AyeDubbleYoo

I tend to agree with you, but I can't think of any evidence! Just out of interest, what are your main reasons for thinking Hughton couldn't make a manager? Lack of experience is obviously one, but Shearer suffers from that too.

Oba is actually 45, and Geremi is 86.

Probably the only team we've faced so far who actually pose a threat to the opposition's goal... Chopra will be itching for a goal but I still think we can take this one if we play as well as we have been. A draw would be more than acceptable, there's plenty of rubbish in this league we can get our wins off.

Aparently Chopra was out on Saturday night in town... my mates swear he walked past us. I didn't see him though, so this isn't a very interesting story.

Of all the players I thought might leave, I'm ecstatic we managed to hold onto Jose. He links up with Jonas very well, they seem to have a great understanding, and he's more than solid in defence (usually). A player too good for this league really, and potentially the future Spain number one LB.

i understand and agree with that but the fact that the minority of fans are pretty much being held at gunpoint with this is quite tragic. we always need a certain hero, not just any hero. Yeah, I certainly don't believe that Newcastle is particularly 'special' and needs a particular Geordie hero to be the manager, that attitude holds the club back in a major way. I'm not sure how many fans really believe that either though, if Mourinho fancied a crack at the job I'm sure we'd get on board with that! The only problem is that, to a certain extent, what a vocal minority shout for and what the press report becomes the reality. If we're always going to have the spectre of Shearer over the club, on TV etc, then it might not be the worst thing to give him a shot and see what happens. Also, he might be a success, which would obviously be amazing. Who will be next in line as the messiah though? S Taylor's a bit young to be manager yet!

Even if the Shearer era isn't a success, and there's every chance it might be, we need to get it out of our systems so we can move on as club.

I was wondering that as well, is there anyone at the club who is actually allowed to make signings? I'd be surprised.

Our players massively under-performed last season, for whatever reason(s) including the off-field nonsense. There's very few who aren't good enough for the premiership, if they perform to their best. Nobody can hack the premiership if they don't do that.

This - and I'm not convinced about some of them(Lua Lua for example). As Hansen said once - you win nothing with a team of kids. A couple of months before Man Utd won the title?

Hughton seemed very confident that nobody would be going out. He might not know anything about it of course.

I'm going to this one! Seems it will be the toughest test yet.

Gibson from Man Utd is class player, but he's a CM, which is maybe the one player we don't need to sign!

A player with some honour for once.

Yeah, bans are much better than fines... clubs could always take internal action to fine players who got banned for diving anyway.

"Sometimes I see it but I say that I didn't see it to protect the players and because I could not find any rational explanation for what they did." It's time to move on from that attitude though, managers should be calling out their own players and making it clear that they do not want them to win penalties in this way.

They need to review footage of every top division match across the continent and start charging players regularly. That would really show commitment to stamping this out. Football is a contact sport BTW, a 'foul' doesn't mean you just 'made contact' with someone. For me diving is the thing that will have the biggest detrimental effect on football, much more so than money or anything else. It's cheating in the purest form.

I hope that was sarcasm!

There are so many smilies designed for Nicky Butt leaving: I could go on...

If thats a compliment, I wouldn't care to be insulted (Jesus.....) i don't think you're meant to take it this seriously, it's just a comedy opinion piece.

I think people might have missed the tongue-in-cheek nature of that article. It's just a guy saying he's surprised and disappointed by his lack of opportunity to laugh at us... if anything it's a complement.

Based on nothing more than blind optimism. Not at all, I'm saying that I agree our squad is too small. But it hasn't got worse in terms of its ability to win football matches. We have krul to thank for barely getting a draw against a side we beat twice last season. Ofcourse we're worse. Based on nothing more than blind pessimism! Nah, seriously, I stand by my point that other than as bodies to increase the numbers we won't miss the players that we have sold.

Based on nothing more than blind optimism. Not at all, I'm saying that I agree our squad is too small. But it hasn't got worse in terms of its ability to win football matches.

Pit poney, or at a push a tram.

The only good thing is that we haven't really noticed the departure of any of the players who have left. Was Michael Owen more useful to us than Nile Ranger? Nope. Was Damien Duff more effective than a random midfielder from the reserves? Nah. I agree the squad is too thin, but I think its ability to compete in football matches hasn't gone down at all because of the departures. Only Beye will be missed.