Wallace

Already been said they won't do any thing until July. Got to let the good players move before we pretend we're trying to do any thing other wise we might have to buy some of them. Before the season ended, they said they were going to do the transfer business early and now they say not till July. I wonder if they are waiting to see of they get any bids for players before deciding who to buy. Back in January, they said they were working hard on their Summer targets because they were supposedly going to recruit a lot of young players to pad out the squad because we haven't got the youngsters coming through. It's hard to believe anything that comes out of the club because they change their story too often. The last line sums it up nicely, hard to trust a single word these lot tell us. I know it's early but i'm really starting to believe this will turn into another farcical transfer summer. This need to sell before we buy rubbish, why? We are forever told by the club of the sound financial footing we are under, we shouldnt be even talking about selling our players. It's as if Ashley is secretly wanting offers. Clearly if a player is set on leaving or a stupid Carrolesque bid comes in for someone, then thats understandable. The club should be making positive noises about strengthening the side, not this constant verbal propaganda of our 'stars' leaving. That really bugs me. Everyone knows that virtually all clubs will struggle to hold on to players if a big offer comes in or a player wants to leave but no other club feels the need to advertise the fact as much as we do. It is yet another contradiction - the club seems to be constantly inviting offers for players and then puts all of their effort into trying to keep them.

Already been said they won't do any thing until July. Got to let the good players move before we pretend we're trying to do any thing other wise we might have to buy some of them. Before the season ended, they said they were going to do the transfer business early and now they say not till July. I wonder if they are waiting to see of they get any bids for players before deciding who to buy. Back in January, they said they were working hard on their Summer targets because they were supposedly going to recruit a lot of young players to pad out the squad because we haven't got the youngsters coming through. It's hard to believe anything that comes out of the club because they change their story too often.

We need to get new strikers in before we contemplate selling him. Clubs will know we are even more desperate than we are already and will just hike the price up.

I've heard reporters speculating that Falcao is only going to Monaco so that he can move to Real Madrid in a years time. I guess if there is some truth in that then it might be easier to move on from Monaco than one of the other clubs that have been after him.

VI? http://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/newcastle-united-fans-deliver-verdicts-4029739 That post from Andrew with a collection of comments from supporters from clubs previously managed by Pardew sounds depressingly familiar. Reading that makes it doubtful that Pardew has the ability to learn from his mistakes.

Think it is is only if they sell him for a profit which is never going to happen.

Apparently Liverpool want a quick sale as they need the money to get other players in. I hope the story is true if only to wind the Scousers up.

It seems to me that Pardew (and the Club) seems to be really poor at pre-season. Last minute fixture arrangements, poor travel planning, not enough minutes on the pitch for the first team etc.

£12 million would be an absolute steal. I just don't see him being interested in coming here. Meant to be talking to Champion League clubs and wants to play in Europe. I would be amazed if he ended up here unless all other options dry up. I hope we don't spend all Summer waiting for him as we need strikers desperately.

Jesus wept, man I dislike Pardew but this melodramatic bollocks is just laughable. Can't get behind him? You'll be singing his name if we start next season like we did 11/12. The club you are happy to support isn't the club I want to support. It's called ambition and you've got none. As for singing his name after a few decent results, now that is laughable bollocks. I want to support a club that wins. Is that not ambition? I don't think Pardew is the man for the job, I'd prefer him sacked, but he's not the devil incarnate. He's just a bloke who doesn't look to be too great at his job who has been given a stay of execution. Maybe I'm getting old but I can't muster the energy to get that worked up about this. Nothing to do with lack of ambition, I just don't see how it's going to have a profoundly negative impact on the club in the long term. I can see it having a long term effect. At the moment we have rebuilt our reputation and our ability to attract very good players to the club, if however we face another season of utter s***, that reputation will falter and the resulting effects will be players leaving, unable to attract a top manager/player. I am also concerned about the long term effect. The main thing this club has going for it is the fanbase. Lose that because of increased apathy due to the lack of ambition from the club then what do you have? They need to be very careful because you have to give the supporters something to look forward to if the club is not able to challenge for trophies. At the very least as a fan you want to be able to enjoy the match and have belief that you are able (and willing) to compete. Affordable tickets will only work for so long if there is something worthwhile to watch and a reason to keep coming back. This constant dampening and manipulation of the expectations of fans will damage them eventually. I think the constant message that we can't expect to compete in certain matches or for certain players, that we can't expect to keep players, the comparisons of ourselves with Wigan and Fulham, the difficulty of getting away tickets, the lack of communication and deliberate misinformation etc etc will eventually lead to an increasing number of supporters thinking what's the point. As has been seen already, once supporters are pushed away for whatever reason, they are unlikely to come back.

If he thinks he's had it tough this season, he better prepare himself for next season because if there is not a massive improvement from the start, it won't take very long for the crowd to start getting very vocal in their criticism.

If he is going to be out for 4 months then he will miss pre-season which will mean he will struggle to catch up for the rest of next season. I wonder if that will cause West Ham to defer the deal or re-negotiate the fee.

Campbell looks like one of the kids walking alongside his dad.

I am surprised they have come out so quickly to deny interest (which if true is only fair to Carroll if he hoping for a return). They must be confident of getting other targets otherwise you would think they would keep the interest alive for a while. Although with our lot, I am never sure what their motives are.

BBC website is saying that West Ham have agreed a fee of £15m with Liverpool but Carroll is yet to decide whether he wants to make the move.

I went to a Harper Talk-In a few years back and he's quite a clever lad. He managed to say or rather infer an awful lot without actually saying the words so there was nothing that could be quoted but you fully understood what he was saying or what his feelings were when certain questions were asked.

Seconded. BTW, just a thought, is 14-16m enough for Lukaku? Think they paid £19m for him.

From the Mirror: Last word to Harper: “I was wobbling a bit in the 37th minute. It got to me. Then Podolski smashed the ball in my family allowance and snapped me out of it! “I also saw my dad, hard as nails ex-miner in the tunnel before the game with my kids and he wobbling a bit, and that set me off a bit too! “I will miss the intensity of this club. It IS the city. It is a heavy shirt to wear, an amazing club to play for.. if you can handle it.”

Really didn't think it would catch on but everyone in the stadium was applauding him, was absolutely brilliant. Thoroughly deserved as well. Always best when something happens spontaneously like that.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-2325842/Steve-Harper-remembers-best-worst-20-year-Newcastle-United-career-ends-Sunday.html A few extra bits from the Mail's version. Daftest player ‘Steven Taylor would be up there. So would Tino Asprilla. And Budgie (John Burridge), although he was a coach. He got himself on the bench ahead of me for one game. I’ve still got the scars. ‘Budgie was crazy. He used to ring me, my dad would answer the phone and he would say: “Tell Steven it’s his dad”. 'And my dad would answer: “It is his dad”.’ Best saves ‘I made one on my debut against Boro from Brian Deane. The ball bounced up and I got it over the bar, but it was pretty much all downhill from there. ‘Sheffield United was very important in the Championship. We were backs to the wall and I pulled off a save. That was a momentum-building moment for us. ‘People had written us off, a lot of questions had been asked, but we had that spirit and togetherness. The dressing room we had then was a real high.’ Best three games ‘Juventus was pretty special. We’d played Blackburn in awful conditions and Shay had a terrible time. Bobby said ‘you’re playing’ and I was like ‘yeah, great’. And then I realised it was Juventus! I had a pretty quiet night and we managed to win. ‘Plymouth, winning the league down there, especially after an eight hour bus journey because of the ash cloud. ‘In the dressing room afterwards, we were six inches deep in liquid! This old guy came in with cups of tea for Joey Barton and Alan Smith and we all started singing ‘there’s only one Bobby Robson’. He loved it as well. That’s the last I remember of that night.’ Newcastle 4 Arsenal 4 ‘It was incredible. When we came into the dressing room at half time I just walked through the door and said if anyone puts the white flag up here it is going to be double figures. ‘Then the gaffer made a fantastic speech in which he - how shall I put it - reminded people of their responsibilities. ‘To come back and draw that game just sums up the emotion of being a professional footballer. To be 4-0 down after 26 minutes in front of the Gallowgate End was not much fun.’

Agree. Rafa has said that we wants to stay in England but his options are very limited. He is not going to get a top 5 club and Everton is quite an awkward one for him. He supposedly turned down Villa because of their financial situation a year or two ago. We really are the most realistic option for him as we have good players and a lot of potential. But then I doubt we would pay the kind of salary he would demand nor would we afford him the kind of control he likes to have. And he certainly would not be prepared to do the PR work required to protect Ashley and Llambias. He does like to get the media involved when things are not going as he wants behind the scenes. I just don't think Ashley would trust him to stay "on message" and it would end up as something of a poitical battle between the board and manager as it did at Liverpool.

It wouldn't be a surprise to see him leave us but it would be a surprise for me to see him return to the French League after singing the praises of the Premier League so much.

Good luck to him. Personally I'd prefer that he and his club have no luck whatsoever and we end up finishing considerably higher than them next season if true. f*** 'em. But then one of the other papers say Jol wants out because he has had a falling out over the lack of transfer funds. And then the article says he is interested in the Everton job. Guess that is the same club who is renowned for its large transfer kitty - not!!""

Injured

I think Nolan will always do his best for whatever team he is playing for regardless of the opposition but I think Carroll just finds it hard to play against us. He got very little abuse yesterday. A few taunts to the West Ham fans about him wanting to come home and a couple of verses referencing the fallout with Taylor but that was the easiest ride he has had from our fans since he left..