merlin

The club does not need players who are like rotten apples - all they do is spread discontent and make the whole situation worse. Unfortunately, this sort of thing was what ruined SBR's final years at SJP and unless it is cut out, it will continue to eat at morale among other players. We may have to suffer a year or so of mediocrity(AGAIN)because we get rid of one or two talented whingers, but it will pay off in the long run ; NUFC needs to build a CLUB SPIRIT, not just a side and if N'Zogbia wants to leave, let him - players we wish to sign need to see that the players we have WANT to be here, not rambling on about wanting to leave all the time. There is a difference between handling so-called 'difficult' talented players,and letting overpaid Prima Donnas walk all over you and its about time everyone, including the club, faced up to this. That is why it is more important for NUFC to develop its Academy than possibly any other club in the Prem(barring the Mackems, and who cares about that !?). He's got to go.

Absolutely right - I am convinced that we wouldn't have lost the 74 Cup Final - or at least, made more of a fight of it - had Green not been injured the previous year...his acceleration over the first 5 yards and terrific right foot were amazing. What a player.

You're being paranoid now. Everyone says so Everyone does ? Including the Sun & NOTW....!??

Have said before that Murdoch's outfits have it in for NUFC and have had since we ran MUFC so close for the title on 1996 - nearly all negative publicity comes from them and I feel this is linked to Murdoch having had shares in Man Ure ; he may feel he can take Man U over one day and although we are no threat to them at this time(and look unlikely to be one in the foreseeable future), the paranoia about NUFC as a potential threat to them, probably because of our crowd potential, seems to have remained. Also, wouldn't rule out mischief-making from the previous regime, which would find a willing aid in Newscorp...

George Robledo? Yes, of course Mick - I meant in the modern era(i.e.post 1970)..

Acuna was OK, but not a major success ; the only real long-term success from SA has been Nobby - a bargain by anyone's standards.

Whilst I agree that NUFC HAS been a big club, we have to be realistic - clubs like Wolves & Sheffield Weds used to be big clubs, but a few years of bad decisions at top level finished them...it is POSSIBLE that they could be big clubs again, but at present, it looks unlikely... If we are not careful. we could fall into the same trap - we are at a very delicate stage right now, and if we don't start to advance over the next year or so, we WILL fall behind other clubs in the top half of the table. Football is like life - if you start resting on your laurels, you are finished ; nobody had decreed that NUFC should always be in Europe or a Top 6 club simply because of crowd, stadium, history etc... ALL these things have to be earned and you should never stop trying to improve.

http://www.eurofound.europa.eu/areas/industrialrelations/dictionary/definitions/freemovementofworkers.htm Not hogwash at all. The EU was perfectly happy for many member states to effectively ditch that principle (for a time at least) when some of the new Eastern European nations joined and it became an inconvenience to allow their citizens full movement and employment rights. In this respect Blatter is perfectly correct, laws can be changed. The only question is wether the EU is prepared to change them or not. At the moment it seems as though not but who knows what 'arrangements' might be worked out over the next few years. Not the same thing at all. The new members joined the EU under the 2003 Treaty of Accession and that was where the provisions for temporally restricting the movement of their citizens was agreed, when they signed up to that treaty, they agreed to those restrictions. They are only temporary restrictions agreed out of political expediency in order to make enlargement a smoother process. No such agreement exists relating to the existing member states. The only way for something similar to be arranged relating to the citizens of the existing member states, would be for a similar treaty to be signed by them. This is simply not going to happen. To draw up a whole treaty for the "benefit" of a handful of EU citizens would be a ridiculous waste of time and money and would almost certainly never be agreed by the member states anyway. For a start it goes against the founding principles of the EU and secondly it would be challenged in the European Court of Human Rights and probably be defeated anyway. Why would they do that simply because Sepp Blatter wants them to!?! There's a big difference between adding something like this, as a small part of the terms of a treaty representing the introduction of an important and massive change, and going back and retrospectively rewriting the existing rules of the EU. Blatter's right; laws can be changed, but if he thinks that he's got any chance of the world's biggest economy; representing, 27 nations and 500 million people, changing one its absolutely fundamental and founding principles, simply because he stamps his foot and demands it, he's seriously mentally ill!! 'the World's biggest economy'...you need a reality check son ! The EU is one of the most regulation-bound economies in the civilised world - China & India are already peeing all over your so-called economic powerhouse and their dominance will continue to grow, not to mention that a Recession-hit USA is STILL the world's largest economy. You have been listening to far too much propaganda from your teachers(either that or you are a LIb-Dem MP..!!) I could reel you off a list of reasons why the EU will collapse within 20 years - only Germany has a strong economy of the major nations and they are already regretting ditching the DM in favour of the Euro because they are limited by the weaker economies of nations also in it ; the two nations with the best level of prosperity in Europe are Switzerland and Norway, neither of whom are members... As I have said before, this is a footie site, so I'll leave it at that - don't even get me started about resources - even Germany is dependent on the goodwill of Russia for her gas...France is amost 90% nuclear(I bet the Greenies love that !)and the UK is now an IMPORTER of oil & Gas... Here in Oz, we have enough Gas for hundreds of years, Iron Ore going to China by the thousands of tonnes, new oil being discovered and a cpuntry almost as big as the USA with 22m people - do the math and tell me who has got the brighter future..why do you think the FIFA conference was held in Sydney this week....!!

Will be little missed if true - had ability, but never consistent and disappeared in away matches. Never totally convinced by him despite odd flashes of brilliance. Unfortunately, these comments can be applied to several other Newcastle players.....!

The overwhelming cause of lack of activity at this time of year is the fact that clubs do NOT want to have to pay the huge wages of today's players during the close season if they can avoid it - suppose NUFC signed 3 players who each receive 60,000 pw ; if they joined on, say, 1 June, the club has to pay their wages for around 8 weeks before they are in serious action on the pitch; the total outlay is 60,000 x 3 = 180,000 x 8 = 1.44 MILLION pounds....!! OK, I know there might be one or two sold, but then the clubs buying them are also not keen to be landed with large wages in the close season and in addition, if we are selling players, the odds are that in 9 cases out of 10, it will be to a poorer club...... Not hard to see how hard-headed business types like Ashley etc are reluctant to do deals inwards right now, even though we know that we run the risk of losing our targeted players to other clubs - players wages are far too high, and this is one of the consequences of them, even to clubs like NUFC.. Different for the likes of Man Ure, as they have a constant world-wide income from merchandise sales, even in the UK summer, which is why it was so costly for us to miss the PL title in 96 ; a success then may have carried the club forward into a similar bracket as they are now.

Since when did the 'EU' ever take any notice of what the English think? Only when they want more contributions to their budget.......

Perhaps the club see him as a highly rated young manager who would work well with the youth policy they're trying to implement into the club. I don't think Keegan is as popular behind the scenes as he is on the terraces lets just say. It's certainly not an outrageous concept that they may be thinking of moving Keegan on and bringing in a younger man who they may feel more comfortable with, if there are problems with Keegan behind the scenes that is. It'd be an incredible risk to take mind you, getting rid of a fans hero like Keegan and replacing him with someone that 99% of our fans will never have even heard of. Marcelino has done well in his very short managerial career so far, but he's not proven class by any means and could easily be a complete disaster. That said this guy could be the next big thing in management for all we know, and getting him in now could end up being an absolute masterstroke. I think it's probably too risky for them to seriously consider though. They'd instantly lose the backing of most if not all the fans if they got rid of Keegan now. It'd be PR suicide, and they'd have to be utterly brainless to not know it. If KK got sacked or walked because he was being undermined, Ashley will be the only bloke at SJP with a Toon top on other than the players on the pitch next season as fans would walk with KK. Heard all this before, many many times ; fans just WON'T stop going to SJP. whether KK goes or not. IF the board appointed a new manager with a half-decent record, there would NOT be a boycott - its just wishful thinking...as soon as the team started doing reasonably well, the vast majority would be straight back to their seats. It wasn't until SJH appeared on the scene AND the team started losing that the fans eventually saw that some sort of boycott was necessary.Things are totally different this time and as long as results were decent and a few decent players signed, nothing would happen. Fans won't stop, no. But a big number will decide that's enough for them if KK was to get the chop or decided to walk because he was being undermined, a big enough number to hit the club's coffers and see large quantity of seats empty on MOTD. Not Boro empty, but by our standards... Remember the climate we're in too, prices rising, economy on the slide, fans in generall sick of footy and so on and so on. Even today where things are OK at the moment, many fans are just waiting for the right excuse to jack it all in. I could name you several people I know like that, all older generation fans I might add, and we all know they make up the majority demographic. Can only be betrayed so many times. When KK was reappointed that was Ashley and Co saying we want what you want, we want good football and happy times with someone we can all get behind. They resold us the dream. Take that away and I reckon there would be mutiny on Tyneside of the kind never witnessed before. Success is relative - many younger fans think that being top 10 in the Prem is all NUFC can expect ; I remember, when I was 21 and a young Rep visiting Langley Park, SBRs birthplace and talking to a store manager about NUFC ; we had just won the Fairs Cup 2 months' earlier.... 'Do you go to Newcastle?' he queried when I started on about it all,'I used to back in the 50s whe they had a great team & we won the FA Cup 3 times in 5 years, but I won't go now, its all run badly, terrible board'.... etc etc.. I was stunned at the time, but now I can see what he meant ; winning the UEFA Cup is a dream for many fans, but back in 69 we thought it was just the start of major success...the rest is history.. I DO buy the economic arguments about fans thinking twice about tickets, but NOT the organised boycott one, although I would liek to be proved wrong if things go pear-shaped.

Perhaps the club see him as a highly rated young manager who would work well with the youth policy they're trying to implement into the club. I don't think Keegan is as popular behind the scenes as he is on the terraces lets just say. It's certainly not an outrageous concept that they may be thinking of moving Keegan on and bringing in a younger man who they may feel more comfortable with, if there are problems with Keegan behind the scenes that is. It'd be an incredible risk to take mind you, getting rid of a fans hero like Keegan and replacing him with someone that 99% of our fans will never have even heard of. Marcelino has done well in his very short managerial career so far, but he's not proven class by any means and could easily be a complete disaster. That said this guy could be the next big thing in management for all we know, and getting him in now could end up being an absolute masterstroke. I think it's probably too risky for them to seriously consider though. They'd instantly lose the backing of most if not all the fans if they got rid of Keegan now. It'd be PR suicide, and they'd have to be utterly brainless to not know it. If KK got sacked or walked because he was being undermined, Ashley will be the only bloke at SJP with a Toon top on other than the players on the pitch next season as fans would walk with KK. Heard all this before, many many times ; fans just WON'T stop going to SJP. whether KK goes or not. IF the board appointed a new manager with a half-decent record, there would NOT be a boycott - its just wishful thinking...as soon as the team started doing reasonably well, the vast majority would be straight back to their seats. It wasn't until SJH appeared on the scene AND the team started losing that the fans eventually saw that some sort of boycott was necessary.Things are totally different this time and as long as results were decent and a few decent players signed, nothing would happen. Fans have stopped going before and certainly could do again, if my memory serves me right NUFC fans for change where on the scene before SJH and in fact it was this that encouraged him, could be wrong there right enough. It wasnt just losing a few games which kicked off the boycott but a genuine disgruntlement with how the club was being run. You may be right in saying that as long as the team was winning fans would turn up again i'm not too sure. They could not possibly replace KK before season ticket renewels and if they did it afterwards i think the betrayal would undo any decent work this board have done so far and they would lose the fans. I'm pretty sure this wont happen like and KK will sign a few diamonds in the summer to set us up for a solid season after which with massive financial backing it will be onwards and upwards and after we win the Premiership Carling cup FA cup and Champions League Mike Ashley will ride off on his white charger to cure world poverty. Have a look at attendances during Season 1988-89, which was when the club signed Robertson(Hearts), Thorn & Beasant(Wimbledon) and John Hendrie(Bradford City) after selling Gazza to Spurs...the place was packed , simply because the club had spent big money on these players and only Hendrie was anything like a success...relegation followed...this was also the season that SJH had declared his takeover bid.... In 89-90, the club failed to win promotion after losing at home to the Mackems in the play-offs and again had some very decent attendances. The only time there has been a serious boycott at SJP was the final home game of 77-78 against Norwich AFTER the club's relegation had been confirmed ; a mere 7,700 turned up which was, of course, a protest gesture. I say again, there would be NO boycott if KK walked out and was replaced by a decent manager who was given a reasonable budget to spend...there would only be major reaction if someone like Souness got the job again, and that is highly-unlikely. NUFC fans had 3 or 4 years of managerial cock-ups under Shepherd, they watched the club decline and there was STILL no boycott of any significance - never underestimate the 'we've got to support the Lads whatever happens' syndrome !

yeah, yeah...keegans always brought through the odd youngster (not sure how young bobby lee was mind?) but it's a different thing when you're not (perhaps) being given 100% choice about matters what i'm saying is if keegans list has a load of people like SWP/Dunne and so forth on it and the 3 people charged with transfers reply not with "we'll go out and get him Kev" but "don't you want to look at this kid, same deal but he's younger and cheaper?" THEN you're gonna have a problem keegans old school man - you see ferguson having that system imposed on him? (or martin o'neill for that matter?) neither do i, he wants tevez and he doesn't give a f*** what it costs to get him Lee was hardly a youngster when he came to SJP - he was 26, nearly 27... KK was lucky in that he had 3 decent youngsters already at the club when he came as manager in Feb 92 - Robbie Elliott, Steve Watson and Lee Clark ; Watson and Elliott had already had quite a few games under Ardiles, but were still teenagers - had they not suffered from a succession of injuries(esp Elliott) they could both have played for England. Cole was 21 when KK signed him and there were very few young players either signed by the club(Huckerby was one , and left for Coventry just before KK resigned in 97)or came through the ranks afterwards....most signings were mature players(Ferdinand, Shearer, Ginola, Peacock, Barton, Beardsley, et)c. IF the club are emphasising that they want youth bringing in, it would seem to me that there IS potential for conflict with KK and the powers above. That is why I will await developments over the next few months before passing any definite opinion about where the club is going.

Perhaps the club see him as a highly rated young manager who would work well with the youth policy they're trying to implement into the club. I don't think Keegan is as popular behind the scenes as he is on the terraces lets just say. It's certainly not an outrageous concept that they may be thinking of moving Keegan on and bringing in a younger man who they may feel more comfortable with, if there are problems with Keegan behind the scenes that is. It'd be an incredible risk to take mind you, getting rid of a fans hero like Keegan and replacing him with someone that 99% of our fans will never have even heard of. Marcelino has done well in his very short managerial career so far, but he's not proven class by any means and could easily be a complete disaster. That said this guy could be the next big thing in management for all we know, and getting him in now could end up being an absolute masterstroke. I think it's probably too risky for them to seriously consider though. They'd instantly lose the backing of most if not all the fans if they got rid of Keegan now. It'd be PR suicide, and they'd have to be utterly brainless to not know it. If KK got sacked or walked because he was being undermined, Ashley will be the only bloke at SJP with a Toon top on other than the players on the pitch next season as fans would walk with KK. Heard all this before, many many times ; fans just WON'T stop going to SJP. whether KK goes or not. IF the board appointed a new manager with a half-decent record, there would NOT be a boycott - its just wishful thinking...as soon as the team started doing reasonably well, the vast majority would be straight back to their seats. It wasn't until SJH appeared on the scene AND the team started losing that the fans eventually saw that some sort of boycott was necessary.Things are totally different this time and as long as results were decent and a few decent players signed, nothing would happen.

Apart from the injury worries, I agree totally - many of the players people mention as poss targets on here are totally non-starters.

An excellent summary of what many think is wrong at the club, and probably closest to the mark - an interesting few months is in store ; 'interesting' as in the Chinese back-handed well-wish 'May you live in Interesting Times'.....

As Brian Clough once famously said, 'If my Aunt had b---s, she'd be my Uncle'... In other words, you can't make things into what they aren't, and we are NOT a top club at this time ; Well-supported, yes, Rich Chairman, yes, great History yes, wonderful stadium, yes.... We are not successful in winning trophies or signing the best players(apart from Shearer, you'd ,be hard-pressed to name one who would have got into Man U's side over the past 5 years(or even Chelsea or Arsenal's..) However much you may love the club and know its potential, you cannot avoid the facts and one of these is that we are NOT currently a draw for top players, hence the reason many fans admit that 'we can't sign player x, etc etc'.. They are NOT being negative, simply realistic - however much we love KK, it has to be admitted that the only things he has achieved as a manager are promotions - no top silverware, and that is how top clubs are perceived, even by many of our own supporters, esp younger ones. Unless this changes, we will see an increasing drift away from supporting NUFC by local youngsters in favour of top sides like Man U - some have already commented on this recently. Being 'positive' is not the whole answer - we do need a positive approach from everyone at the club, but it has to be backed by results ; that is, and has always been, the benchmark in football as every other sport. There are too many people these days who snatch at realism and turn it into negativity - an unrealistically optimistic view is just as damaging as being negative.. IF we finish Top 6 next season, OR win a trophy, THEN we can start expecting better players to want to join us.

Agreed - stability is required because there has been too much INstability over the past 5 years. We have fallen further and faster than any other big club except Leeds, and they don't have the support base that we do.Even 5 years ago we were viewed as a club to be reckoned with because we had achieved Top 5 positions enabling us to qualify for CL ; at that time, clubs like Everton or Spurs were well behind us and looked like staying that way... Bad decision-making, both on & off the pitch has meant that the positions are now reversed and we have a great deal of work to do in order to catch up.. We need to see progress in all areas of the playing side every season for the next 3 - only then will we have a chance of catching up ; it will take a superhuman effort to restore our Top 6 status in less than that time.

This is what Football has become now - we missed our chance 12 years ago, and will be very lucky ever to have another.. As with all walks of life, the media set the(tat & trivia)agenda, and as most of them are Man U psychophants, they will push Man U to death which encourages more empty-headed glory hunters to follow them.. You need a heart as big as a lions(and a skin like a rhino) to follow NUFC and always have done - sadly, it won't change anytime soon so get used to it or join the Glory Hunters....

Another hole to be filled, esp if he does MORE time after the other pending case.. Would never have signed him personally, but the fact that Allardyce did shows how the club now have to take chances on players like this because the REAL top players won't join NUFC. Does anyone think Wenger would have signed Barton, even for 2m ?? Look how he got rid of Anelka at at huge profit, once he realised tha player was going to be a problem.... Whether Barton goes or not depends purely on whether NUFC has the budget(or the ability) to replace him.

quite impressive what Ince has done mind. I was only fairly impressed up until I actually saw MK Dons play and I was stunned because they actually play some very good football and they got away with it and indeed dominated with it in the rough and tumble world of the lower leagues. That guy has serious potential. He's not just a shouter and motivator by any means, which is probably what I expected him to be due to his personality when he played. I've seen very few people have such an impact. Ferguson, Clough, Shankly etc all did.....giants of the managerial game, very early days to put him in that bracket, but one to watch for sure. As everyone will be doing. If they play pass and move football, then that is the type to play at the highest levels. What about Mowbray ? Has done it at a higher level than Ince, also successful with Hibs and has done it by playing attacking football.. Would rather have him to replace KK in 3 years' time(he will be 47 then)than Ince and I reckon he will have made his mark with WBA before then ; as a NE born lad, he would be a better bet as NUFC manager.

Totally agree - fancy Villa to run Spurs very close for 5th next season. We will not be in serious contention for at least 3 years.

This is like saying nothing matters but finishing higher than the Mackems... Spurs won't give a s--- that we beat them home & away ; I would rather we were in their position right now than ours, and they will know that only too well.

Supported the Mackems, didn't he ? It was Jack who followed Newcastle...