Phoenix711

I see what you're asking, but when you say "it's arguably on the line", I didn't see a single angle which showed any of Willock's boot touching the line. Personally, I felt there was enough evidence to say the foul was outside the box based on the angles/ freeze frames shown. "Clear evidence based on the replay is not the same as deciding that the error was clear and obvious. Or is it?" The location of the foul is an objective matter i.e. it was in or not in the box. As it's objective it is easy to see if the referee was correct or not and thus overturn. Whether it was a foul or not is a subjective matter and this is where you are less likely to overturn the referee even if it was a dubious call. The fact we're arguing about an objective matter makes it easier for VAR to intervene imo but as you saw the EPL website, it is a grey area. Anyways, upwards and onwards. West Ham next.

It was applied correctly. From the EPL website: "VAR will be used only for “clear and obvious errors” or “serious missed incidents” in four match-changing situations: goals; penalty decisions; direct red-card incidents; and mistaken identity." So you start with the situation and then look for the errors or things missed. The situation isn't the foul but the decision to award the penalty so you look at all aspects from the build up to the foul. When looking at the award of a penalty, they will look at all aspects (they have a check list), starting if it was a foul, were they any fouls before it, was it in the box etc During that checklist, it was deemed there was clear evidence that the foul took place outside the box. It was close but we scored and won anyways.

It's fine mate, everyone has their own opinion. Just glad we won. West Ham next.

Really? He gave the ball away 11 times and only won half his ground duels (9/17). The yellow card (and he was lucky because we've seen a referee give 2 yellows in the same passage just recently and he could have had 3!) hampered him ALOT. But the times he did win, only a couple of times did he distribute well. Most of the times he never set off an attack - just one dribble and no progressive passes. Stats aren't everything but if all his job is to tackle/ intercept maybe I'd rate him higher, but he's meant to progress the ball as well and he didn't do that today. He was immense against Man Utd, he was average today imo. To be fair both midfields cancelled each other out that the game was dictated from the flanks. With regards to Krafth, he did his role well, he wasn't brilliant but he stopped as much as he could and wasn't beaten in behind - he got lucky with the offside.

Depends how you see it. Was it Villa playing awful or EH making them play awful or a bit of both? They were still getting in down both flanks but they were adamant with crossing it into the box (rather than working it in) and we had 6ft7 Dan Burn to mop up. I felt we were lucky that Bailey looked undercooked and neither full back drove into the box and instead opted to cross it from deep. If Villa had exploited Cash overload the numerous time ASM didn't track back they could have been in. The breaks in play hindered them a lot but the fact Howe didn't block their main threats, it wouldn't have surprised me if a ball got in and it fell for them. It wasn't a game where Villa "deserved" something but it was one where they could have got something had they been better in the final third.

Wow, lot of generous ratings. Thought we were pretty fortunate second half. Just like against Watford, we sat back and invited pressure, got a massive warning for the goal but fortunately Villa had no cutting edge. Dubravka - 7 Not much to do, swept one through ball well and kept a clean sheet. Distribution bad as always. 7 for the clean sheet. Trippier - 8 Made a few passing errors but was put under pressure a lot with no help. Important goal and offered a threat going forward which pinned Digne back for the first half. Schar - 7 Solid with some important interception when he stepped up into the midfield to pinch the ball. Burn - 8 Excellent in the air and commanded the back line well. MoM for me. Manquillo - 7 Promising when going forward and solid enough defensively. Like Trippier, because he offered some kind of threat Cash felt wary of over committing when he was on. Joelinton - 5 Scrappy in midfield and could distribute better when he did win it. Lost possession 11 times with less than 80% pass accuracy. Shelvey - 6 Did well to contain the central threat and distribution was ok Willock - 6 Quiet both ends but won some important fouls to relieve pressure. ASM - 4 Offered a little threat going forward but when Manquilo came off, Cash wasn't afraid to go forward and he NEVER tracked back. Threw his arms in the air complaining a lot rather than getting on with the game. Some days its not his day but he can't shirk his defensive responsibilities - all of Villa's threat second half came from both flanks. Wood - 6 A couple of half chances, won a lot of aerial duels which went to no one but provided an escape route to relieve the pressure sometimes. Fraser - 7 Most lively of the front three and helped back as much as possible. Look a threat, just final ball could be better. Krafth - 6 Did well overall but lucky boy to not play Watkins onside. Offered little going forward because Digne pinned him back which invited a lot of pressure down our right. Dummett - 6 Defensively ok but never went forward which meant Cash had less to worry about and as game grew we looked vulnerable from the flanks. Howe - 7 We won so he gets a 7 but after 60mins when they had a goal disallowed he should have changed things up, I know we had used 2 subs but we were just inviting pressure. We were lucky that Villa got worse with Ings/Bailey vs Watkins/Buendina. The time wasting and breaking up the play helped us a lot. Overall a good win set up by a solid defensive display in the second half. Targett back will be a huge plus but we really need Trippier fit as well.

Ngl, just watched it and the only extra thing he did was let it roll across him a couple of yards. It was decent but I don't think it was anything special. The last time I saw him do something really good creatively was against Man Utd (1-1) where he carried the ball deep into the Man Utd half before playing a through ball to Fraser. I like Joelinton and hope he continues to improve, I feel a goal would do his confidence wonders.

Fraser goal vs Everton? Didn't he just carry the ball 5 yards and pass it 5 yards to his left? Generally, Joelinton doesn't do enough with the ball when he wins it. He doesn't carry it far enough, his passing range is limited and he's having trouble shooting. Maybe he'll come good but he has an awful lot to work on. GK: Henderson - £40m CB: Diego Carlos - £30m CB: Botman - £40m LB: Bakker - £20m CM: Bissouma - £50m RW: Lingard - FREE ST: Zapata - £30m That's £210m for those players for a team which although I think is much better than us right now, would struggle to break into the top 6 but finish comfortably in the top 10. However, I think we could get a top 10 finish for a fraction of the cost: GK: Navas - Loan CB: Dan Axel-Zagadou- FREE CB: Kamara - FREE LB: Kostic - £8.5m CM: Grillitsch - FREE RW: Lingard - FREE ST: These are always expensive but Gouiri/ Schlick/ Andre Silva - all 15+ goal strikers for around £50m. Alternatively, Broja for around £40m or on loan There are out of the box options too like Charles De Ketelaere (£30m) as a Striker from Bruges or Kamaldeen Suleman as a winger from Rennes - Raphinha's replacement, quicker than ASM, good dribbler and two footed, a little raw but only 19. I'll reserve judgement until the summer (pending we stay up) but apparently January was the B-List so would love if the A-List had names like Nkunku and Schick on it

Even if he pushed he wouldn't be allowed to leave, he still had 3.5 years left on his contract. Diego Carlos tried to push and he couldn't do anything. I'm pretty sure Botman and Lille's director of football came to an agreement - you can leave in the summer for x which he was fine with. He's said nice things about us and Milan and probably hasn't made his mind up yet. I know Milan have the Maldini factor but he probably wait til the summer before making his choice. With Diego Carlos I think we told his team that we'll revisit things in the summer depending on what happens in the league - that's probably why he didn't want to sign an extension for now (his deal expires in 2023) and Mochi (Seville director) hinted he'd be willing to sell in the summer.

When teams in the bottom 7 play each other, best result is a draw for us usually - exception is final day(s) of the season when we might need a specific result. Each team gets 1 point = net 2 points gained. If one team wins = net 3 points gained. So a draw means 1 net point is 'lost' - not sure if that makes sense but an example would be if team A and B play, if they beat each at home they would both be on 3 points, if they drew both games, they would both be on 2 points. For teams which want to finish above A and B, having them draw is more beneficial. Draws will keep more teams in the relegation fight as they won't pull away. It's very possible within a few weeks that Leeds and Brentford are sucked in. Drawing so many games is what got us into the mess we are in right now.

We offered €50m which is around £42m on deadline day apparently. Unlike Diego Carlos who will be 29 and will have 1 year left on his contract, Botman has just turned 22 and still has three years left on his contract (2025). I can't see Lille taking any less than €50m and if we were willing to offer that in January, Lille won't take lower as they are in a much stronger position compared to Seville. I wouldn't pay our Jan valuation of Diego Carlos. Koulibaly will be 31 in the summer and apparently will sign a new contract extension with Napoli. When we were linked with him back in November his agents said they weren't too keen. 31 is also on the older side for a defender who relies heavily on his physical attributes. He's not wily like Thiago Silva (Chelsea). I'd avoid anyone over 30 (unless they're cheap) as we'll be paying a premium already and there will be no resale value if they flop. Also the best players around this age want trophies/ European football.

Oblak's contract expires in 2023 and he has a €120m release clause. He's had an ok season but far from his best and Atletico have been rumoured to sell for around €80m+ in the summer. It seems a fair price for a 28yo with 1 year left but I think that might be a bit too much for us. I recon we'll have £200m (€240m)+ transfer budget. To blow a third of it on the goalkeeper when the defence and attack need major upgrades might not be worth it. And even if we could agree a price, there's a big possibility Oblak won't want to come. Liverpool upgraded their defence from Sakho + Lovrens => Van Dijk + Matip before they bought in Allison and I think we need to upgrade the CB before the keeper. Remember the keeper needs to pass out from the back for EH's style and Lascelles + Schar are not the CB you want to be passing the ball out to. He's not a Sweeper Keeper afaik. His distribution isn't that great either. I think he is a great shot stopper and an upgrade on Dubravka, he is Croatia number 1 after all. However, he's fixed to his 6 yard box a lot and I don't think he's the kind of keeper EH wants. He'd be great value for money though, around €12m has been quoted. My thoughts on positions to upgrade in terms of priority: I put them into three groups. Group 1 - Must upgrade 1 x CB - A world class/ potential to be world class CB who is comfortable with ball at feet and can resist the press - the last is important. Schar is actually decent with ball at feet but when pressed panics. 1 x CF - A world class goal scorer, must be capable of 15+ goals a season. Ideally good in air and can lead the line in a 3 man attack. 1 x RW - A world class creator/ scorer to play opposite flank to ASM. Goals win matches and the CF and RW will make the biggest difference to a mid table team and European team. Group 2 - Needs upgrading (ideally this summer too but will make less impact than group 1) 1 x LM/LB - depending on the formation, need a replacement for Ritchie/Lewis who can create from the left flank and protect ASM. 1 x CB - the second CB to pair with the first. Needs to be comfortable with ball but ideally has a bit of pace so we can play a higher line to try and press the opposition 1 x GK - With 2 CB and a LB/LM and Trippier, we should have a pretty good defence so can now get the best keeper we have with the money Group 3 - Final upgrades, budget depending 1 x CM - Partner in midfield, this could be a DM in a 3 man midfield. 1 x CM/CB - extra midfielder if 3 man midfield or extra defender if 3 man defence In total, if we say ASM, Trippier and Guimaraes are good enough for a top 7 team, replacing the above 8 would mean we should be aiming top 7 and higher.

TRon and Kaka both have valid points but the reason for their difference is they're missing the elephant in the room: Lyon play 3-4-3 with a high pressing game. The two midfielders (Caqueret + Guimaraes) were tenacious and won the ball high up before starting attacks. There was no pure DM e.g. Ndidi, Bissouma etc because they had 3 CB and one would push up into the midfield to block the space if they lost the ball. Howe is currently playing a 4-3-3 with a single pivot who is a deep lying playmaker (DLP) - their job is to shield the back 4 and distribute the ball i.e. link up defence and midfield/ attack (Wood is there for the long ball). The original role Guimaraes had does not exist in the current Newcastle formation so the question is, do you make him into a DLP or play him in CM as a Regista (High pressing midfielder like he was at Lyon)? Honestly, I'm not sure and that's why Howe is the manager. And before anyone asks why buy someone who does not fit into the system? It's because I'm pretty sure we'll evolve into a 3-4-3 when we get the personnel - we've been linked to a LM like Gosen's as well as it being reported us wanting TWO CB in the window, one who is left footed - this all hints to 3 at the back i.e. 3-4-3. He didn't get who he wanted (no Carlos and Botman) so I think he's making the best of what he has. Guimaraes, Trippier and ASM (the three best players) will all fit perfectly into the 3-4-3 system. On Sunday I expect Burn to come in for Targett and if Trippier is injured, Manquilo in for him. The rest of the starting XI will remain unchanged despite how much some of want Bruno - that's at least what I think EH will do.

It's the EPL rules, not sure when it was introduced - I know previously it used to be a contract thing but guess that's changed now. https://footballhandbook.com/can-loan-players-play-against-their-parent-club/ So even if the parent club permitted it, in the EPL, the loan players couldn't play against their parent club.

Realised I didn't answer this. My suggestion would be a 3-4-3 (solely based on what I think Howe wanted) and so we would keep ASM, Trippier and Guimaraes which would mean we need: GK - sweeper keeper who can distribute LCB - left sided center back who can carry the ball from defence CB - Faster Center back who can act as cover and martial the defence RCB - same as LCB but ideally right footed LM - Wingback like role who crosses from wide and runs up and down the channel LCM - Partner Guimaraes in midfield, needs to be a good tackler/ presser and distributer RW - More likely to be an inside forward, drifts in and scores/ creates goals CF - must be good aerially (because we have 2 crossers), good at linking up with the two wingers and be a fox in the box. Ideally can lead the line and hold up the ball. I'll ignore subs, but we could get around with some of the current squad for these roles. But IMO, only if we have a CL quality player in these roles could we challenge for something beyond 7. My suggestions, some are a bit unrealistic albeit on Guimaraes level and not Mbappe level i.e. unlikely but not impossible GK - Nubel (Neur 2.0, back up to Neur, doing well at loan on Monaco) LCB - Botman/ Schlotterbeck CB - Tapsoba (might be expensive), cheaper option is Diego Carlos RCB - Dan Axel-Zagadou (Free) or Tarkowski (Free) LM - Kostic alt: Sosa LCM: Tchouameni (probably unrealistic) so Kamara (Free) - might be hard if Man Utd get CL or Florian Grillitch (Free). Could even try and re-mold Joelinton. We have also been linked with Fabian Ruiz from Napoli who could play here but again would be costly. RW: Nkunku is my number 1 choice because he will score goals and assists but could cost £60m. Alt: Paqueta, this is where he plays for Lyon but PSG might buy him in the summer. Others include Raphinha, Antony, Darwin Nunez. CF: Schick - good with right, left foot and head. At 6ft 3 good height and has been prolific. I like Gouiri and Jonathan David but both don't excel in heading. Some of the above might be too expensive, but we'll see. I was in a similar situation. Probably watch more games in the Championship than the EPL, just came a bit disillusioned but Newcastle is the only team I'd follow. When the transfer window opened I got a bit excited for once and started looking at signings. Then started to feel many of these might be out of reach (Guimaraes was on my list) but then we signed Guimaraes and the names we've been linked with are the ones you'd expect top 4 clubs to go for - I was genuinely worried we'd end up with Bale and co. So now I'm being a bit more optimistic for the future - there was a quote apparently that Howe is aiming for "world class" players but found it difficult in January so I'm really hoping we continue to try for Guimaraes's. Yh, I saw you liked Nkunku too. I don't think we'll play 4-2-3-1, Howe has never played that before and it's not the most defensively robust. If he only goes with 3 forwards and ASM takes one, I think we can only have one from Nkunku or Paqueta. We could play Pacqueta in midfield but then I think there are better options if we were going to do that.

It depends on the formation. Right now we are a 4-3-3 but Howe "could" play 4-4-2 (unlikely) or as I've said go for a 3-4-3. The players even in the same "position" would be completely different e.g. 4-4-2 you would need one midfield to be a DM like Bissouma but in a 3-4-3 you could remove that role because one of the CB would be required to step into that space. Even within the same formation there's variation, great video showing different variations of a RB I guess we would need to pick a formation/ wait for Howe and then decide from there. And I haven't said this because we don't know the formation, but many suggestion don't fit the tactics and so are non starters to begin with. For instance, a keeper like Livakovic (Croatia Number 1) may be a non starter because he does not excel at distribution despite being, imo, the best value keeper available at the moment - think prime Dubravka (minus clangers) for around £10m. If we are looking for a 3-4-3 then the striker needs to be excellent in the air and the wide men need to be excellent crossers (Trippier is perfect for the right). One of the CB needs to be left footed or comfortable playing on the left of a 3 man defence. Both midfielders need to be good pressers, mobile and have good vision/passing (Joelinton lacks the last at the moment). I also would take a good look at the Free Market, there are some excellent options but might be hard to convince e.g. Kamara, Mazroui, Tarkowski, Dan-Axel Zagadou.

Do you know who would be available with a massive offer this Summer? Jan Oblak Not having the best season, still only 28 and Atletico might be willing to cash in. Still would be world record for goalkeeper amounts but at his peak is even better than De Gea imo. Only issue is if we have say £200m kitty, we need to prioritise CB, Striker and another goal threat but if we could somehow balance the books ...

My thoughts: Tarkowski (on a free) - good squad player/ competition for places Stones - decent but I think he can be suspect at the back. Probably overvalued by Man City Ake - better option but Man City will want most of the £40m back and he's not worth that right now Broja - good player but wouldn't pay more than the £25m Southampton want to pay - the £40m that's been quoted is just too much Phillips - good but again would be too expensive (£55m+ apparently) Rafinha - I assume this is Leeds Raphinha, again good player but might be too pricey (£60m+) - he had a mare yesterday which makes me a bit more hesitant Ward-Prowse - No chance, just signed a brand new 5 year deal in the summer and they're rich. If we want him it would cost Raphinha levels which is way too much Zinchenko - good player but a little unsure. If he was available at around £25m, he might be a LB option Bissouma - court case pending, leave for now. Incidentally Joelinton is out tackling him at the moment Raul Jimenez - Shadow of the player since his head injury. Dennis - squad player if price is right but we have a lot of squad players. Probably pass. Sarr - I think he's quality and could actually provide competition for places. As long as price is right. Gallagher - Probably overvalued, rumour mill says he's £50m+. Not yet imo, he also had an anonymous game yesterday. Tony - ?Ivan Toney - if it is. Decent striker but he's a decent striker but I wouldn't expect more than 10 goals from him for around £30m. I think we could do better - prefer Broja at £25m Diaz (Blackburn) - not sure he could step up and wonder about price. Blackburn have option to extend contract by 1 year so contract would expire in 2023, so should not be too much. Again wouldn't be my choice as we have a 25 man squad limit and I think most of the current first team aren't good enough for top 7 (if we aim for that next year). I agree with a lot of this. Pacqueta from Lyon plays a different role to JWP, he's more an attacking midfielder who can play off the wing like an inside forward. If we drop Paqueta into our current formation he'd probably be in Fraser's spot - he could play the Willock role I guess. Meanwhile JWP plays deeper in the heart of midfield and sits with Romeu, kinda like the Shelvey role but as a double pivot. Gaya is a good shout but Valencia would want crazy money. He's highly valued there and their captain. Barcelona's manager, Xavi, wanted him in January and Valencia were quoting 50m+ - that's too much imo. I've said before but I think Gosen and 2 CB is hinting at 3-4-3, so two good shouts for the Gosen role (LM) would be Kostic at Frankfurt and Sosa at Stuttgart. We've been linked with Kostic recently and although older than Sosa (29 vs 25), he is more defensively solid so could play LB as well. Great video showing the above two in action. Stuttgart are in threat of relegation and Kostic has 1 year left on his deal so both would be reasonable priced - £10-15m.

I like the idea but think maybe we should target clubs more like PSG rather than Chelsea or a Man City. All those players you mention are good but none are Champions League level (at least yet, maybe Ake might be), otherwise they would still be at Chelsea. PSG on the other hand are adamant on big names so have let go of Kingsley Coman, Rabiot, Nkunku and Moussa Diaby, all world class players worth £40-50m+. I don't know if PSG have anyone else not getting game time but we should definitely have a good poke around. If I could only buy ONE player for Newcastle this summer who I think would make the biggest difference to the club, I'm inclined to go for Christopher Nkunku. The RB Leipzig forward plays AM or on either wings but creates and scores (10 goals 9 assists) and has ben a consistent performer for the last 3 years. Timo Werner scored so many goals at RB Leipzig (before he came to Chelsea) because Nkunku was putting it on a plate for him for tap ins - at Chelsea he had no Nkunku. Most importantly, unlike a Schick (who I highly rate) or Raphinha, those two alone might not make as big an impact because the former needs supply while the latter needs a finisher. Nkunku can do it all on the other hand, pace, eye for goal, unselfish and I've been really impressed. Maybe it's just a dream but at least it's a breath of fresh air that we can at least hope like this now. Just got to keep our feet on the ground and continue grinding results and pull away from relegation.

They're around the same shot stopping wise. Dubravka has much more experience and is use to the team, Henderson has potential to grow as he's much younger. EH thinks Dubravka is a good goalkeeper but a bad sweeper keeper and a poor distributer - any Newcastle fan could tell him that and the stats just confirm it. EH wants to play out from the back which means you need a keeper whose good on the ball. Henderson is slightly better than Dubravka but he is nowhere near Ederson or Allison with regards to this. That being said, I think a ball playing keeper is irrelevant right now because only Trippier is confident on the ball. Give it to Lascelles or Schar and they'll end up kicking it long when under pressure anyways.

Nothing. He's a solid 7/10 week in week out. He was voted the Player of the Season by their fans - ahead of Grealish, Mcginn etc. He's good for any mid table team but he doesn't have attacking output for a top 7 team (where Villa aspire) or defensive output against quality attackers e.g. Mahrez, Salah etc. For most EPL teams that's more than good enough and when I rated him in the transfer thread I gave him a solid 8/10 which surprised some people. For what we need right now, he's very good. The Villa fans went crazy when they loaned him to us as although Digne is an upgrade they know he's a reliable performer that they would only accept a sale because as you've seen he's very useful. As for whether we should buy him, depends on how ambitious we are in the summer. If we're after midtable only he'd be a solid choice, if we're more ambitious then I don't think he'll come here to be a squad player - he still has an outside chance for England as 2nd choice LB.

In his 5 minutes he played high up, pressed his opponent, dispossessed and then played a through ball. Playing in the Shelvey role (single deep pivot) means he can't do that as he'll expose the back 2. At Lyon he played the higher of two midfielders in a 3-4-3, his partner Caqueret mopped up a lot of balls but the two of them were like terriers in the middle of the park, winning high up and releasing their team mates. If we stick to 4-3-3, he takes Willock or Joelinton's place - to be fair, Willock doesn't start playing til the second half anyways. I think Howe might play 3-4-3 against Villa and put Burn as part of back 3 against Villa but we'll see.

Oh, I thought you were talking about Matty Targett! Sometimes threads are hard to follow and I skim read wrong.

Match day - adductor (groin) injury. It might be a tear which would need surgery and he'd be out for 4 months. It's the kind of injury you get after a sprint, he'd only been on the field 14 minutes (he's coming back from injury not sure what but don't think this is a recurrence).

Source? I have found conflicting reports on the web. Most say nothing, a few more say no option to buy at all (straight loan) and there may be one obligation to buy article but its locked behind athletic pay wall.