thewellander

Few teams this year could survive the injury crisis we've been dealing with. It's impossible to say who's fault it is that we have so many injuries, but it's growing more and more clear that Ashley isn't going to do what needs to be done to give us the depth we need in these desperate times. I promised myself I would wait until the end of the window to make a judgment, but I'm losing faith quickly.

I've gone from 3 to 8 since this thread was started. If we lose to Sunderland on the weekend, we're going down, I'm afraid. I don't know where we're going to find the points to keep us up.

I can't think of any situation that could have been worse for us than to lose this game and have Owen and Barton injured. When Bassong had to get treatment, I almost lost it. I'm starting to feel that we can't escape going down. It's been a perfect storm this season, with the injuries, the backroom problems, etc. I'm gutted at the thought of not being able to watch Newcastle play for a year. We don't get Championship coverage in Canada.

They only got bought out on the last day of the summer transfer window and they still managed to sign Robinho. And no matter what you think of them, Bridge and Bellamy are improvements on what they have and now they're going to get Given.

It's ridiculous to suggest that they aren't a bigger club than us at this point just because they haven't immediately turned their $$$ into silverware. They haven't even had the chance, really. They were never going to sign a lot of world beaters in January, when most of the top players are still playing in Europe. Wait until the summer and then judge.

Beye----Coloccini---Bassong----Enrique = a decent back four, at least compared to what we had in recent years. Any of those players gets injured and it seems to fall apart.

I do agree that our general problem with our defending is down largely to our midfielders (and Enrique) giving the ball away too easily.

We did have a run a while back where we were hard to score against, but that's when the back four above were all fit and Barton was playing in CM, so I feel a bit more confident with Barton back in the team.

should he have a testamonial?

I would say that he should. I'm not terribly happy about the manner in which he's leaving, but 10 years at the club deserves a testimonial. He's been a great player for us on and off the pitch.

£4m + Enrique for McManus? 

Teams taking the piss out of each other these days.

 

No one wants to sell. I understand TBH.

 

Think they screwed up the title tbh or have back tracked, just says they didnt want enrique, just straight cash 4m upfront.

 

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-1128645/Put-shut-Celtic-tell-Newcastle-4m-plus-Enrique-prise-McManus.html?ITO=1490

Off topic, but are we really paying that much on wages for Enrique?

Owen is gone in the summer. It's almost 100% certain. So, if we could bring in another striker for him and get some transfer money, then I don't think it would be a terrible deal at this point.

O'Hara is better than Butt, imo, so he'd be an improvement on our current midfield. As I've said, if we must get rid of Given, I certainly hope that we get some players in a swap for him, as I don't see Ashley letting us reinvest the money we get for him.

Better him at RB than Edgar, I'm afraid. Like it or not, this is a bit of a boost.

To be fair, Nixon, I think that Taylor puts out a good effort and genuinely loves the club. He's just not very good. Still, I'd keep him.

As for Lovenkrands, I'm completely underwhelmed by the signing, but I agree that we need cover right now and I hope that he's hungry and wants to make the most of his opportunity here.

Bassong, Guthrie, Jonas, Coloccini = some of the best additions to our team in a long time. All came under Ashley's regime. Xisco doesn't seem to have worked out, but that's how it goes sometimes.

I don't know what happened with Keegan behind the scenes, so I'm not going to be one of those who assumes that Ashley was 100% wrong. It's irrational to think that, when we really don't know one way or the other.

Bottom line is that as long as Ashley moves this team forward, I'm happy. If, by February 2nd, we haven't strengthened the team and reinvested at least some of what we made on Milner in the summer, then I'll reassess.

But, let me just point out, that very few (if any) Premiership teams this season could hope to survive with the injuries we've had and the competitive nature of the league this year. By all due rights, we should be well knackered by now. If it weren't for the signings that were made over the summer, we would be right f*cked, as a matter of fact.

I'm hesitant for us to get rid of any player at the moment, but I would almost be happy to see Zogs go. A swap deal with Spurs would be fine with me, though I don't completely understand why a player would think Tottenham was a more attractive option than Newcastle from a competitive standpoint. They're sh*t and they don't even have the benefit of any good excuse for it. At least we have a massive injury crisis, and we're still ahead of them.

I went from 3 to 6, but I haven't changed in a while even though I wanted to, so it wouldn't have been so drastic a change had I been keeping on top of it. We're definitely in trouble unless we bring in new players.

We need new signings now.

How the f*ck are we getting thrashed by Blackburn f*cking Rovers?

I'm sad. At least Sunderland just went behind.

They sure love Danny Dichio in Toronto. We've also got Rohan Ricketts. Neither are very good, tbh. But they do their thing in the MLS.

If it's true, we've dodged a bullet. Better to have Ashley than two morons who could lose that much money to a scam. At least when Ashley didn't do due diligence, he still got a football club out of it.

In a way, it would be a shame for them to get a point reduction now because it would be tantamount to admitting that they should have gotten a point reduction at the time, which would have meant Sheffield staying up. In another way, a point reduction would be hilarious. So I'm kinda torn.

I am currently fascinated with what is going on. Just hoping it doesn't end in tears.

 

I wouldn't say I'm "fascinated", I'd go along with "trembling with nerves" and "expecting the worst". We're not even being involved in rumours with players I'd like to see here.

I'm still operating under the hope that the lack of rumours is because of the way that Ashley and Wise did business in the January window. Our best signings came out of the blue. It's possible that they're going to find us a couple more Bassongs and Jonases.

Of course, it's also possible they'll find us a couple more Nachos and Xiscos. But we'll have to wait and see is all.

Sell him!

Since he's been here he's either been injured, suspended or in jail. He's scored twice (if i remember correctly) and neither were from open play.

Guthrie is doing a cracking job in CM but he needs some creativity next to him. If we can sell Barton and replace him with a goalscoring midfielder then get it done!

I would rather keep Barton and still get that goal-scoring midfielder. At this point we can't afford to lose any midfielders. As a matter of fact, the priority has to be to keep what we have and bring in better midfielders on top of them. Any other decision and I will have lost my faith.

It was probably far cheaper and easier to keep him at Newcastle for cover than to sell him for f*ck all and bring in somebody else. He's shown this year that he can be a good squad player. I'd rather have him here for cover for our injury-prone strikers than have nobody at all. I honestly don't see what the problem is with giving him a new contract. It's a prudent move.

I'm genuinely grateful to Joe for coming in and more-or-less steadying the ship. He's done an adequate job as manager, in the midst of instability, crowd unrest, a major injury crisis, and the fact that he hasn't brought in any of his own players.

I know that people are unhappy with all the stupid and contradictory sh*t that comes out of his mouth, but if Derek Llambias did his job and actually communicated with the press and the fans, that wouldn't be such an issue. I honestly feel that Kinnear is aware of the nebulous vacuum that is the NUFC communications strategy, and makes the choice (albeit the wrong one) to fill it with whatever he can. But it's increasingly evident that even he isn't being talked to by the upper management.

That being said, I don't think that he's the best choice long-term. I'd like to see him go at the end of the season, but with the appreciation of the fans for the commitment he's shown to the club and the work that he's done under poor circumstances.

I'd take Ben Haim and Elano at this point, no question. If Hughes is eager to get them out, we should be moving as quickly as possible. They might not be the best long-term choices, but at the moment we could do with some experienced and skilled players to keep us out of relegation.

And apparently Elano is a head case, so he'll fit right in at NUFC.