TRon

The difference in this game could be the strikers on both sides. In Zegic and Martins they have a potential threat. I'm not sure what we've got in Lovenkrands and Best. We are probably better in other areas of the pitch but it counts for nothing unless there's goals to show for it.

I can see there being quite a few more draws which will just drag the torture on for a longer period.

This is one of the things I pick up on to criticise with regards Pardew. You see, for me, under Hughton we had game plans predicated on taking the calculated risks necessary to score goals and win points with our limited team. Kind of pre-meditated swashbuckling. It's one of the things I think Pardew hasn't understood and has removed/is removing from our game. Consequently, we're less effectively organised. We're a more mundane team, and in our position mundanity invites destruction. Given that, allied to our striking injuries and possible suspensions, I have real doubts about the winnability of the home games you mention. So if you're right about us losing at Stoke too... I can see things looking pretty toxic. Aside from that, thanks for the post Johnny. That's a good point. Hughton was sometimes considered too negative but I always felt we were pretty hard to beat because he had the team well organised. Against that, Pardew has probably got us a couple of wins through his desire to play the pressing game...although I thought it was a bad idea against Fulham and played right into their hands. I would like to see more flexibility from Pardew to suit the opposition rather than a one size fits all approach. That's more for next season though. Right now we just need to get the next win sooner rather than later as it's been a while since we picked up maximum points. I am pretty sure it won't be against brum.

Most of baines quality delivery comes from set pieces He is nowhere near as effective as Enrique offensively or defensively Rubbish. Most of Baines' quality delivery comes from open play if you actually watch him. It's only recently he's even started to get a look in at taking set pieces (previously Arteta took everything) and his dead ball delivery isn't as consistent as his crossing. 9 assists this season. Going to be the 2nd season in a row he's got more than any other defender by some distance. Enrique is a very good player but it's daft to suggest he's better going forward than Baines. Enrique probably edges it defensively (though Baines supposed 'weakness' in that area can be massively overstated, purely because of his size). Hopefully Man U will switch their sights to Baines then.

Sometimes it's worth giving players from abroad some time to settle. Coloccini and Enrique showed glimpses of their quality from the first day in a Newcastle shirt but because they had a few hairy moments getting used to the pace of English football the critics were quick to pounce. I'm gald they stuck it out and we didn't end up flogging for a fraction of their real value.

Spurs, Arsenal and Liverpool have also been linked although the latter won't be serious bidders having bought Carroll.

And is he?No,and half the idiotic/inbred support will never realise a decent player until it's too late. Spanner. Reading this thread from the first page should prove interesting. Not that I have like but just from memory.

Eh?! Milner? N'Zogbia? Given? Bassong? Beye? Faye? A ludicrous post. Milner was an excellent sale, the money was brilliant and he was average for us at best. We had already pissed N'Zogbia off by signing Duff to the point that he desperately wanted out. Given thought it was his big chance to join the Man City revolution, granted the money was less than we should have squeezed out of them. Beye and Bassong were after relegation, both were new to England and had no attachment to NUFC. Faye was a weird one, I agree I don't know why the hell he wanted to go to Stoke. Maybe he only came here because of Allardyce in the first place. There will always be players coming and going - if every player that leaves means we're a selling club then we've been one for generations. All I'm saying is that I don't have any evidence that Colo, Enrique, Barton, Tiote, Ben Arfa or whoever else is playing well that week is going to be sold. And it pisses me off that people continuously post as if it's a given. All clubs will sell when they have an asset which other clubs will pay handsomely for. Enrique only has two years left on his contract so isn't going to command a massive fee. Which is why it's probably worthwhile holding him to his contract or offering a better wage. Selling him just shouldn't be an option for the sort of fee we are likely to receive.

Based on what? Missing enough chances to win ten games in three of our recent matches? How many players will bring in £35m in one go though? Enrique is probably every bit as important to us but if we sell him we'll be lucky to get £10m. Just putting the reason for the sale in context.

While it has always been obvious that Enrique was quality even in his first year, today made me realise he's probably the best left back in the premier bar none. There are only three or four players in this squad worth paying a bit extra to keep them here. This is definitely one of them.

West Ham down then.

Agree! He looks like a man capable taking of taking on Samba. I always think the best way to take on big strong centre backs is with pace and movement. I'd like to see how big and strong Samba would look against Tevez or Bellamy.

I think Enrique is very happy here and always has been. There's only one reason he would leave and that's if a really big club came in which would mean a much bigger pay packet to go with it. If that happens there's not really much we can do about it other than get the best price we can or keep him to his contract and lose any fee when it runs out.

Kuqi to belly flop on the bench. Because that would mean Best or Ranger had done the business so he wouldn't get on the pitch.

Enrique has shelved talk on a new contract till the summer from what we've been told. No doubt he's on decent wedge already, assuming we want to keep him he'll need to be offered something similar or better. A lot depends how badly we want to keep our best players and how much we should be prepared to pay to convince them to stay. At the end of the day we could have kept Carroll if we were prepared to meet his wage demands.

Time for a reality check. Players liker Enrique aren't going to ditch us for Everton, Villa or Bolton. But if a top club comes in offering big wages there's not a lot we can do but hope they aren't interested. If they want to go then we make sure we get the best deal possible otherwise keep them to their contract. Most clubs outside of Europe are in the same position.

Can't see him scoring but he might barge around in the penalty area and cause enough confusion for Nolan to poke home a loose ball.

While on paper it is a joke signing which is embarrassing at best, on the pitch I can see how it could work. As an impact sub he might prove useful, it will at least offer some options on the bench.

Does anyone else think Jonas' crossing has got much better as this season has gone on? He's been one of our most important players IMO.

from what i remember he could but then he didn't know what to do with it...and that was him 4 or 5 years younger. since my definition of a striker who can hold the ball up is one who can release it well I guess the answer is no. So he's just a set piece nuisance at best it seems.

Just one question for those who have seen more of him than me: can Kuqi hold the ball up well? While we've had plenty of 6ft + strikers at the club I'm not convinced many of them do that particularly well.

Is Hughton really a better manager than Di Matteo?

Could also be he wants a longer contract than six months for all we know. Or it might be a pay as you play offer similar to what we've got with Ireland. Would explain why he's hedging his bets in case he gets an offer where he gets paid regardless even if he's on the treatment table 70% of the time.

I saw his Youtube videos and I didn't see him score any with his head. He mainly just seems to be a fat bastard who barges Championship defenders around.

To think we were turning our noses up at Jay Bothroyd a few weeks ago