Ronaldo

you're a fool then, sorry

That's also a good comparison in that Smith doesn't seem to have natural position in any tactical strategy Newcastle employs. He's never prepared to finish when the time comes, his decision making is usually poor, and I think his ability to concentrate is often overcome by his tendency to jaw at the referee. That said his industriousness always shows, he seems to be comfortable as a "leader" in the dressing room, and he has a desire to win that I'm not sure I see in other players very much. All in all, I think he would be more successful as a substitute when his energy is concentrated on a shorter period of time. I think the role would also help his focus. As a starter he is crap, and the sooner Sam realizes this, the better. he wont though, he paid £6m for Smith and came out saying shit like it was great business, he can't hide behind the age/adaptation period bollocks like he can with Enrique

This. Bullshit the midfield were the last to just about every ball, we were awful in the middle of the park

You really think he was "fantastic"? His crossing was as bad as it was when he was fully fit for us (scuffed with no accuracy), as was the dithering when he was in a good position. But theres no doubting that hes a player with natural ability and the consistency in that ability to complement it, far more so than NZogbia and Milner. Just have to hope that he gets his confidence back, and starts driving at defenders, attacking space, and starts shooting/crossing more like the Duff of old, since we really need someone like that at the moment. one bad cross to be fair

has pissed me off so much the people on this forum ready to write him off, he'll show what a great player he is

i've had it with Smith, his attitude is great but he's been absolute bollocks for us, sad to say but half the player that cunt Dyer is

Derby were shite, we were worse, deserved to get beat

the cunts coming out of the ground as just as bad, Martins is shit this, no.9 that Smith looks as dangerous as an empty bathtub, but people overlook it, cunts

N'zogbia's crossing was awful, Milner had a chance to shine as a winger but instead once again demonstrated that despite the effort, he's no more than a good player Duff has to be on the left-wing, couldn't care less what that means for the other two

just got back from that shower of shite Barton Butt Smith Milner if Allardcye ever plays that midfield again he should be sacked on the spot, the guy is fucking clueless when it comes to attacking

no way Inter - Milan will be one sided, close game tbh

of course he isn't, sad but true

don't know about that, Viduka is 31, McCarthy is 30, similar in terms of goals and ability, Viduka is more proven in the prem

McCarthy is a very good player, but we need a player in the Viduka mould a lot more

Indeed

just saw this on SSN talk about OOTB, Viduka has been poor imo but needs a chance to get properly fit

he's put on a few pounds since being out injured, his weight fluctuates very easily but he'll be back looking great in no time anyone see Milan vs Cagliari last month? still got a ridiculous burst of speed

so harsh on Duff, why can't people give him the benefit of the doubt

Cacapa, he'll start every game he's fit and has the right personality to be captain

not forgetting that it is very likely shev will move on either in jan or the summer. and that Anelka isn't fit to suck Drogba's wang

to be fair, this season Arsenal have played a lot of route 1 football. Comfortably more than say Man u

i've seen little to suggest that n'zogbia will be much of an improvement on milner. we'd be going back to 2005/6 to see any form in that position. compare that with what brummie would say about milner's time at villa ? Duff's hasn't done anything to warrant a place over Milner or Zog yet either. he'll get his chance though and rightfully so. As much as I love Milner, Duff (even if he does return slower) is a better player

Martins can be abysmal all game but if he gets a goal or two he'll be forgiven. Such is the life of a striker. It's fair enough, but you can both surely see that it severely hurts the team in general on days where Martins doesn't pull out a goal from somewhere, as he contributes pretty much nothing in terms of build-up play for the rest of the team. I'd much prefer a player who scores less goals and can actually play a bit of football and improve the team with what he offers as a whole, rather than a headless chicken who scores the odd wonder goal here and there. Martins still has time to improve, but I'm really not seeing any development in his awareness sadly. OK, but it sounds to me that you're not taking into consideration that he's being player out of position. And still doing alright with it anyhow. When he's been deployed down the middle this season, he's been clinical and his movement have been much improved in comparison to last season. See the City goal for evidence of improved finishing, movement and touch. You can throw the Spurs goal in there aswell. I'm tired of people saying he's not improving, because he is. And similarly with N'Zogbia, i think it'll help his development as an all-round player being played slightly out of position, because he'll have to learn new things. Where to move, when to time his runs, how to find a goalscoring position in the box (not that he's bad at that anyway), and so on. His awareness isn't particularly great but it has and will improve over the course of the season, providing he's playing of course. I'll never say he's a headless chicken because i just don't think he is. Did you read what Sir Les said about him on Setanta ? This is on nufc.com today if you want to check... basically, he says that Martins is NOT comfortable OR suited to playing 4-3-3, and enlarges on this by saying that he is not disciplined enough to fit the system as he keeps drifting inside... This has been one of my biggest problems about Martins - he is an instinctive type of player and these`players do NOT have the right mental attitude to be a success at the top level ; every so often they will produce a moment of magic, but will then proceed to miss easy chances etc because they do not have the necessary discipline to either play within a framework or to keep a cool head when necessary - in the 70s, there was the case of Duncan Mckenzie, who had amazing skills but never reached the top even though he was given a chance in one of Leeds' best teams..there was also Stan Bowles who could undo teams like you've never seen when he felt like it, but then disappeared into obscurity because of his ill-disciplined private life... Neither Owen NOR Martins are the answer to our striker problem - for entirely different reasons. Owen gets too many injuries, but if he didn't, would be one of the top scorers in the Prem, whereas Martins just hasn't got what it takes to be a top striker . If Les`Ferdinand is prepared to say it, that's confirmation enough for me that my doubts are justified, and for all those saying that Owen doesn't fit the system, this is confirmation that neither does Martins .. . He cannot play as a target man either - too small and individualistic - may be that is why NUFC is never successful - the fans seem to prefer moments of brilliance from erratic players than a disciplined team, which is the only way to bring success. the fans in general may prefer that, but lets be honest, how many players have we had in the last 5 years capable of moments of brilliance, maybe 3

bid for Danny Mills asap Sam

what the hell happened to Wayne Quinn anol? Robbie Elliot never had the best luck with inuries either