midds

Must admit I'm warming to the idea of DCL, mainly due to the fact we're going to need quality and quantity for next season. The main attraction is the lack of a hefty transfer fee tbh, he'll obviously be on big money if he signs but we need to box clever and getting him in on a free fills a slot without the need to shell out £30m+ on a back-up. We'll have to take advantage of the free transfers and loans this summer and DCL could be a classic example of how we do it

Got to trust the club and Howe himself that he's well enough to return Don't think this would happen if he wasn't fit enough to do so, it's a massive shot in the arm for the players and fans too. I think we'll steamroller the tractor boys now actually

Wonder what proportion of the matches Arsenal fans sit and watch their team perform passes in a horseshoe pattern about 45 yards from the opponents goal? Left to right, right to left, back to keeper and on and on it goes. Defending team shuffles left and right and it's utterly monotonous. I'm not saying they're shit but it's cripplingly dull stuff to watch at the best of times

If it's legit then I'd expect CFS to be all over it and to see it on the site for double what they paid in a month's time

I think whoever manages to sign Huijsen this summer already has one eye on flogging him to Madrid in 2027 tbh. I'd include us in that too I think

I'd keep it but flip it around a bit. Marginal penalty decision and lets say the ref gives it but he's not sure. HE asks the VAR team to get the best views of the incident and the REF initiates it. He's basically saying "I think it's a pen but I'm not totally sure, can you get all of the angles on the screen for me". He then jogs to the screen, watches it again and either confirms it or corrects himself. VAR don't even get an opinion unless it's an utter howler. The onus is still on the ref to make his own mind up (with his linesmen if need be, no objection to the ref asking for his mates to watch the screen together) and VAR stay the fuck out of it as much as possible

Surely it's "kew-arr coads" these days

Think that's Chelsea and Sancho with the £5m thing

Pawson is the cheapest refereeing slut out there, he blows for fucking anything he fancies. There's no consistency from minute to minute, he loves a collapse one minute and ignores it the next, he's like a Dungeons & Dragons 20-sided dice the utter fucking melt that he is

If the player prefers them right now, for whatever reason, then I'm not interested in seeing him in a Newcastle shirt. Tells me everything about his motivations and the things he's interested in. He's not for us, move on

Just beat Ipswich first and foremost. Takes it from 10 points from 5 games down to 7 from 4. Eyes on the prize, dispatch Ipswich and take it from there

Win the 3 homes and grab anything away and it's a cert (and that's assuming Villa are perfect and win all of their last 4). 5 big games but I'm confident

Is McGinn playing in fucking roller-boots?

At what point are both teams going to just settle for a point and the game just fizzle out?

Villa have mastered the contact = collapse to perfection mind. As soon as they feel any contact their legs immediately stop working and the referee rewards them

City will need at least 1 more to wrap this up

Means that the FA Cup slot for the EL would be handed to the League - 6th and 7th. Given the other 3 clubs in the semis all finish in the top 6 (Forest, City and Villa) then us and Chelsea get EL. I think anyway

If Villa knock out Palace in the semi final then that guarantees EL. I know it's not the competition we want to be in but if the footballing gods had offered you a trophy and EL football in August then there isn't a single Newcastle fan who wouldn't have snapped their arms off for that deal The absolute worst case scenario is shaping up to be EL - there's dozens of clubs who'd love to be in that position

I'm just surprised at a) the patience Levy has shown in him and b) how little frustration/anger there seems to be with the fans who've watched this for months. Mentioned it last night, there barely seemed more than a murmur of discontent during the game, even at 0-2 down early doors. I could easily be just expecting them to do what loads of other clubs do and bin the manager sharpish. A chairman, especially Levy, not acting quickly seems like a bit of a shock these days?

Show off...

A few weeks after the transfer window closes. That's handy

I think we all agree that any path towards the CL starts with 3 points against both Ipswich and Chelsea. We'll probably need to beat Everton on the final day too. Sneaking a win against Brighton or a point away at Arsenal would be very very handy but not necessarily crucial. The 3 homes are the key

You obviously watch far more of Spurs than we do so I'm not going to argue It just feels like it's the manner of the defeats as much as the number of them, Postecoglu seems ridiculously coupled to this 'it's just who we are mate' cliche that he, and the club, have become over the last season and a half. Refusing to change it and losing games hand over fist in the process has made him into a bit of a joke figure, very one dimensional and it's been sussed by a lot of the better teams in the league. Now and again the approach works and it looks amazing but it looks naïve (at best) more often than not (from what I've seen). I also think he's a bit too emotional and moody - to the point of being downright obnoxious in some interviews. Ultimately he's responsible for results and performances and they've been very poor for a sustained time now. Not even sure winning the EL saves him when his bread and butter is so manky

They've been dogshit for about 16 months now as last season's points tally was gained mostly in the first 13 games of their season then they hit a wall. Not quite sure how he's still in a job really