merlin

A sign of the times....clubs are DESPERATE to stay in the PL and keep picking up the TV dosh..... We will be in just as much turmoil if we fail to go up this season - hopefully we won't have to find out if that is true.

Completely different context and era though. ....and Clough in the dusk of his career after winning 2 European Cups for them - no comparison at all.

If we f*** it up we won't be good enough and the losses already accrued will be to blame - esp the home games...

There IS a problem with character in this side...that is illustrated by the fact that we have only come back from a losing situation to win once...v Norwich at SJP. The other main challengers have managed it on far more occasions. We also lack quality and pace up front apart from Gayle - and we are without him now for a few games. I had hoped our football would be more convincing as the season went on, but apart from a decent spell after we went 2-0 up last night, we have not looked as if we can create many clear chances. The next month will be crucial and we need to somehow drag points from the crucial games - it will be very interesting.

Pleased with the result and a second half performance which was partly due to them falling away after Lansbury's delightful OG...justice is a quality rarely seen in football and even scarcer at SJP, but this was a great case of the biter bit...and how he deserved it. First half was dire stuff and we really lack quality up front and in m/f with the exception of Shelvey...we looked like struggling until Gouffran's scrambled effort from what was, I believe, our first corner. Gayle's withdrawal with what appears to be a hamstring recurrence is very worrying in view of the forthcoming fixtures. I did wonder whether they had rushed him back into the side - I remember Beardsley having a bad hamstring and it kept him out for over 6 weeks but once he came back the injury never recurred so to lose Gayle with this would be a concern...we will miss him up front for sure over the next month. We needed this win and now comes the hard stuff....

Its almost a certainty that this prat is going to score a crucial goal for them in this match...we are the world's biggest fall-guys for hate-figures like him coming back to haunt us. I was at SJP when we had an FA Cup replay with Wimbledon in 1988 after the famous Vinnie Jones gonad-grabbing incident on Gazza during the first game. We were all desperate for the game to come around so we could abuse Jones - many threw toilet brushes at him after his comment about giving Gazza a toilet brush in return for a rose that Gazza sarcastically sent to their dressing room after the first game - but everything went wrong. That awful dwarf Wise scored and we lost 1-3...Gazza did nowt and Jones didn't even get booked as far as I remember.... This game has all the signs of a repeat performance after Lansbury gets stick from the fans...its something NUFC specialize in..! Nah. We'll batter these. We all thought that before the replay with Wimbledon....

I should hope so. As long as Ashley backs him and we go up, there is a good chance of him staying...if Ashley doesn't Rafa will be away.

This is terrible news..means Colback is almost a certainty to feature in most games from now on. Once again, Ashley, the so-called 'crafty businessman' has gambled and probably cost the club...AGAIN.

Its almost a certainty that this prat is going to score a crucial goal for them in this match...we are the world's biggest fall-guys for hate-figures like him coming back to haunt us. I was at SJP when we had an FA Cup replay with Wimbledon in 1988 after the famous Vinnie Jones gonad-grabbing incident on Gazza during the first game. We were all desperate for the game to come around so we could abuse Jones - many threw toilet brushes at him after his comment about giving Gazza a toilet brush in return for a rose that Gazza sarcastically sent to their dressing room after the first game - but everything went wrong. That awful dwarf Wise scored and we lost 1-3...Gazza did nowt and Jones didn't even get booked as far as I remember.... This game has all the signs of a repeat performance after Lansbury gets stick from the fans...its something NUFC specialize in..!

It definitely felt like two points dropped yesterday rather than a point won. We put them under pressure with an early goal, then handed them two goals to turn it back on us instead. Then to make matters worse we were just as wasteful at the other end of the pitch missing so many chances. That said, we've won plenty of games recently despite playing poorly so I guess it's swings and roundabouts. The next 5 games will tell us all we need to go if we are going up automatically at a canter or it's going to be twitchy bum time until the end of the season. We really in my opinion need to beat either Brighton or Hudderfield and draw the other one to stop those 2 who I see as the main threat making ground. However the next 2 home games are pivitol in all this and anything less than 2 wins will really start the alarms going. After those 5 games our run in is not too bad - we don't go up this year Rafa will by away (and he might if we do anyway) someone like Pardew will be in the job (and don't put money on it wouldn't be him either) and this club will be in no mans land for years to come until the fat c*** finally decides he has had enough. Agree with all of this.

We need to start looking convincing and imposing ourselves in these home games - we are approaching the most crucial phase of the season and a good win at SJP would put fans in good heart and strike a warning to those we are due to play...a poor result/performance will give the chasing pack hope that they can force us into the play-offs so we need to win this game convincingly.

Time will tell....

Yep. We are going to need some serious investment in the summer to get us playing more fluent football, most of this lot have been struggling to string together a decent passing move. I can barely recall seeing one yesterday, the only quality was in defence. Very true - but you can't really see Ashley either A) coming up with the necessary dosh or B) allowing Rafa to make the choice of the signings. We look leagues poorer than most PL sides when it comes to fluency and passing/possession.

Looked solid and a good prospect again yesterday...he will improve as time goes by.

They have a different mentality to our fans and for that matter, to those of Liverpool/Man U fans - they want success and their whole club ethic has always been about professionalism at every level. I remain convinced that Rafa WOULD be among those they would be interested in and if Ashley HAS changed the ground-rules, he would be interested in them too because he too is a winner and wants to create a winning club. His chances of doing that at NUFC will be virtually zero if Ashley insists on his youth profile for potential signings. Wenger has given them some attractive sides and some decent signings but they have fallen by the wayside when it comes to trophies....NUFC fans have accepted that for their club but Gunners fans and the board have not . As for immediate results, Rafa has achieved those here but the football has not always been easy on the eye. If he did the same at PL level it would be acceptable for quite a few clubs' fans. I just hope Ashley sees sense - if not, we are likely to lose the manager.

This - we are playing poorly and if they get in front we will probably lose..regardless of what happened at SJP....

Cannot add anything to this.

Disagree totally - he is a perfect fit for them. They want success and trophies having been denied them for some years now. They also have a history of winning things by pragmatic football...remember '1-0 to the Arsenal'....? They would back him far more heavily than Ashley ever would and he would be in charge of a great club. I said ages ago that if Wenger left, they would be serious competitors for his services and they are a far bigger club than West Ham who are the other main contenders.

Then what was the idea behind appointing Rafa in the first place? I would have thought it was pretty obvious if you are going to hire a world class coach who has won honours throughout his career, that he is going to have at least some ambition. This can't be a surprise since most of us were pointing it out even when the rumours of us going for Rafa were being circulated. They appointed Rafa because A) He was available, no compo and B) they were desperate to get someone with a proven record in the faint hope of keeping us up and taking the heat off them as well as ensuring there would be no desertion by disgruntled fans if we were relegated...all that has worked to a T for them but Ashley's short-term thinking and belief that he can never be wrong will ensure that his 2 monkeys at SJP will always be able to use him as an excuse to avoid spending big money for advancement...all he cares about is the PL financial reward, not the club and if they think they have a cat-in-hell's chance of getting a top manager after Rafa goes, they really ARE in need of certification.

This - absolutely. There will be NO point in throwing ST money at Ashley and the club if Rafa is forced to leave...and by that I mean that he finds the parameters of Ashley's transfer policy unacceptable. Clearly, he is a successful manager and a winner and that means competing for the players HE believes can bring success. Almost certainly, Rafa does not want to go yet but I am certain that he will if he detects any backsliding on building a team which can achieve his ambitions. Any manager NUFC get after Rafa goes would be a massive step backwards and a clear signal that nothing will change while Ashley owns the club - it will be a long haul before he finally goes, but he would never get a penny from me if Rafa had to move to another club - and possibly one with less potential - because of the club's lack of ambition.

I think this is the key really. There was always going to be a massive comedown. How do you think teams like Liverpool(70s/80s) and Man U(90s/2014)managed to keep winning..? Yes, they are bigger clubs but its basically down to the manager and his staff...AND being well supported, when necessary, by Board backing. Liverpool under Shankly established the 'Boot Room' system and the board wisely promoted someone(Paisley)who was familiar with it when Shanks retired. Clough also kept his teams(with the exception of Leeds)in the heat of the action despite them being similar to Leicester in size/potential. Leicester under Ranieri were one-season wonders and its apparent that he doesn't have the motivational skills of the a/m managers who, despite the popular view on here, would have been JUST as successful today. It is also much harder to break into the Top 6 on a regular basis because these clubs have ridiculous amounts of money..only a club like Newcastle could do it and even then, only if backed by big, big money.

Goodness knows what went wrong for this kid - he looked to have great ability back in 2013, but clearly he either failed to reach his potential or there is something else we don't know about...was selected for the Aus Under-23s in 2013 then went right off the radar.... He isn't the first young player with ability to mess things up - young players need a good head as well as good feet....

The club would be finished as a potentially major force in the game - any manager worth their salt wouldn't touch the job with a barge-pole and Ashley will use it as a cash-cow until it eventually becomes a liability to him - then he might sell but the damage will have been done. I cannot see him going for at least 3-4 years.

..especially if the club that wants him has to pay compo to Ashley...he'd be rubbing his hands with glee !

We got the result needed with a performance which was nothing special at all. The game was largely scrappy football with possession being surrendered like a pin-ball machine. We were the better of 2 unimpressive sides. Thank our lucky stars we have a top manager and move on...