alexthegreat

Exactly, totally misleading post. Half decent from Perch last night. Won a fair bit in the air, never the most elegant on the deck but got the job done most of the time. Went long with his passing a bit too often for my liking, however typically whoever has played right centre back for us over the last year or so has tended to be a lot more direct than Colo on the left. Surprised by some of the comments on here last night that he had a shocker. Pleased to read that. Hes got obvious shortcomings as a player but I was hopeful they wouldn't be so obviously exposed at centre back. Still remember what a fantastic game he had v Jonas in the Championship v Forest at SJP. He must have some defensive ability hidden away somewhere. When he signed I was hoping he'd be an other Aaron Hughes but they were just horrendous performances from him at right back. I hope we can get away with him at centre back for a few games because I've got a feeling we're going to see a little bit more of him at some stage this season. As it stands just one tweak or strain for Colo or Taylor and hes in the side to make a back 4 of RTaylor-Perch- Taylor /Colo -Simpson.

extract from his autobiography: Lucas Neill's lucky escape after breaking Jamie Carragher's leg By Jamie Carragher 4/09/2008 When my leg was broken in an horrific tackle by Lucas Neill in September 2000, my mates were ready to hunt him down if I gave the go-ahead. A few weeks later I received a phone call. "You won't believe this, Jay. We're in the Trafford Centre and Lucas Neill is walking straight towards us. What do you reckon?" Did I really want Neill to take a crack? "There's only one problem," added the voice. "Little Davey Thommo is with him." That was that. I could hardly let one of my best mates, David Thompson, now a Blackburn player, become a witness to an assault. Besides he'd have recognised the attackers. The impromptu mission was aborted and I sent a text to Thommo telling him Neill should give him a hug of thanks. As word got back to Blackburn about the near miss, or should that be hit, their coach Terry Darracott, a Scouser, appealed to one of my friends to call the boys off. I agreed. Complete arsehole

It looks obvious to me that we could do with better service to the front man and Ben Arfa and Marveaux will provide that. Both have got to come in at some point. For as long as Best keeps scoring that means 2 of Ba, Jonas, and Obertan losing their place (although I suspect Ba will take on Best's role at some stage this season). Personally I'd keep him in for as long as Taylor is at left back and I think hes done well so far this season - also think he offers alot to the team which wouldn't show up in any stats. But a manager likes to play his own players and his final ball remains very poor. I think hes going to find himself out of the first XI in the next few weeks, and it'll be fair enough really.

No height whatsoever anywhere in the team.

Injuries according to .COM: Squad: Davide Santon (knee), Mehdi Abeid (knee), Alan Smith (hamstring), Mike Williamson (ankle) and Haris Vuckic (hand) are all unavailable through injury, Dan Gosling is doubtful with a groin strain, while Michael Richardson is cup-tied following his goalscoring appearance for Leyton Orient against Southend United. Explains why Gosling wasn't even on the bench v Villa. I didn't know about Smith or Abeid either. At least that means Smith can't play.

Reaction to "The King's" post match interview: http://www.redandwhitekop.com/forum/index.php?topic=269294.1440 Sensational interview from the King. Actually beyond parody. Complete contrast to the bile reserved for Hodgson no matter what he said.

heart in mouth moments when he went down injured twice. I think hes the last player I want to see injured

The way I recall Dalglish's time here is as follows: He came into Newcastle in January in 1997 and did well enough until the end of the season - got us 2nd on goal difference on the last day of the season. Think we might have been 4th or something on the day he arrived - just a little off the pace. Got a few decent results like a 1-0 away at Arsenal that sticks in the memory. Did alot in the transfer window - changed the team completely. Shipped alot out and bought a few decent players but also what turned out to be some absolute shite - Des Hamilton anybody? The season started well enough considering Shearer's injury - even beat Barcelona. Think we were about 6th - 8th but with a load of games in hand because of the CL, and if we won those we would have flown up the table. We didn't win them and the wheels came off completely. Got 44 points in the end - 4 points above the relegation zone. He'd turned us into an absolute pile of shite in what was the relative blink of an eye. Really looks to me like he'll follow a similar pattern at Liverpool this season.

Think Krul should play - dont see why a goalkeeper in his early 20s should need a rest and the more games he plays the better imo. The possibility of Ferguson as a left back has to be investigated really. Also think Sammy has done enough to deserve a start in this one. I'd like to see Marveaux, Gosling and possibly Ba given a full 90 as well to help get them up to speed and see what they can do. May as well have RTaylor at right back, and I'd like to see Ben Arfa get at least a half of football as well. Maybe a bit of game time from the bench for Tavernier as well? The Carlisle manager seemed to think he'd cruised through League 1 level football, so might be worth giving him a match v Championship level opposition to see if theres any possibility at all that hes a better alternative than Perch. Aside from that think we should look to play as strong a side as possible cos we should be looking to do something in this competition.

Carroll obviously has far more ability however you have to go and do it and at the moment he has done nothing in the game that Leon Best hasn't done. Best's attitude is brilliant whereas the likes of Capello and other people in the game seem to have a problem with Carroll's, off the pitch at least.

I remember when the new owners at Liverpool came in - they basically admitted they didn't know anything about football. Said they would ahve to learn as they went along. I have never like Dalglish after the job he did for us and thought the way he set about knifing Hodgson in the back was disgusting. When they appointed him they appointed someone who has done nothing for 10 years and whose last 2 jobs were a disaster. This made me think that there was no one at the club who had the first idea what they were doing. Then they put their heads together and decided that the best thing to do was spend £35m on Andy Carroll. How hes managed to spend so much money on a very average midfield is beyond me. They look very suspect at centre back as well - Carragher is finished. Think this is going to turn into a spectacular mess in the next few months.

This one made me laugh: http://www.readytogo.net/smb/showthread.php?p=10820565&highlight=#post10820565#ixzz1YIKP82WO

Our best striker atm, no doubt about that. In all seriousness, 5 games in and he has 100% of our goals in the PL from open play. Hes got to start the next few games.

Anyone know if hes the top Premier League scorer in 2011? Couldnt be that far off. Suspect Rooney may have more though

When he first arrived he snatched at any chances he did get and he couldnt even hold onto the ball. There'd be 20 yard passes played into his feet and the defender would be outmuscling him to get in front of him. He got his start v West Ham and he'd sorted that side of his game out. Then when he tucked the 1st goal away (which if irrc was a good finish) he was totally transformed. I remember him doing dragbacks and those 360 turns on the ball - was like a whole new player. Hes just gone on from there. He doesn't take the pens either and its not if though hes been lucky - hit the bar at Blackburn, had a perfectly good goal ruled out v Arsenal. His all round game is solid if not spectacular but his finishing in 2011 has been razor sharp.

no Gosling on the bench?

Really wish Heskey was playing in a number 10 role tomorrow

This. This will not be a popular post but he joined a newly promoted side for a reason. His talent obviously stands out within 10 minutes of watching him but there are other questions about him. I recall his debut from the bench v Blackpool - we were desperate for a goal but he didnt exactly seem gripped by urgency - spent a lot of time dribbling down blind alleys. Heres nufc.coms comment for his game v Stoke: "Hughton had already chosen to bring off the aimless Ben Arfa in favour of Jonas Gutierrez which did increase our presence down the left flank - the Frenchman having seemingly occupied a free role across the front line. That ploy had failed to provide Andy Carroll with any sort of support up front." Just offering a counterpoint to the idea that he is the second coming. I think hes got the potential to be a sensation for us in the right system, but Im not expecting consistently brilliant performances from him, at least not right away.

Bound to be Taylor v Villa. Stick Ferguson in for the match v Forest on Tuesday and if hes at least semi competent he can stay there IMO.

Because he might get injured in training. Aye that'll be the one like Yeah I reckon it is actually: Latest quotes from Alan Pardew, Thursday concerning our latest addition, Davide Santon: Two operations on the same knee and its still fucked. Seems very likely hes a crock.

so thats why Inter Milan sold 'the new Maldini'

http://www.purplerevolver.com/bulletin/news/121887-vice-magazine-offer-premier-league-star-joey-barton-chance-to-write-column.html Vice Magazine UK have sent a mouth-watering invitation to Joey Barton via Twitter, asking if the Premier League footballer would like to write a regular column for their iconic publication. Vice is a free magazine which started in Montreal, Quebec, before moving its HQ to the Big Apple. It is available in 27 countries worldwide including Brazil, New Zealand, South Africa and many parts of Europe. The famous Mag has long been heralded as a champion of the free press, a symbol of dissident youth, culture, and art, and an outlet for the gnarled voice of the underground. The approach from Vice UK came swiftly on the heels of an interview Joey Barton did with Kerrang Magazine today, in which he shared his perspective on “Kurt Cobain, Nirvana and being a dysfunctional teenage indie kid.” Vice UK approached Barton with a brief Tweet asking: “do you want to write a regular column for us, Joey?” … and later elaborated on their vision, saying the column could be about: “Music, literature, sport, politics, the arts... Whatever's occupying your mind, basically.” Barton is obviously considering their offer, and he put the question to his 500,000+ followers to get their thoughts: “What do people reckon about this @Viceuk column, would it interest you? #listentourdemographic”. The saga continues on the micro-blogging site. Vice have always been risk takers, with their choice of obscure and irreverent content, they challenge boundaries and tackle issues others wouldn’t touch. Now it’s Joey turn to carry the torch, should he accept the challenge. What a staggering change of fortunes this represents for the controversial sportsman, who was once vilified for his behaviour on and off the field, and depicted as a tyrant in the national press. The kind of man the editorial team at Vice wouldn’t have acknowledged as human, let alone offer work to. But the 29 year old has undergone a miraculous transformation in the recent past, he has sobered up, cut his hair in the style of a Hitler youth, and has utilised Twitter as a springboard to reinvent himself as a quasi-intellectual poetic type who adores The Smiths, and dislikes writers of the Sunday supplements. Barton’s verbal sparring matches with Piers Morgan have been full of surprising vitriol and witt, and he has held his own against the one time editor of The News of the World. He is now something of a cult hero, and Vice obviously want to tap into that. The general public have also warmed to him considerably, after he helped to lobby a petition to get the Hillsborough papers published in full, badgering celebs, footballers and followers to contribute their names and support the movement. Amazing what spouting off on Twitter can do for you. Looks like the Vampire Weekend manager he got to do his PR is doing a good job. Barton is well on his way from being a national hate figure capable of some pretty vicious assaults to a sort of controversial Piers Morgan type figure who some people can warm to (not that I can stand Piers Morgan). He obviously has his heart set on being a celebrity, wouldnt be surprised if he had a show on talksport one day. Would rather listen to him than Collymore tbf.

Dont think its so much to do with strikers as midfielders really. Basically he hasnt sorted the midfield out yet, and if your midfields wrong your entire team will look s***. We need Tiote and Cabaye to get adjusted, which I'm sure they will and when Gosling, Marveaux and Ben Arfa get up to speed we should look alright. I'm quite happy to give it some more time yet.

His record for us suggests otherwise, apart from when returning from a bad injury or towards the latter end of his career. There was a period where Kluivert and Bellamy were clearly the best strikeforce we had. Then despite them being a revelation up front together, sentimentally prevailed and Kluivert was dumped for Shearer. From that moment on, Kluivert didn't give a f*ck cause he knew if Shearer was fit he'd never play. Kluivert never gave a f*** from the moment he turned up man. He arrived not match fit and headed out on the p*ss for the first 10 nights out of 14 that he was here. Then wouldnt play in the reserves when Souness wanted to have a look at him. Constantly picked up little niggles that you suspect wouldnt have kept anyone else out. And about a stone and a half overweight by the time he finished. A shedload of goals v some Palestinian hill farmers gave his tally some respectability it never deserved. There was no doubting his class but he took the p*ss in his last year at Barca, he was only ever going to do the same here. Should never have been signed and one of my most hated ever players. As for Shearer v Rooney, I'd rather have the Shearer that was at Blackburn and in his 1st season with us over Rooney. But the Shearer after that injury at Everton wasnt as good as Rooney is now imo. For those saying Shearer did have lapses in form, I agree, though doesnt every player? One of the first things Robson did when he arrived was tell Shearer that 'just laboriously working the channels wasn't good enough'. Tbh he'd lost his way completely under Gullit at the start of that season, along with everyone else and though I expect no one will admit it now, there were one or two who sympathised with Gullit's selection for the derby, backing manager over player.

That's what I meant, from what I have seen of both of them in our games, they both play deep and don't seem to suit each others game. Might be a bit premature to say that but not been encouraged by their partnership so far. In isolation I think Cabaye is a good player and a better footballer than Nolan, but Nolan would gamble often and take an opposition midfielder back with him, leaving more space for Tiote and the full backs, so would be more valuable for the team. That was highlighted last night when we literally didn't pick up a second ball after hitting it forward. As I said we're only four games in but it's a bit worrying for me. Really think we need another player in there. Course we miss Barton who would tuck in and act as a third CM too. Agree with this. I remember the reason the Parker / Emre partnership never really excelled was because Parker would take on a holding role yet Emre would often be behind him. He had the skill and close control to be effective around the box but never was, prefering to sit in the centre circle. I think Tiote / Cabaye has more potential than that pair ever did (though Tiote seriously needs to up his game at the moment) but we really need to see Cabaye further up the pitch. Possibly Emre never had the fitness to get up there regularly, I don't doubt Cabaye does though. Hes also struck a couple of long rangers that suggest he may have a few goals in him.