KaKa

What is this obsession with the 4-4-2 formation anyway? Isn't the priority to play good, effective and attractive attacking football? Isn't this what we have been doing throughout are good run of form? We should make use of the formation that gets the best out of our best players and achieves the goal of good football.

Wow ... you do realise that we have been playing a diamond formation since Birmingham and all the way through our unbeaten run right? It's been Martins and Viduka upfront, with Owen in behind them and a narrow three of Barton, Butt and Geremi, with Butt sitting deep. We have not been playing a 4-3-3. We have been playing a 4-4-2 with a diamond midfield.

Haven't seen Darren Bent play in a while thanks to Tottenham, and I can't quite recall how good he is at holding the ball up and bringing others into play. I do like him as a player though, but I'm just not quite sure if he can provide what Viduka does. Santa Cruz and Kenwyne Jones would be perfect but I think they would be very difficult to get.

http://www.utads.com/ut_direct/images/target_man.jpg

And another 2 pages of people moaning about people moaning about how long the thread is And another page of people joking about people moaning about people moaning about how long the thread is

Everyones having a say now like ... your favourite Martin Samuel's take. http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/columnists/martin_samuel/article3882824.ece

NEWCASTLE chairman Chris Mort insists the Toon will not risk becoming “another Leeds” to break into the top four. Mort was reacting to manager Kevin Keegan’s stunning outburst after Monday’s 2-0 defeat at home to Chelsea. Keegan said Newcastle had no chance of finishing any higher than fifth during the three years he has remaining on his contract. The Toon boss also confessed he had no idea how much was available to spend in the summer but, whatever it was, would not be enough to break the dominance of the Premier League’s big four — Manchester United, Chelsea, Arsenal and Liverpool. It was interpreted by some as Keegan challenging the board to bust the bank or pay him off and find someone else to do the job. And for Toon fans it was crushingly disappointing to hear such realism from The Messiah — a man they still believe can deliver the Premier League title. Twelve years ago Newcastle almost did it with King Kev at the helm. When he returned to the club in January there was talk of completing unfinished business. Not any more. Nobody on the St James’ Park board knew Keegan was going to lay it on the line — especially with season tickets to sell. But Mort was adamant Newcastle would not plunge themselves into crippling debt. And he admitted the club’s expectations were no higher than Keegan’s He said: “We don’t want to do a Leeds. It doesn’t make sense. “This club had £100million-worth of debt which has now been cleared and it would be foolish to stretch it beyond its limits. “I thought Kevin’s comments were quite sensible. “I’m not sure what people’s expectations are but I don’t think most Newcastle fans would be greatly surprised by what he had to say. “There are those who are naturally optimistic but it does no harm to come out with some realism and say that if we get fifth we will have done well. He’s right. “I wasn’t taken aback by Kevin’s comments. He says what he feels. We have just come out of a relegation battle so you can’t have people surprised when the manager says we aren’t going to get into the Champions League. “This is a long-term building project and we are very happy with Kevin. “He’s a very enthusiastic character who has got the team playing good football. “We were disappointed to lose to Chelsea but he’s got the team playing well.” Newcastle recently lost out on Croatian midfield star Luca Modric. The Dinamo Zagreb player went to Tottenham for £16m where he joined Jonathan Woodgate, another target the Toon failed to nail. But Mort claims Newcastle WILL be making quality new signings. The scouting team, led by Dennis Wise, have been combing South America recently — although Keegan argued he was not keen on signing players from there. That has led to increased concerns not everyone is singing from the same song sheet. Advertisement Yet Mort reiterated Keegan will have the last word on who comes and goes. The chairman said: “We have started talking about who we will be bringing in and Kevin will have the final say. He has to have that. “We are very happy with where we are but Kevin is quite right to say we shouldn’t expect Champions League football. “It’s going to be tough for anyone to break into the top four. “Someone might sneak in there occasionally and there are a number of sides who will have a go but it is incredibly difficult.” Keegan’s views are echoed by Portsmouth boss Harry Redknapp, who reckons it would cost £150m to gatecrash the top-four party. Pompey lie eighth after splashing out £40m this season — 16 points adrift of fourth-placed Liverpool. Redknapp insisted: “You would need £150m to spend to have any chance of breaking into that top four. “Look at Liverpool. Last summer they spent £28m on Fernando Torres and he is a fantastic player but who else can compete with that? “I agree with Kevin. I do not see any way anyone else can break into the top four. “If someone put £200m into Derby this season then they could have been a successful side — and that’s the sort of money that will happen in the Premier League.” http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/sport/football/article1132376.ece

This player apparently plays either on the left wing or as an attacking midfielder, and is not a defensive midfielder. Maybe he is our fall back option after Modric didn't quite work out. Seems to play similar positions to Modric. Would fit into the Geremi/Barton role in our current setup. Hopefully replacing Geremi.

So KK saying they haven't entered negotiations means what then? I only remember Keegan saying that he wanted Owen to stay. Did Keegan actually say Owen and Newcastle haven't started talking yet? Yes. Any evidence of that? Yes there is, go find it. There isn't and you know it.

I'd even have Zoltan Gera ahead of Bullard tbh.

So KK saying they haven't entered negotiations means what then? I only remember Keegan saying that he wanted Owen to stay. Did Keegan actually say Owen and Newcastle haven't started talking yet? Yes. Any evidence of that? *tin hat on* I know this will annoy some, but I could see a situation where things were so far apart in the initial discussions that it had to be put on the backburner till the end of the season? So although they could all say "we haven't started talking" there could still be a situation. Look, I just think it would be very difficult to determine what to pay Owen at the moment. We clearly didn't get value for money the first time around due to his injuries and in all honestly his first contract was a disaster for us. He was supposed to help fire us into Europe so the investment would be worthwhile, but it didn't happen. We really can't guarantee he will stay fit from now on, and in fact, judging from his history he will likely be injured again before long. If we gave him a new contract and he did get seriously injured yet again how would we all feel about it? Honestly? I really don't know what the club should do here. It is a very tough call in my opinion.

So KK saying they haven't entered negotiations means what then? I only remember Keegan saying that he wanted Owen to stay. Did Keegan actually say Owen and Newcastle haven't started talking yet?

Owen has played well enough recently to think he should demand a decent wad of cash. Owen has also played infrequently enough for NUFC to think he probably shouldn't be given the wad of cash he is asking for. It's definitely not going to be smooth sailing these negotiations. I'm also more inclined to believe preliminary negotiations have started too. When a player says they haven't approached him yet that probably means that they haven't offered what he is hoping for I would imagine.

Question ... Where have all the Taylor is better than Faye people been all season? One half decent game, and that's all it was really, and people are claiming he's our best defender and better than Faye. Rubbish. Taylor is never better than Faye and Faye isn't even brilliant but just a serviceable no nonsense defender. So what does this all mean? It means Taylor really isn't that great at all. Better than Faye?! Crazy talk.

Also linked to Crouch again today. I wasn't too hot on this a little while ago, but he would suit our current setup really well in that Viduka role, as he is very good receiving the ball to feet and maintains posession and finds a teammate very well. I'm struggling to think of any other strikers out there, who we could realistically go for, who could come in and give us the same type of play as what Viduka brings in our current setup. There are few foreign strikers who are in this mould and in the premier league the only other guy other than Crouch is perhaps Ashton, but Ashton is always injured as well. Will be interesting to see who Keegan goes for.

Done a bit of digging. This player apparently plays either on the left wing or as an attacking midfielder, and is not a defensive midfielder. Maybe he is our fall back option after Modric didn't quite work out. Seems to play similar positions to Modric. Would fit into the Geremi/Barton role in our current setup. Hopefully replacing Geremi.

People say this kind of thing and I wonder how much they saw of Adebayor when he first joined.

We will sign Nasri, I'm certain of it.

That would be nice.

It's so true what they say about foreign players having to have the right personality. I don't think this is taken into account enough. It's part of the reason Martins has settled so well and has formed such a bond with the fans and the area because he does seem to be very outgoing. Someone like Luque on the other hand always seemd a bit withdrawn.

A growth spurt?

Luka Modric's shock at Tottenham deal Tom Dart If Newcastle United were surprised that Luka Modric signed for Tottenham Hotspur on Friday night, so was the player himself. The Croatia attacking midfield player, who starred in the victory over England at Wembley last November, had been expected to move from Dynamo Zagreb to Tyneside, but Newcastle were outbid by Tottenham at the last moment. Newcastle offered about £17.5 million but Tottenham are thought to be paying a basic fee of £15.8 million that will break the club transfer record by rising to about £20 million with add-ons. The 22-year-old will arrive after Euro 2008. Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City and Barcelona were also believed to be interested in the diminutive playmaker, who can feature anywhere in midfield. “There were a lot of other teams interested in signing the player, which meant we had to speed things up,” Juande Ramos, the Tottenham head coach, said. “He is a footballer with an enormous future.” Modric, who was at White Hart Lane on Saturday to watch the 1-1 draw with Bolton Wanderers, said his decision to join Tottenham was not difficult. “On Friday, the president of Dynamo Zagreb called me to tell me he had agreed a deal with Tottenham that was perfect for me,” he said. “At first, I was very surprised, then a few seconds later, I was proud over the prospect of coming to England. It is right that many clubs in England were interested in taking me, but my favourite from the first meeting was Tottenham because I am a big fan of Ramos.” Modric added that the pace of the English game appealed to him, as well as the chance to be close to former teammates. “I want a new challenge,” he said. “The time is right. I have followed English football closely because three players from Dynamo Zagreb, Niko Kranjcar, Vedran Corluka and Eduardo da Silva, came to England and are among my best friends.” Slaven Bilic, the Croatia coach, believes Modric has made a good decision. “Tottenham is perfect for Luka, better than, for example, Chelsea,” he said. “Chelsea could have bought him, Lionel Messi and Ronaldinho and then Luka could have ended up on the bench. At Tottenham, Ramos will have patience so he gets used to the Premier League style of play. Luka will become the star of the team.” Meanwhile, Ramos conceded on Saturday that Dimitar Berbatov, Tottenham’s world-class striker, could leave in the summer. “If a team pays the asking price the chairman wants, then, possibly, yes,” he said. A fee of about £25 million might be enough. Newcastle have turned their attention to Richard Dunne, the Manchester City captain, who has been stalling on the offer of a new contract. http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/football/premier_league/article3828471.ece

Well done Tottenham! Fair play like. It didn't quite work out for us but at least we are in for the right type of player and we are in very early. The window hasn't even opened yet. If this was August 31st and this had happened then I would be livid. I'm certain we will get in some very good players and I'm personally looking forward to the challenge of competing with the likes of Tottenham next season. Certainly no tthe end of the world and I can't help bu tbe optimistic regardless.

You've got to be patient. He'll be signing on Friday.

This essentially guarantees that he will sign for us before the week is out.