KaKa

Tell you what Sam has some gynormous ones ... first Barton and then Dyer at right-back?!

You have to at least admire the guy for doing it his way, and that is exctly what he is doing.

I'm intrigued by this because I am sure that the idea of Dyer at right-back has come about due to something they have noticed by tracking him or analysing his game through one of his special methods. Sounds like Dyer is up for it too and if he has indeed been sold on it then it must have been a prettu impressive argument put forth for this change.

This is all very different for us as it's been a while since we had someone thinking out of the box, but it's what we have been demanding and I must say it is really going to make next season interesting at the very least.

I sense a 3-5-2 from Big Sam with Dyer as a right wing back and Taylor as one of a back three.

Ujpest Doza is our first official ITK!

Take a bow son ... someone give that man a badge.

He also said Taylor had been promised a first team place so that must be true too.

No worries city you'll get Deschamp or even Houllier. There are a lot of decent managers available, and as long as the takeover goes through you'll be fine.

If not though ... I suspect you'll be after propa players and wide playing non-wingers and you'll definitely be needing a whole lot of lady luck's favour.

I watched him against Wales and although he wasn't tested a lot he did look very athletic and he had pace too, which was nice too see especially as he is pretty tall.

He got caught one on one with Bellamy out wide at one point, but did an excellent job of facing up to him and bending his knees and getting nice and low, and he was able to stay in front of him and Bellars had to settle for wacking it off his legs for a corner.

He certainly looks like he has the physical tools which is good. I know someone will say Boumsong looked like he did too, but he looked faster and more athletic than Jean-Alain.

So Barton is a bit of a t*** off the field. A lot of a t***, in fact. Correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't Roy Keane regularly get this kind of press, and didn't he also get involved in some nastiness involving him twatting a bird whilst out on the piss?

 

What a lucky escape. I'm so glad he didn't devote the best part of his career to my club ....

 

Hell of a difference though in the abilities of Roy Keane and Joey Barton.

That sooooooooooo wasn't/isn't the point dude ...

So what your essentially saying is that it is alright to have a horrific character as long as your as good as Keane was?

So Barton is a bit of a t*** off the field. A lot of a t***, in fact. Correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't Roy Keane regularly get this kind of press, and didn't he also get involved in some nastiness involving him twatting a bird whilst out on the piss?

 

What a lucky escape. I'm so glad he didn't devote the best part of his career to my club ....

I've always though Barton was most similar to Roy Keane in temperament than any of the other idiots he has been compared to like Bowyer.

Keane is seen as some kind of legend though ... go figure.

Not surprised to here that Sunderland was one of the other teams most interested in getting him. No doubt Keane sees a bit of himself in the lad.

Alan Shearer.................Peter Beardsley.......................Les Ferdinand.................Joey Barton

 

Sad day for the beautiful game in general and Newcastle in particular imho.  Can't believe SBR would ever have signed him.

I'm sensing a bit of bitterness here. I know quite a few Tottenham fans wanted him at the Lane next season, especially after Parker told you lot where to go.

Aaaaah well at least you'll have Harry Kewell soon enough.

Alan Shearer.................Peter Beardsley.......................Les Ferdinand.................Joey Barton

 

Sad day for the beautiful game in general and Newcastle in particular imho.  Can't believe SBR would ever have signed him.

What is the correlation though?

Sad day for the beautiful game? Are you for real?

This is an astoundingly stupid post. He isn't the first player that we have signed who has some issues is he. Who signed Bowyer and Robert then? I'd rather have him than those two idiots. At least Joey is a 100% committed on the field.

Tuther thread.

eh?

*Aaaah I got ya ... my bad!

This cannot be good for the transfer market. If he goes for anything near£13 million then how much is Bent worth?

Eggy is losing it man!

West Ham set to join high rollers with £13m offer for Johnson

EXCLUSIVE By NEIL ASHTON

Last updated at 22:55pm on 3rd June 2007

West Ham will enter the summer spending frenzy with a £13million offer for Andrew Johnson and the promise of £90,000-a-week wages.

The deal, which would more than double Johnson’s earnings at Everton, would be worth £4.7m a year.

The England striker is aware of the interest and although West Ham expect Everton to rebuff their opening bid, the London club are prepared to go as high as £18m, which could prove too good to turn down.

West Ham are already set to complete a £7m deal for Newcastle midfielder Scott Parker, who has agreed a £72,000-a-week contract.

Now Hammers chief Alan Curbishley, backed b y Icelandic billionaire Thor Bjorgolfsson, wants Johnson as the club target Champions League football within the next three seasons.

Johnson, who scored 11 Premiership goals for Everton last season, would become the highest paid player in Hammers history if their bid is successful.

Goodison Park manager David Moyes, who is planning for a UEFA Cup campaign next season, is forced to work with a limited budget and is struggling to raise the £6m required to buy Phil Jagielka from relegated Sheffield United.

Curbishley, resigned to losing Carlos Tevez, will make Lucas Neill captain next season with skipper Nigel Reo-Coker set for Aston Villa after his outburst last week.

There is also no future at the club for Paul Konchesky, Matt Etherington and Hayden Mullins.

The Parker transfer, which is subject to a medical, clears the way for Newcastle to tie up a £5.5m move for Manchester City midfielder Joey Barton.

In a tribute to St James’ Park boss Sam Allardyce, Barton said last night: "He’s a good manager, he showed that at Bolton. At Newcastle the sky’s the limit. If the club decide to do business it’s up to me to speak to them."

Barton gets the chance of fresh start at Newcastle

Oliver Kay

Sam Allardyce did not shy away from recruiting players with questionable reputations during his time in charge of Bolton Wanderers and evidently he will not be afraid to do the same at Newcastle United, having lined up Joey Barton as his first signing since taking charge at St James’ Park three weeks ago.

A formal bid to Manchester City is expected today, with the likelihood that the controversial midfield player will jump at the opportunity to fill the void left by Scott Parker’s £8.5 million transfer to West Ham United.

West Ham registered an interest in Barton over the weekend as a fall-back option in case the Parker deal did not go through, but the Newcastle player is understood to have agreed personal terms last night, with a medical examination scheduled today.

Newcastle are expected to make City a formal offer in the region of £5 million for Barton today, but no obstacles are foreseen, with the midfield player eager to move to Tyneside after an unhappy and controversial end to his career at the City of Manchester Stadium

Barton won his first England cap as a substitute in the friendly match against Spain in February, but his excellent form for much of the season was overshadowed by problems off the pitch.

He was arrested in March on suspicion of criminal assault and criminal damage after an alleged argument with a taxi driver in Liverpool, while his City career was effectively ended by a training-ground incident on May 1, when he was alleged to have assaulted Ousmane Dabo, one of his teammates, during a practice match.

City instantly suspended Barton, 24, for the remainder of the season and unofficially made him available for transfer, while Dabo requested that Greater Manchester Police press charges against him.

Having also clashed off the pitch with Richard Dunne, the City captain, and Jamie Tandy, a former reserve-team player, Barton is widely viewed as a player with “baggage”, but Allardyce is clearly more concerned with his ability and attitude on the pitch, which include an insatiable desire for self-improvement.

Since his suspension by City, which extended to being banned from the training ground, Barton is said to have put himself through a punishing fitness regime as he prepares to make the most of any second opportunity afforded to him elsewhere.

Everton were the early favourites to sign Barton, having attempted to buy him in January, while there was also interest from Celtic and Sunderland.

Barton is eager to use any transfer to relaunch a career that is in danger of being overshadowed by negative publicity. “It is disappointing that people have a certain opinion of me,” he said in an interview on Saturday, “but I meet countless people who, in all aspects of my life, will testify: ‘You’re not the person you’re made out to be’.

“At certain times I don’t do myself any favours with incidents, but to make out I’m some kind of yob, some kind of psychopath for want of a better word, is so far from the truth it’s unreal.”

Parker has had two successful seasons with Newcastle, the second as captain, but he was attracted by the idea of returning to his native London and becoming the first of what Alan Curbishley, the West Ham manager, hopes will be several eye-catching summer signings. Curbishley, who previously managed Parker at Charlton Athletic, also has a strong interest in Tim Cahill and Andrew Johnson, the Everton pair.

Does make you wonder where we'd have been had Souness signed his original 3 targets of Boa Morte, Anelka & Viduka instead of Luque & Owen.

Poor Souey ... he was so misunderstood. Could have been a legend.

Don't forget he wanted Sol Campbell too! Souey was so ahead of the game. What a forward thinking manager.

If only Shepherd would have backed him.

Need to get rid of Dyer now.

 

West Ham??

 

Read an ITK (a mate of 2 pools) on another forum saying that Taylor had been told he was first choice centre back next season and Dyer had been told he was playing Right Back (which he has done beofre for Ipswich, England and NUFC).

 

Taylor starting and Dyer at right back ... 3-5-2 maybe? That way Sam can have his three man midfield, which he seems to prefer, as well a second striker to  partner one of our dwarves.

Do you think Dyer would be open to playing right-back though? I wonder what Sam sees in him to believe he would excel in this roll. Dyer is still the man with no position after all these years ... I wonder if he was receptive to the idea.

Look ... there is no point trying to justify this signing or making excuses for it by saying things like this is the best type of player we can attract. Barton has been signed because Allardyce rates him highly and it is as simple as that.

Now from a personal point of view I have always admired him as a football player. He is from the same mould as Scott parker as far as his committment and drive, but he is a much better shooter and is also a more confident and better passer of the ball. On the field he also appears to have a good rapport with his teammates and doesn't seem to get down on them at all.

I personally have high hopes for him because I genuinely feel that he doesn't intentionally go out of his way to be destructive and that as he continues to work on his anger management he will get better. He has already come quite a long way, and is very honest about his 'condition' and recognises that it is something he has to continue to work on.

Oh yeah ... and on a totally unrelated point. I always wondered where the rest of the teammates as well as the manager were when he was throttling Dabo? Why wasn't the situation diffused as it was beginning to escalate?

Robben staying as Ben Haim heads for Chelsea

Jamie Jackson

Sunday June 3, 2007

The Observer

Two weeks after appearing ready to leave Stamford Bridge, Arjen Robben is set to stay at Chelsea after the club persuaded him to resist Bayern Munich's efforts to entice him to Germany. The Dutch winger, who cost £12million in the summer of 2004, is said by a Stamford Bridge insider to be 'more than happy' in west London, despite a sometimes fractious relationship with Jose Mourinho.

A Chelsea player will have something to celebrate tomorrow, when Michael Essien is given the BBC's African footballer of the year award in Accra, Ghana. And he may have a new team-mate in the next week, to add to Steve Sidwell and Claudio Pizarro, if Tal Ben Haim can be persuaded to join the club. Chelsea will have to fight off Liverpool and Newcastle, the latter now managed by the Israel central defender's former boss at Bolton, Sam Allardyce. The 25-year-old would have moved to Stamford Bridge in January if Bolton had not demanded £3m for a player who is now a free agent.

http://football.guardian.co.uk/News_Story/0,,2094119,00.html?gusrc=rss&feed=5

Do Birmingham really need any more f****** strikers? Bendtner, Campbell, Forssell, Cole, McSheffrey, Jerome. They can piss off. I want Viduka.

Bendtner is at Arsenal with a brand new 5 year deal.

Forssell is a perma crock.

Andy Cole will be leaving.

McSheffrey will be on the left wing.

Campbell is more of a mascot for them.

Completely forgot this guy was on a free!

Linked to Man U in tomorrows News of the World. So I guess it might be either him or Anelka as a cheaper option for their vacant striker position.

I think it is very possible that no one is interested in Michael Owen as there just seem to be so many other options out there. Players who have been fit and producing in the last couple of seasons unlike Owen.

Maybe Freddy was being honest when he said no one was interested even for the reported £9 million fee. I guess this makes his agents efforts to tout him around all the more understandable.

At a guess I would imagine the following ...

Eto'o to Arsenal in a swap for Henry.

Anelka to Man U.

Saviola to Liverpool.

McCarthy to Chelsea.

Owen? Well ... certainly looks like he will be back with us next season, wether he likes it or not.

Training revolution:

The night time is the right time for Sam

With Sam Allardyce currently working on a number of signings and negotiations ongoing to bring various off-field personnel in, some details of what Newcastle players can look forward to next season are emerging.

One of the most radical innovations to have come from the scientific analysis of training methods Allardyce introduced at the Reebok is the staging of training sessions at match times.

Rather than the traditional morning sessions, afternoon training to replicate the conditions of weekend games and evening workouts to prepare for midweek fixtures are on the cards.

And after extensive dietary investigation, it's not only the type of food that the players eat that will come under scrutiny, but also the timing of their pre-match meal.

Scientific findings suggest that peak on-field performance depends partly on the metabolic rate of the individual - with different players best served by eating at different times, rather than all together.

In practice this is slightly impractical, with a partial compromise achieved by taking an average of the team's rate and setting a meal time based on that.

Any wide variations to that average see those players eating at different times - at least one member of Bolton's first team squad last season having their pre-match meal an hour before his team mates.

And we don't want to spoil the surprise, but one or two current Toon players with slightly unusual "refueling" habits may be in for something of a shock when Sam's boys start monitoring them closely - very closely.....

http://www.nufc.com/

Voronin looks like he will be a good acquisition for Liverpool.

If Anelka ends up at Man U ... everyone else can just forget about the league. He really looks good at the moment.

Anelka!!!!!

What a goal!!!!

Anyone watching France vs. Ukraine on Eurosport?

Samir Nasri got the start just behind Anelka. Interesting to see how he plays.

Wales vs. Czech Republic was a pretty good game.

It was only Wales but I liked the look of Rozenhal. Very fluid, athletic and pacy for such a tall guy. Also did a good job of bending his knees and getting nice and low when in one on ones with quick players, making it hard for them to go past him. Very promising.

Might be worth a peep. Let's see what Rozenhal looks like.

Hopefully he can keep that loud mouthed dwarf quiet.