Dokko

He joined Fenerbache me thinks. Not yet. Been put on hold. Thought it was a done deal. As long as I don't see him here again, I don't give a toss. Unfortunately not, he's still ours to deal with. Cannot wait until the waste of space is gone for good.

Hiddink's Russian lads do think highly of themselves all of a sudden, but its how he gets crap to play well, by making them believe their talent is far greater than it actually is. The inflated price and ego's that follow are a product of waste from how he does his magic. I can see Arshavin ending up with egg on his face, i seriously cannot see anyone paying £25m for him, only Chelsea would with their Russian links, but that is about it. IF RA doesn't fancy spending that kind of money on him, no one else will. Can see it dragging out till the final week of the window.

I agree that incremental steps can be a good way to build up a squad, its what Spurs have been doing for the last several years, and they are in a much better position now for it and to attract better quality in the future. Sidwell would be that, but imo, its not a big enough step up to justify £5m fee or anything over £40kpw which no doubt he will want. I'd see paying money for Ben Haim a better incremental step than Sidwell.

1st Chelsea press conference, makes you sick how much the media are dying to climb up his arse, laughing wildly like starstruck schoolgirls at his lame, unfunny jokes, hanging off his every word like dirty scummy twats they truly are. Makes me sick. Ugh...

Hleb denying the quotes from him.

Sidwell isn't a defensive midfielder. Neither was speed mate. People are being far too simplistic about this. In my opinion Sidwell would make an excellent signing if we converted him into a DM, for the long term. i.e use coaching skills.... they haven't been used in a while at our club. Rather go for a proper DMC than fitting square pegs in round holes.

West Brom back for Newcastle striker Ameobi as Baggies prepare for Kev exit West Brom are expected to make another move for forward Shola Ameobi. The 26-year-old Newcastle forward still favours joining a club in the Premier League and the Baggies are likely to have around £3.5million to spend as they search for a replacement for Kevin Phillips who is poised to join Birmingham. Ameobi has been courted by Stoke, Norwich and Ipswich already this summer. West Brom manager Tony Mowbray admits he expects to lose veteran striker Phillips this summer. Former Sunderland striker Phillips, who turns 35 later this month, is holding out for a two-year contract. Scroll down for more However West Brom are prepared to offer only one year, and Phillips could spurn the chance to play in the Barclays Premier League by stepping down to join a club in the Coca-Cola Championship. Mowbray said: 'I'm pretty sure his preferred choice would be to stay here. But, at this moment, it is unlikely he will stay here. If there's a stumbling block that we can't overcome then so be it.' Phillips' goals helped West Brom to promotion last season but Mowbray is prepared to look elsewhere for a frontman to lead his attack in the top flight. 'My strong belief, particularly when footballers get to 35, is that I find it very hard to hand out two-year contracts to 35-year-olds - however well they've done,' he said. 'I genuinely believe if Kevin wants to stay, he should back his ability and earn his second year.' Mowbray added: 'We're looking for another striker regardless of what he does.' Meanwhile, West Brom have named former Norwich manager Peter Grant as the club's new first-team coach. Grant, 42, will be reunited with Mowbray, his former Celtic team-mate. He is a former assistant manager of West Ham, and Mowbray told www.wbafc.co.uk: 'You'd be amazed at the amount of good football people out of work. 'I did have one or two conversations with other people but Peter's enthusiasm and his Premier League experience was pretty crucial when it came to making a final decision.'

Could be good news for us.

Tony Mowbray feels it is 'unlikely' that Kevin Phillips will be a West Bromwich Albion player next season. Phillips is currently out of contract and is thought to have been offered a one-year deal to stay at the Hawthorns. The former England striker is believed to be holding out for a two-year contract and has been linked with local rivals Birmingham City. Baggies boss Mowbray is reluctant to give Phillips a two-year deal and is pessimistic about the forward, who turns 35 later this month, signing an extension. "I've spoken to Kevin over the last few days," Mowbray told the club's official website. "To be fair, I think he leaves most things in the hands of his advisors, who are out of the country at the moment. "I'm pretty sure his preferred choice would be to stay here. But, at this moment, it is unlikely he will stay here. "If there's a stumbling block that we can't overcome, then so be it. That's life and we all move on. "My strong belief, particularly when footballers get to 35, is that I find it very hard to hand out two-year contracts to 35 year olds - however well they've done. "I genuinely believe if Kevin wants to stay he should back his ability and earn his second year. To be fair, it's not a big task based on the contract that was put in front of him. "It's out of our hands because he's out of contract and we're getting on with things with the players that are here. "Our enquiries are continuing for other players and if Kevin re-signs that's great - but nothing will change from our perspective. We're looking for another striker regardless of what he does."

I reckon Chelsea. RA will have his Russian player worthy of a Chelsea 1st team spot, and can live happily ever after in moneyland. Do they need him though? Got plenty of attacking midfield options, and Lampard isn't leaving either. Only them and Man Utd could afford the money Zenit are talking about like. When has that stopped Chelsea buying players? Wenger thinks he's too slight and won't pay that fee for anyone. Manu would only go for him if they sell C. Ronaldo Liverpool cannot afford that kind of gamble. Its only Chelsea for me if he wants CL football in England.

Average, would have had him on a free to boost the squad, it just wouldn't sit with me paying money for him though, especially now.

I reckon Chelsea. RA will have his Russian player worthy of a Chelsea 1st team spot, and can live happily ever after in moneyland.

Arshavin close to English talks http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11661_3792421,00.html Russia playmaker 'likely' to secure Premier League negotiations The agent of Zenit St Petersburg star Andrei Arshavin has revealed that he expects the playmaker to travel to England for transfer discussions. Arshavin impressed at Euro 2008 with Russia to place himself on the radar of a host of European clubs and Spanish giants Barcelona had a second offer of 15million euros (£12m) turned down on Monday. And while Arshavin's agent, Dennis Lachter, is adamant the likes of Arsenal and Chelsea have yet to make an official approach, he has stated that he expects the 27-year-old to be heading to the Premier League for negotiations. However, Lachter insists Arshavin would only consider a club which can provide UEFA Champions League football. "Andrei would like to play in the Premier League but he will not accept an offer from clubs like Newcastle, Middlesbrough and Aston Villa," Lachter said in the Daily Telegraph. Ambition "There are only four British clubs he would play for and they are in the Champions League. It's not about money, it's about a team and professional ambition. "Zenit is negotiating with several clubs. We are now waiting for a phone call from Zenit president Alexander Dyukov to allow us to negotiate his personal terms with one of them. It's most likely he will be heading for England." But Lachter has said that any interested club will need to double Barca's bid and table an offer of around £24million to prise the playmaker away from Zenit. "It's going to be a very big transfer," Lachter added. "Zenit will definitely not accept an offer of less than 30million euros (£23.8m). "They are owned by Gazprom, who are one of the biggest oil companies in the world, so they can afford not to sell him cheaply."

So hard? What's so hard about the work he's put in to this club since joining? Really? Since he's came in all he's done is employ asset strippers to survey the club, get the stupid debts off its back and try and make it self sufficient. One, it's one step further down the strip that we need. Two, it's showed no ambition to want to change things on the pitch. Three: The club is being gutted out ready to sell like you would with any cheap property; buy and sell, and why not? He didn't make 2bn by just thinking these things. You are saying he's not sat on his arse? I really cannot see what he's done which gives him the kind of merit and blind stupid hope some think he is going to achieve from the very little he's doing. It's incredible. He's doing, or his team what 99.9% of the people on this board would think of doing if they were in the same situation, only do we believe he's living in? Or is his intentions are to sell? I don't see expensive carpets laying down, for me so far this is a refit and sell on job. ,

That's not allowed. Fiddlesticks. Although thats just my opinion, you're probably better off formulating one of your own Nah, I'll just let you decide for me. It's easier that way. I don't even know what I'm agreeing with any more, so I'm just going to disagree & be done with it. Hope you agree??? That's fine with me. We'll agree that we're going to disagree. I'm sure that's something we can both agree on. Baaaaaaa!

Then you haven't got the brain cells to make your own opinion of course.

Very good point, that could be why Wise and Jimenez are in Dubai next couple of weeks. Which would be understandable if the club was owned by someone with limited funds (ie previous regime) and wanted it to expand, but in Ashley's circumstances it really does make me ask: why? You don't become billionaire without exploiting every money making opportunity. I'd imagine a medium term lease on the surrounding land including allowed development would be very profitable to the club. That's a massive assumption.

How's Ryan Donaldson doing? Last i heard he was performing quite well for England.

The amazing secret of United’s wing wizard Gutierrez Jul 6 2008 by Neil Farrington, Sunday Sun Jonas Gutierrez IF boyhood maketh the man, then Newcastle fans should have no worries about Jonas Gutierrez being another foreign import lacking heart. A series of overseas signings have come, seen and conspicuously failed to conquer the challenge of adapting to English football at St James’s Park. And Gutierrez’s chequered recent past at Real Mallorca — they have accused him of illegally tearing up his contract, having seen him refuse to play against Real Madrid last season when a move to England first seemed likely — may not inspire confidence that he can buck that trend. But it should not be a lack of fibre — moral or physical — which Argentinian winger Gutierrez becomes remembered for on Tyneside. Not after the incredible against-the-odds battle he won to become a professional footballer. Named after the biblical Jonah who lived for three days and three nights inside a whale, Jonas had to prove himself a survivor long before he earned the “greyhound” nickname he enjoys in Argentina today. For he was barely beyond a toddler when his mother, Monica, noticed something different — and worrying — about him. “When I was a very small boy, I developed a paralysis down the left side of my body,” Gutierrez, now 25, reveals. Ominously, what doctors in Buenos Aires hoped would be a temporary condition persisted, leaving Monica Gutierrez seeking advice on how to help her son. “After a while, the doctors advised her that I should try to practice some sport or sport as therapy,” Gutierrez adds. “So I began to play football.” That beginning was as a five-year-old with the junior “babies” section of local club Estudiantes. And what therapy football proved to be. Devoting practically every waking hour to the game, Gutierrez gradually overcame his condition and made a name for himself at junior level. After Estudiantes, the youngster played in the junior ranks of six other clubs — including Argentinos Juniors and River Plate — before signing for Velez Sarsfield as a teenager. He scored on his professional debut came as a substiute against Uruguayan side Penarol in South America’s Copa Mercosur a few days after the terrorist attacks on September 11. And he knows who to thank for the completion of an incredible journey from a doctor’s surgery in Buenos Aires to the Premier League. “It’s all down to my mother.”

Bassedas: Gutierrez will be a superhero on Tyneside Jul 6 2008 by Neil Farrington, Sunday Sun SPIDERMAN has been backed to maintain his superhero status at Newcastle — by the Magpies’ last Argentine import. Christian Bassedas is confident that Jonas Gutierrez can succeed where he ultimately failed, and spin out a successful career in the Premier League. Having watched Gutierrez rise to prominence in Argentina with his own former club Velez Sarsfield, Bassedas has kept a keen eye on the winger’s progress at Real Mallorca. And the one-time United midfielder believes his compatriot is perfectly suited to the physical rigours of the Premier League. “I think Jonas will have success because he is very good physically — maybe not the strongest but very quick down the flanks and hard-running,” Bassedas told the Sunday Sun. “He gets up and down the wing without problem and puts in nice crosses. He will be an interesting addition to English football. “He doesn’t look the characteristic South American player in my opinion. His other nickname is ‘greyhound’ because he never stops running.” But Bassedas, having spent three years at St James’s Park and the last three seasons commentating on English football for Argentine TV, knows that both fitness and flair are required to succeed in our top flight. And that’s why the memory of Argentina’s victory over Brazil last month answers any lingering doubt in Bassedas’s mind over Gutierrez’s prospects over here. “He played really well for the national team in the World Cup qualifier against Brazil. “It was a surprise because he had hardly played international football and is not such a big name here in Argentina. “But the manager trusted him to take care of the Brazilian right-back, Maicom, and he did a really good job.” And Bassedas, whose struggle to adapt to the Premier League was never down to a lack of commitment, added: “I will be jealous if Jonas is a new hero for Newcastle! “But if the team and the city are doing well, I will be happy.”

Very good point, that could be why Wise and Jimenez are in Dubai next couple of weeks. Which would be understandable if the club was owned by someone with limited funds (ie previous regime) and wanted it to expand, but in Ashley's circumstances it really does make me ask: why?

A lot of people including myself knew about him before E2008, and even with a couple of great games on the big stage, he's still a risk, at £25m this club simply cannot afford a risk like it. Ah, think your coming from a different angle, I wasn't looking at the perspective of Arshavin joining Newcastle, in fact I don't even think he'd take a second look at us now. I agree for that particular price it would be far too big a gamble for us. However to a club like Inter Milan, Barcelona or even some of the lesser lights like Liverpool, Fiorantina or Villareal he'd be well worth the gamble, Got you. £25m is a gamble for any of them, a one which some can afford to do, the price is inflated still but that's what shining in a major tournament does to a player and its to be expected. I personally don't think he's worth that kind of price, but with supposed interest growing its a sellers market in his case, and it might take a mad price to finalise the deal.

A lot of people including myself knew about him before E2008, and even with a couple of great games on the big stage, he's still a risk, at £25m this club simply cannot afford a risk like it.

Yes but if you think about it. Before Euro 2008, despite wining the UEFA cup with Zenit, he was still very much an unproven quantity. But, now that he has delivered in one of the biggest stages of International Football, you can see exactly what you are getting. Although £25million is a bit steep, I would certainly pay it out on someone who can get us to the next level and if he manages to get us into the UEFA cup in 2008/2009 then he has paid back a large bulk of that fee. UEFA cup football makes you peanuts. I'm sure you've got to reach the semi's to get past the £3m mark.

I'd start getting nervous at the £15m mark, anything more than that then i'm quite happy to see that ship sale past us.