Ronaldo

Cabaye's the better player by a mile and the replacement was wonderful wonderful business, but if we're playing long ball stuff Cabaye's virtually a hindrance and Nolan would be ideal, frankly. Pains me to type those words but there you go.

from.com. It seems like an impossible scenario now and I actually groan when we have a corner. Sadly for Robert read Cabaye; and for Shearer and Speed read Shola and Williamson.

Nolan's just far more suited to that style of play. He's physically superior too.

Norwich are more enjoyable to watch than us? No.

I think he's good enough for a team with two effective runners alongside him so he can afford to be fairly static for the periods of the game in which we need to unlock defences. Maybe Sissoko will facilitate that. Oh, and .

Ba in particular can barely play 65 minutes a week without looking like one of his lungs has just been removed.

Ben Arfa, Jonas, etc etc. Ben Arfa and Cisse have both proved they can be extremely effective players. Cabaye and Jonas on the other hand had anonymous/ineffective performances throughout last season. In fact, Jonas has been the weakest link in the midfield since the days of Hughton.

Why bother? We had 2 months of good football and great results with our best system last season.

You can put it down to Pardew all you want, but unlike Cisse I have limited sympathy for Cabaye because I really don't think in either system he's a player that will ever really get a grip on games in this league.

Not sure if it's already been mentioned on here but he definitely seemed to be complaining to Pardew about the tactics immediately after Krul launched that long ball out of play about 65 minutes in. They had a few words by the touchline and Hatem walked away shaking his head.

That's the thing, though. The long ball crap we've been playing actually highlights, not negates, the need for a box-to-box player.

I'm so p*ssed off with this, man. Took my girl to her first NUFC game yesterday and it cost me near enough £200 with travel expenses for us to watch that bullshit. I've never left before the final whistle ever but I actually started considering it at half time because I would've put my house on us losing the game and serving up predictable, unwatchable crap in the process. Taking the opposition into account and the talent we were able to start, that's the worst performance I can remember at SJP in at least 5 years. Easily the angriest I've been about an NUFC game since the no-show against Fulham that effectively sent us down.

We've been every bit as bad away from SJP, far worse in fact. We just get more opportunities to soak up pressure and counter on the road.

It would have vastly improved us today.

he'd have done what he done for them, won lots but didn't have a clue where it was going. pretty pointless really. But a vast improvement, nonetheless.

After Santon, absolutely. The pair of them looked a class above anything else we had out there, though Taylor didn't have a bad game.

Shola being knackered after a minute of football or your typo where you typed "with" instead of without? Oh, I see. Mick made a funny.

He's playing far too deep and I don't think that's because he's made a decision to play that way. He plays much better when he's getting into the opposition box and he'll not do that on the edge of our box. He is allowed to get forward, like in the examples you quoted above. There is no link between midfield and the forwards and I put this down to Cabaye more than anyone else. If the ball gets smashed forward he should push up. It's common sense. Jonas playing behind him today should have freed him up to go forward more but he didn't bother. We're missing a box-to-box player so badly, like. Far too often Cabaye's on the edge of his own area when he should be well past the halfway line.

Hart's mistakes go unnoticed all the time.

What you on about, Mick?

Source, dude?

I realised today that my expectations have to be lowered a level, like. When the theme of the day is (once again) Mike Williamson launching dreadful balls to a knackered Shola Ameobi it's time to face some hard facts. We're going nowhere without big, big changes.

He's obsolete, as is Cabaye for long periods.

In 20 years of going to SJP that's the one occasion I was totally convinced we were going to lose at HT. Dreadful nonsense.

Santon and Hatem were out best two by a mile. f*** off, HBA been s*** as usual , he had a few moments granted but that didnt cancel out the amount of time he spent hogging the ball whilst Cabaye stood near asking for the pass. he needs to understand this is not the HBA show, this is newcastle's show and he needs to learn to pass the ball when a team mate is standing next to him waiting for the ball. be a team player not a f***ing one man show. Yeah, in a team that knocks the ball over his head to Shola Ameobi. Give over.