HawK

Forward pass from midfield leads to a goal, who would have thought.

I don't disagree, my point was more along the lines of needing a couple of quality British players in our first 11. The few British players we have got are hardly the stand-up example of what I was trying to say

I do think there's something to be said for a core of a few experienced, British players who can get the non-British through tough games where things are going against them. It seems to be a characteristic more in line with our own than foreigners, generally. Of course there are notable exceptions, but when our team has gone missing for entire months on end this season, it seems of little consequence or consideration for the non-British. When Arsenal romped to the title undefeated, they had Martin Keown still there, Ray Parlour, Sol Campbell alongside some of the best foreign players the Premier League has ever seen and I think they often get forgotten. Case in point was when we went down and players like Smith, Harper, Nolan, Barton took the playing squad by the scruff of the next and got us up again, I'd imagine a sense of 'This is Newcastle United, we're a Premier League team and we need to get back'.. I don't recall any of the foreign-born players being attributed to that group at the time. Until Shelvey's arrival, there's been no British player in our squad worthy of a regular starting position in a long time and we just don't have the quality or arrogance in the rest of the team to compensate for the lack of British 'grit' and heart-on-the-sleeve play that most British players have. Does this mean I'd rather have Shelvey than Fabregas, or 11 Jack Colbacks, certeris parabus, of course not. But for this club in particular to be successful, one that is so tied to the city, the area and the fans, there needs to be some kind of connection and empathy there to channel that support to become a positive force for the team. Some of our foreigners had this - Dabizas, Solano, Hatem, Ginola, Sibierski. I don't think there is any foreign player in our squad that came here because they wanted to play for Newcastle long term, and they just don't get vested into the club and it shows when the going gets tough.

Aye I'm not singling out Wright, but surely as a healthcare and sports physio professional he could highlight issues and we would see an improvement over time. Perhaps a thread rename - Derek Wright and the NUFC Physi-nos

I don't really care what they do off the field to a large degree, and Gillespie with Solano are two of the best right wingers we've ever had.

We need the next Keith Gillespie.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/35313650 How many consecutive seasons is it now we're at the bottom of this? http://i67.tinypic.com/1zwlpnt.png

Which one?

I don't think he's gash, but we don't need him. 12m on Charlie Austin or another proven PL goalscorer would be money much better spent. 12m for Shelvey was vital, we needed a player like him in the middle imo.

Maybe Perez going the other way..

why would he replace wijnaldum? surely he wont be shifted out wide after his last 2 displays? Ask our Rocket Schientisht of a manager. Anything's possible.

I'd like Townsend but not at the expense of Sissoko or Wijnaldum. As a replacement for Sissoko (potentially), I'd have to wait and see how he settles here. You won't see me arguing for increasing the amount of English players at the club.

Argh thought there was a new one when it was bumped

Are you seriously suggesting he would develop into a better player sitting on our bench with our coaching and medical team rather than continuing to stay in a team where he has scored 16 in 22 in physical league despite his size?

However relieving it is not to see Colback and Anita together in the middle, I couldn't pick Thauvin over Perez, despite Perez's recent drop off in form. Apart from vs a League One team he's shown nothing since he's joined us, whereas Perez has won games on his own on occasion in the PL.

I thought that was a serious summary at first, totally threw me I was howling by the end

Colo is fucking inspired tonight

If we sign him and he isn't injured for the rest of the season, £10 says he'll get more assists in the second half of this season than Colback and Anita combined for the whole season.

Colback Free Agent, technically IIRC.

He could be immense for us. Like a petulant,lazy version of Cabaye.

Seen more chances and proper football in those highlights than any of the past 4 games put together tbh.

This How depressing is it that you just made me excited that we could get Patrick Bamford in.

Ten minutes Timed myself doing my own When the OP takes 10 minutes to fill out his own survey, you know you're in trouble

Looks like he branded himself with a molten scarab beetle.