a closely fought match.

Seeing Newcastle lose to such a sloppy, late goal on Saturday took me to my lowest point of the season. Losing a game which we were dominating is such a crushing feeling. After riding our the early storm which saw lots of possession by the home team NUFC were able to adjust and grab the game by the scruff of the neck. We had chances to take the lead, none were clear cut chances, rather opportunities which we should have taken advantage of - Gouffran, Cabaye, and Cisse all had good efforts yet a goal would not come. Despite of this NUFC were completely in control of this game - easily dealing with any Swansea attacks and dominating possession of the ball.

All this good work was undone in a moment of madness which saw Luke Moore pounce on the ball following a mix up between Davide Santon and Mapou-Yanga Mbiwa to poke the ball home. This was not even a chance created by Swansea - Wayne Routledge played a hopeful ball into the the box and 4 United defender were out-foxed by Moore. All afternoon Swansea did not pose a problem for our backline, yet we were undone in such a basic manner.

My frustration is born out of the fact we played well, Pardew managed well, and Swansea were no threat yet we came away with nothing. To be honest I would rather lose a game 3-0 on a day where we just do not turn up at all - nothing is more deflating or crushing than not receiving any credit, or points when you clearly deserve them. I even find it hard to be harsh on our defenders, as all game they played well and nulified the prolific Michu.

We now need to dust ourselves down and prepare for a big Europa League game against Anzhi in the Russian capital. A 0-0 result or away goal is a must if we are to bring the tie back to St James where we can finish off the job. To do this we will need to pay close attention to their superstar forward - Samuel Eto'o and also the giant Ivorian forward Lacina Traore who scored against Liverpool in the group stages of the EL.

There are plenty of similar names amongst the Anzhi squad - Former premiership player - Yuri Zhirkov, Lassana Diarra, two Brazilians in Ewerton and the 35m Euro man Willian and the squad is managed by one Europe's best coaches in the Dutchman Guus Hiddink.

I fancy United to score, but also to concede and see a close game which will finish in a 1-1 tie - A result I am sure will see NUFC return to the North East with a smile of their faces.