Rich

Brown cow. You calling me mam?

Now now.

Newcastle boss Kevin Keegan admits he's finding it tough to find players better than he has already. His preparations for Saturday's FA Cup clash at Arsenal have been conducted at the same time as his efforts to strengthen a small squad, and with next Thursday's transfer deadline approaching, time is running out. While giving little away amid speculation that Middlesbrough's Jonathan Woodgate, Tottenham's Pascal Chimbonda and Blackburn's David Bentley are among his targets, Keegan admits he's still in the search for new recuirts. He said: "We have nobody in yet and it is not easy to get players in better than what we have got here. "There are players there who possibly fit that criteria, but they are not available, so it is a case of trying to find someone who is available and fit the criteria we want, which is as good or better in some positions than what we have." In the meantime, Keegan will send his side out against a Gunners team still smarting from their 5-1 Carling Cup semi-final drubbing by arch-rivals Spurs insisting they will be under orders to have a go. He said: "We are going there to play them - you might think that's all I ever do. "Trust me, if I thought it was right to go there and defend and block everybody behind the ball and try to have a backs-to-the-wall, 90-minute goalless draw, I would do it. "But during my days at Liverpool, I learnt that if a team gave us 90 minutes to attack them in their half, one of us, with the ability we had, would open them up somewhere and create chances, or it might just be a deflection. "We are going to play. That's what we will do and we will see how it goes."

He got stretchered off the park at 'Boro midweek, very unlikely that he'll be involved.

I want to see his percentage of 90 minutes for Boro. Barely lasted a game this season. Started 17 games, finished 13 of them. I believe Alan Oliver would label that comment "wide of the mark". Last season he started 36 games and finished 34.

Hey, fuck you! I didn't even notice I put that. So what does the Queen call it then? The... squad. Fuck, I can't think of anything stereotypical to add. You get this round/wicket.

I've seen this post somewhere before... I'm sure of it...

They spoke to each other for 4 hours last night at Shearer's gaff, and both decided that it wouldn't be best for him to be his number 2, no firm news on whether Al rejected the role/Keegan never offered it. Keegan, Mort and Ashley all want Shearer to play a part in the "new Newcastle" is another capacity, though, and he'll make a decision on it before Monday. Keegan also expects Shearer to be manager here, perhaps even the next one.

Celebration coach?

To think he'd probably have fucked off in Roeder had stayed, as well.

You're a meringue, aye.

Howay man, a lot has changed since then. An absolute load has changed, really. Doesn't hold water.

He's also cloned David Edgar, I wouldn't read too much into it.

Given Carr Taylor Cacapa Enrique Milner Butt N'Zogbia Duff Smith Owen SUBS: Harper, Rozehnal, Edgar, Carroll, Ameobi. If The Duke doesn't make it, then this will be the team.

Why drive when you can fly? Also probably testing to see how long the journey takes so he doesn't have to move, that's IF its true of course. :lol:

link?? How desperate are you?

Hasn't been, make a new topic if you can be arsed.

Amady Faye is actually joining Blackburn Rovers... international clearance permitting (he's played for Rangers & Charlton in the last 12 months.) Can't believe that.

£9M surely cannot be right, mind, surely not.

Matthew Upson

That's me sorted then. Fuck the rest of yous. I'll just type to myself.

What sort of stuff did he say? Seems odd of a man of Lesley's calibre to slate a team he regularly scored against. I think it was because he got some racist abuse from some Everton fans when he was a kid playing his first games. Okay, that was wrong,but football was like that in general then and he used to bring it up at every opportunity in the media which pissed me off. You lot must have really upset him. Poor Les.

It's on the previous page, you nutjob.

What sort of stuff did he say? Seems odd of a man of Lesley's calibre to slate a team he regularly scored against.

Distin was originally a centre-half though, that was his favoured position, it's not exactly the same. Beye doesn't have anything like Distin's pace/height/power either, and I'm not sure if he'd cut it against some of the bigger strikers in this league. It's a decent idea that could probably do with a trial run, but it's unlikely. Wishful thinking more than anything else, which is fair enough after Beye has been pretty damn good here so far. In an ideal world we'd have both, they'd provide quality competition for places and everyone would be fine - but it probably won't be like that.