TRon

It's a bit unfair to describe Milner as average. He's not top drawer due to the fact he isn't lightning quick, but he's got two good feet, crosses early and can get a yard on a player just by shifting the ball unexpectedly - not to mention he's very comfortable playing wide right and will defend when required. There aren't many English right wingers who have every attribute in any case. If anything, for me his biggest weakness is probably lack of self-belief. For someone with his attributes he should be scoring a lot more goals. Or at least attempting to score a lot more goals.

Taylor is great at show-boating and playing up to the cameras. He really does need to concentrate on polishing his actual defending though rather than handling the ball on the line then pretending he's been shot in the gut. If I have to read one more time, Alan Oliver trumpeting " Indeed when Steve Taylor rung me in the early hours of this morning..." I'll start a wage recommendation campaign called "Ten Grand for Taylor" to force the bugger out.

Here's a key point you have missed. He's only going to warm the bench at Anfield assuming the story is true which is debateable. I doubt he's going to be paid much more than we will considering his rank, and the fact that he's going to be on the bench alongside Hyppia who will be preferred as primary back up. 4th choice then - still, no harm in using a bit of speculation to try and get a better deal here.

because they were poor reasons.

Those were good appointments based on sound reasoning, which is why to this day I haven't knocked them. My criteria is sound reasoning, which is why I ask how Freddie as Chairman, arrived to the conclusion, Bruce, Souness or Roeder were the right appointments for a club aiming for CL football? To have approached one of those three would raise an eyebrow, but all three would make any neutral think either Freddie's thick as pig-shit, or someone's on the make in all this. you're right you are talking a load of bollocks there.

Presumably why he's been offered a new contract on a lot more. how do you know he's been offered more? There wouldn't be much point in offering a new 5 year contract otherwise would there?

I think it's nailed on that N'Zogbia will be picked ahead of Emre knowing Sam's mentality, but that's just my opinion.

Presumably why he's been offered a new contract on a lot more.

Never mind Milner and N'Zogbia, Taylor's dad is throwing around names like Gerrard and Carragher. Like I said, I hope the big-headed twat isn't getting delusions of grandeur.

Milner and N'Zogbia are first team regulars. Taylor is not going to be first choice once all our defenders are ready to start, and for all his good assets, he still has plenty to learn IMO. It could be he's not getting a good enough deal like I said, I just hope he doesn't think he's better than he is.

How has the big-headed twat managed to put himself up alongside Milner and N'Zogbia? Only the top, top defenders demand wages equal to attackers. That apart, he might have a case in not wanting to commit to a 5 yr contract if the terms aren't acceptable. That should be determined on it's own merits and has nothing to do with Milner and Zog who are now first team regulars and a step ahead of Taylor in my view.

But Fred did appoint him, he never claimed otherwise. Fred also appointed Roeder after claiming it was the 'fans choice'. He also wanted Steve "The Cabbage" Bruce to be Newcastle boss to take charge on account of being a geordie. The best thing Shepherd could have done for Newcastle was to pay someone with better judgement than himself to appoint the manager. He should have done what Ashley has done and brought in a Chris Mort rather than hogging the headlines himself as Mr Newcastle. I knew straight away who the people were that would pick out the bits of that post that suited them and nothing else You were one of them To be honest the whole post was full of contradictions but I can't be arsed to go through everything with a fine tooth comb. I can if you want though. That crap about it being the players fault...now there's cop-out if I ever saw it. mackems.gif You obviously failed to spot that although we finished 3rd in 02-03 the performances generally were below the level of 01-02 when we finished 4th. There is a reason for that. And as for the latter part of 2002-2003 it was as plain as the difference between night and day there was a problem with some of the players. There is a reason for that too. There will always be players who aren't able to maintain their standards, this happens at Man U and Chelsea as well, and they get shipped out, (Whiteside, Kanchelski, Staam etc). That's the manager's job, so what is the point of complaining that it is the player's fault, when they start taking the piss? So it's right to lay the blame for lack of discipline at Robson's door, but that also has to be balanced to what he brought to the club such as prestige, dignity and relative success (see we're not all glory hunters). I don't have any issue with Robson being sacked assuming those in the know could see that the decline was irreversible and not just a blip, because even Ferguson has those. My problem is, and always has been, what criteria has been used to select a new manager? Souness was a rotten choice and most on here were dubious right from the start, although like all good supporters they will give a new man support until he proves a complete disaster. Steve Bruce was a rotten choice, and even the fact he was considered should have set the alarm bells ringing. His main quality being that he was a geordie - talk about professional decision making! Roeder was a rotten choice, and if Souness was appointed to instill discipline, on what basis was Roeder then hired? To uninstall it? To fetch Alan Oliver a biscuit very time he summoned him to Thompson House? Absolute bollocks.

But Fred did appoint him, he never claimed otherwise. Fred also appointed Roeder after claiming it was the 'fans choice'. He also wanted Steve "The Cabbage" Bruce to be Newcastle boss to take charge on account of being a geordie. The best thing Shepherd could have done for Newcastle was to pay someone with better judgement than himself to appoint the manager. He should have done what Ashley has done and brought in a Chris Mort rather than hogging the headlines himself as Mr Newcastle. I knew straight away who the people were that would pick out the bits of that post that suited them and nothing else You were one of them To be honest the whole post was full of contradictions but I can't be arsed to go through everything with a fine tooth comb. I can if you want though. That crap about it being the players fault...now there's cop-out if I ever saw it.

That sounds really good but it didn't get Roeder very far. I prefer Allardyce's methods which includes something called man-management.

But Fred did appoint him, he never claimed otherwise. Fred also appointed Roeder after claiming it was the 'fans choice'. He also wanted Steve "The Cabbage" Bruce to be Newcastle boss to take charge on account of being a geordie. The best thing Shepherd could have done for Newcastle was to pay someone with better judgement than himself to appoint the manager. He should have done what Ashley has done and brought in a Chris Mort rather than hogging the headlines himself as Mr Newcastle.

So you agree he was thick then?

Parker obviously thought he'd made it, that's why he publicly told Roeder to shove it at the end of last season. Roeder is probably still sending him unanswered texts while Big Sam is tying up hot Newcastle performers like N'Zogbia and Milner to decent long term contracts. Who got it wrong and who got it right is obvious to all but the wilfully blind. not reaaly as n'zog fell into the parker sect of doing it one year and being shit the next So Roeder had it sussed all along then. No doubt Spurs England and Man U will be head-hunting this supreme leader whoes only downfall was injuries and his best players recovering from them.

I think winning the FA Cup with his former club, may have something to do with it, but of course Fat Fred the king pie eater couldn;t attract good managers to Newcastle mackems.gif Or do you think such a statistic is irrelevant, and they should appoint a manager who hasn't won anything ? Think carefully before you reply, and tell us what exactly YOUR criteria would be Not being a thick pie-eating twat would be a good start. Answer my question at the 9th time of asking and be assured I will answer yours. In fact I'll answer it regardless, for the same reason you won't. I know I'm right and so do you.

Parker obviously thought he'd made it, that's why he publicly told Roeder to shove it at the end of last season. Roeder is probably still sending him unanswered texts while Big Sam is tying up hot Newcastle performers like N'Zogbia and Milner to decent long term contracts. Who got it wrong and who got it right is obvious to all but the wilfully blind.

Under Big Sam the Zog is looking like a player again. Is that truth hard to take?

Gullitt was appointed to bring back 'sexy football' after Dalglish. Some of the unsexy footballers at Newcastle didn't take kindly to it.

If Roeder was strong enough to allow for real competition you would have a point. Most people's impression was that senior players walked all over him - I can think of Owen, Shearer and Parker just to name three. Remember the embarassing sight of Glenda begging his players to do a lap of honour at the end of last season and Parker pushing Roeder away while giving him a mouthful? Roeder was a toadying lick-spittle and he got what he deserved from his team, total lack of respect and contempt.

You are quite wrong. I'm not "supporting" anyones leadership, I'm correcting the assertion you keep making about the old board. No board runs a club that qualifies more for europe than everyone bar 4 teams, fills a 50000 stadium, and buys Top quality international footballers, that is incompetent, shite, hopeless, call it what you want. I'm also pointing you in the direction of reality, in that not everyone can appoint Alex Ferguson and Wenger, simply because there aren't too many of them around. How many directors in the game have appointed shite managers ? Are you saying that everbody who wins nothing has a shite chairmen and board of directors ? Because, the vast majority haven't done as well as we have done. As for Sibierski, as Spence more or less said too, how often do you see a Frenchman display integrity, as much as we liked the bloke when he was here, this sort of thing happens all the time in football. Yes, I realise chairmen can't get all their appointments 100% right but that's not what I was debating. All I ask you is what was Shepherd's REASONING for wanting to appoint Bruce, Souness or Roeder? What do you think it was? If you think he had good reason then why not share your thoughts? Because when you try and fob off the Steve Bruce links, or refuse to discuss the appointment of Messrs Souness and Roeder, it looks like you are running scared - don't want to admit to the unpalatable truth that these appointments stunk of incompetence, and I challenge you to argue otherwise, and no, "all chairmen make bad appointments" doesn't count as an argument. With Dalglish, and Gullitt there were genuine reasons for believing they might move the club on, but Bruce, Roeder and Souness can only have been head-hunted through sheer stupidity. No one has even attempted to deny this so I rest my case.

Roeder was such a prick he spent more time trying to associate himself with other teams stars like Joe Cole and Defoe in a pathetic effort to boost his image, while ignoring the obvious talent right on his doorstep. Big Sam's quick action in tieing up a young star has only emphasised Roeder's buffoonery. 5 yrs for the Zog - in effect a bunch of 5 for Roeder

Glen Roeder will hopefully be choking on his toast right now on reading this. Congrats to Zoggy on being selected for the France U-21 side for the first time since he's been at Newcastle as well.