Chris_R

For Newcastle: Beardsely Shearer Ginola (On his day) Worldwide: Maradonna Zidane Ronaldinho - Though this 3rd place could have gone to any of about 10. Bergkamp, Ronaldo, C. Ronaldo, Henry, Stoichkov, Hagi, Rui Costa, Cantona, Gascoigne (In his very short prime), Van Basten, Baggio and many others all right up there.

Legend. I just about held back the tears, but I won't claim it was easy. All the best Bobby, hope you have a long and happy retirement.

Problem with playing Geremi at RM is that he can't beat a man. At all. I don't doubt his quality to actually put a ball in to the box, but he doesn't have the technical ability of Milner or the speed of N'Zogbia to actually go past a man to get a cross in in the first place. All he can do is stand there and hit it into the penalty area from level with the edge of the box. Put a half-decent DL against him and he'll cover the angle into the box rendering all our output from the right side obselete.

From the north east, so yes. Spent most of my life in Whitley Bay / Tynemouth, but currently in South Shields.

If you're going to spend £200m on something, you might as well turn up to watch! Still, seems like a good bloke. Could have a lot worse in charge.

Gahaha! Terry Venables? He shouldn't be allowed within 100 miles of a football club.

Just for once I'd like to see us line up 4-4-2 with N'Zogbia on the left wing and Milner on the right wing. Just once. Still, we'll see how it goes today. Fingers crossed.

Another gutless performance and the players need to start taking some of the blame as well as SA If he continues to refuse to play wingers on the wings, and the correct wings at that, and sets out for a 0-0 from the start, then IMO the blame stops at his door not the players.

That's the last time I listen to Greg when I post! If it's Saturday, disregard my 5th point. But the rest still stand.

3000 is too many IMO. Personally it's about the last game I'd apply for. - Prices too high - Bloody miles away - We'll get thrashed - Chelsea have enough money without me further lining their pockets - Midweek match - Over the Christmas period Maybe take an extra 500-750? There'll be requests from London mags that should sell out 500-1000 at least but I'd struggle to say they'll definitely sell 2000. Better to underestimate it than overestimate at in times like this.

Yeah, one was one of the best centre forwards in the world with lots of pace and a fantastic finisher. The other was Craig Bellamy.

In all seriousness I'd say that Bellamy was replaced firstly by Owen and then when Owen was crocked long term he was replaced by Martins. To say either lacked pace when they arrived is daft, anyone would have thought (Incorrectly, I know!) that getting shot of Bellamy and bringing Michael Owen in would be a good piece of business. Likewise with Robert. We signed Albert Luque and Damien Duff to replace him. Both are fast, both can hit a shot - Luque especially. Both have failed to make an impact for various reasons but again the intent was there to replace them. As for Dyer, what exactly did he contribute for us in the 10 years he was here? 10 good games, if that? Nothing to replace IMO. And Solano was a slow but technically gifted right winger. Bit like James Milner? OK, I know Milner was here when Nobby was first here but still, do you want ANOTHER slow but skillful right winger as well? Seems like there's not a lot left to replace to me. Already done. Admittedly they've been injured or just not up to it, but the replacements have been brought in. Now even Duff is getting back to fitness (Apparantly), so it's just a case of waiting to see what Sam will do with them. Probably put Duff on at left back, N'Zogbia on at right wing and Milner on at left wing....

The Carr substitution was perhaps the only one I could understand. The match was lost at 3-0, and he wanted to give him a few minutes of pitch time to help him get back to fitness. Why he didn't take Geremi off though and put Carr on at his favoured right back position is anyone's guess, but I can understand why he brought him on. Actually, thinking about it, he probably took Enrique off as he might have realised that if he DID take Geremi off, it would have elicited the biggest cheer of the day.

I've been going to Newcastle matches for over 15 years now and have always been of the opinion that you support the team no matter what. If you want to withhold applause at the end then fine, but don't boo - leave that to the Mackems. All that changed on Saturday though. Whilst I didn't boo them myself (I did join in with "You don't know what you're doing" though) I fully understand why people have taken this course of action and was sorely tempted to join in, which I've never even contemplated before in all my time at St James's park. I've never witnessed such dross as I have this year and the only way to get the message across that the mentality we have adopted on the pitch is absolutely unacceptable is to make some kind of vocal gesture. And before anyone starts I'm not talking about the results here, I couldn't care less about getting beaten by Liverpool or even Derby as these things happen and you get on with it but at least have the right players in the right positions and try to get forward a bit. Tactically Sam is getting it wrong week after week and it's hard to just sit there and watch as your team comes out lined up so fundamentally wrongly and tries to sneak a nil-nil at the Premiership's whipping boys. I don't think any of the booing was directed at the players whatsoever, it was solely at Allardyce for his baffling and perplexing lineup, mentality, tactics and substitutions, all of which he somehow manages to get wrong every single week. If nothing changes, he can expect further insipid performances like Saturday's (And Reading, Derby, Sunderland, Portsomouth etc...) and if we keep managing to average 3 off target efforts per match, none on target and no corners then he can only expect the booing to get even louder. Next time I might join in.

We have to keep him until the end of the season as like others have said to do otherwise would make us a laughing stock. I'll add 2 "Unlesses" though: - Unless we're looking like candidates for relegation - Unless an amazing managerial candidate becomes available To me, the big test comes at Blackburn. They're a good side, but they're beatable. Allardyce has heard loud and clear what the fans think of his tactics and substitutions on Saturday so let's see what he does in the next match. I'm not saying he must bow to the will of the fans as I fully appreciate that he must pick the team not us, but if he persists with his methods then we simply must see an improvement. If he goes with a midfield of Smith, Butt, Geremi and Barton and plays for a 0-0 again then I think I'll cry.

it's not so much about milner as team balance and positioning. True and i was only being half serious but to think that Milner was going to turn that game around is f****** idiocy. Plus the people singing it were the same embarrassing twats who booed Zog going off and believe there is a replacement lined up for allardyce who is prepared to come here in this climate and to get us consistently playing decent winning football in less than his first 14 games. Get rid of that lot in January and the 20,000 seats they occupy fair enough it's getting cold but i doubt that would put off a serious manager You know what i mean. aye but too easy an opportunity. the likes of everton and blackburn,villa should be enough to let you understand that team balance and organisation can be as important as individual talent. All of which have had time to achieve that. You don't need time to play a right winger on the right wing. You just need a braincell and a pair of eyes.

If Shearer got it, all the Man Yoo fans would go apoplectic. Surely it's worth appointing him on that basis alone?

So how do you explain the fact that we've stopped winning since Geremi was moved away from his preferred central midfield role? The statistics show that he was the player responsible for: A lot of the goals we scored The possession football we played. How can you explain that we are scoring less, and have been much worse in possession since Geremi has been shoved out of his CM role? I don't think we've had a settled enough side to be able to say one way or the other although CM is his best position imo. What he said. He was dropped because he was playing poorly, not that Emre offers much of a better option though. He is better in CM than down the right though where he's poor, far too slow. Agreed, he offers nothing on the right. Was at the match yesterday and he just cannot beat a man. N'Zogbia can beat a man with pace, Milner can beat a man with technique. Geremi can do neither and his only option is to put a cross in from standing still level with the edge of the penalty area with the fullback stood in front of him. The results of such efforts were entirely predictable. I have no problem with Geremi playing CM or even DR, but it's an absolute joke to see him out as a winger.

Venables is a cockney criminal spiv who shouldn't be allowed within 100 miles of any kind of gainful employment, let alone a football club. And yes, I'm aware that would mean he'd have to live at sea in a boat. And apart from being a crook he's a crap football manager as well. Oh, I forgot, he got us to the semis of the European Championships. A feat that every other host nation has managed with the exception of Belgium in 2000, which our London press conveniently tend to forget as they have a group wank over how 'great' we were in that tournament. (You may or may not be able to guess that Mr T Venables is not my most favourite football manager ever)

Very true. Stick any fucker up front, it won't make much difference at the moment. Hell, Harper's played outfield before, hasn't he? Being a big lad, he'd suit our long ball game quite nicely away from home.

Shola has played over 200 games for us - His progress has been hindered by his own ineptness as a footballer, not by his lack of first team opportunities.

How about Rooney, Ronaldo, Drogba, Torres, Tevez and Adebayor You missed out Ameobi mind A) I was thinking of realistic targets B) Quite deliberately

I think 5 strikers are enough. I mean, who else will come to the club as a striker when we've got Smith, Owen, Martins and Viduka on the books already?

Given's not perfect, but better the devil you know IMO. And as for replacing Harper with him, well not sure on the merits of that. Harper is happy to play second fiddle to Given, can't imagine the same could be said about Jussi. He'd only come here as number 1. If he ended up 2nd choice, he'd be demanding a transfer. Then we'd be without a decent second choice 'keeper.

Sorry, Shay's WAITRESS? Eh?