Newcastle United 2 - 2 Stoke City - 06/12/08 - Post match reaction from page 16

[Guest koye]

Shay Given did his first two errors of the season today, but luckily we did'nt concede any goals from those errors, but it was very close on both ocassions. But he's been fantastic this season, so let's hope he continue his brilliant form!

 

I'm really depressed after what happened today, it was a tragedy!

 

What I think decided the game was the Obafemi Martins substitute. I'll try too explain(excuse me if my english is a bit weird)....When we had Martins on, we were able too lift the team upfield, because we played the ball up too Martins behind Stoke's back four and played them low. And because of that, Stoke could not risk too attack with that many players as they did when Viduka came on. It's not critic on Viduka, the problem was taking Oba off!!! When Viduka and Owen was upfront, we did'nt come out of our own half, and was pushed back all the time! If Martins had played we could have played the long ball towards him, and he would cause Stoke problems! Viduka was forced too play with a man at his back on our own half, and there was no space for him at all and he lost almost every ball who was played at him. When we are sitting back, like we did for the whole 2nd half today, you need players with pace upfront....A shame JK not understand that!!!

 

It was a horror desicion by Joe Kinnear too sub Martins...I honestly think we lost the game on that desicion.

[Greg]

Wonder if Kazenga Lua Lua has picked up another injury having just come back? He was on the bench at Chelsea, madness going into a game without a midfielder on the bench.

[Decky]

Wonder if Kazenga Lua Lua has picked up another injury having just come back? He was on the bench at Chelsea, madness going into a game without a midfielder on the bench.

 

No youve got it all wrong mate, its tactical genius, or so Kinnear would like to think

[ChezGiven]

For Christ sake, if everthing post half time is Kinnear's fault, then following the same logic, he sderserves for the way he set up the team in the first half and the way they played. Oh, and following the same logic. presumably Kinnear is reponsible for Guthrie's injury. I'm as disappointed as everyone else witht he second half display but get some bloody perspective (unbeaten in four) and give Kinnear some bloody credit. Even Southgate of the smogs said today that we are far better organised since his arrival.

 

Well done, Joe. You can put two wingers and two strikers on the field, and make them play as two wingers and two strikers against the mighty Stoke. Bravo.

 

But if anyone patronises you, you're going to throw a tantrum, right?

[S.S.R.]

What's the difference between Kinnear and Keane?

 

Keane knows how to hold onto a lead.

[Ashley17]

I fucking hate football. I mean really fucking hate it. If Vidic hadn't just scored past those dirty bastard down the road I'd hate it even more.

 

First half was ace, decent play, looked threatening and rarely troubled at the back. 2 goal lead, Owen and Martins being backed up well by N'Zogbia, Jonas and Geremi spraying it round like a man with talent.

 

Half time at Guthrie goes off. Let's play a game. You are Joe Kinnear, what do you do:

 

a) Push Coloccini into Defensive Mid, and bring on Taylor at centre back.

b) Bring on Taylor at right back, push your right back to right wing and your right winger to centre midfield.

 

If you picked b - well done, you're a fucking moron too.

 

So on came Ricardo Fuller, who caused us more problems in 20 minutes than there whole team did all afternoon. Exposing Coloccini's inability to turn around quickly, Fuller skipped past him and gave Sidibe a tap in. Uh-oh.

 

Then followed 20 minutes of us sitting on our 18 yard line and inviting Stoke onto us, playing on the break with little success and generally being shite. Martins went off and on came Viduka - Viduka didn't do much wrong and we needed somebody to hold the ball up. Martins was our out ball and unlike last week when we needed a goal, this week we needed possession and a reason to make Stoke worry.

 

5 minutes went up for some reason, fuck knows why. Enrique "gave" away a free kick, not entirely sure he did anything wrong but that's besides the point. Failed to defend it and fucking Faye pops up and may aswell have celebrated it by unfurling a "fuck you Kevin Keegan" flag. Was Bramble all over again and I'm fucking sick of it.

 

There was still time for some "mild" pressing from us, Cacapa (on for Geremi, for some reason) trying to spread the play out to Zog and Riley timing his interception perfectly.

 

So another 2 points dropped against a shit team and their main threat couldn't even get his long throw going. I fucking hate football.

[Mick]

What's the difference between Kinnear and Keane?

 

Keane knows how to hold onto a lead.

 

[Wullie]

Classic Kinnear.

 

We will be relegated this season because of this man. No bottle, no spine, no clue.

[Chris_R]

I doubt I'll say anything not already said 100 times in the previous 27 pages but here goes:

 

Playing 6 defenders was a recipe for disaster.

 

Jonas was utterly ineffective in the middle.

 

When Guthrie went off at half-time with no midfield cover, why not bring a striker on and switch to 4-3-3? We were 2-0 up, at home, against Stoke City FFS.

 

We got what we deserved today. I would like to think Kinnear will learn from this but he's 61 years old and has been managing for over 20 years and if he couldn't see that what he did today wasn't going to work then he never will. Shown up today as the second-rate manager we all know him to be.

[Dr Venkman]

you cant make any excuses for those second half positions, absolutely clueless

[Wullie]

Allardyce cost us the game at Chelsea last season by taking Martins off and under Kinnear it's started to happen again.

 

Anyone with the slightest common sense can see that Martins' presence forces the opposition to play a much deeper line. Boro battered us last week with Martins off and Stoke did the same today. Utterly fucking clueless.

[Dave]

We won't play a worse team this season (at least West Brom can pass the ball) and we threw away a two goal lead at home by surrendering all impetus and possession of the football. We gave them a point from a position of complete dominance.

 

Utter garbage, and I'm coming around to the fact we may well go down. If we can't put the likes of these to bed we're screwed.

[Dave]

Oh and the train companies are a bag of wank too, not only are they late, no cunt checked my tickets so I paid fifteen quid for nowt.

[S.S.R.]

Martins hurt himself going for that diving header and was struggling, tbf.

[Ashley17]

Martins hurt himself going for that diving header and was struggling, tbf.

 

Which he fucking missed and seconds later they got one back

[Mick]

Martins hurt himself going for that diving header and was struggling, tbf.

 

He seemed to rub his ear, I think he'd run that one off.

[Dave]

Martins hurt himself going for that diving header and was struggling, tbf.

 

Which he fucking missed and seconds later they got one back

 

He was offside.

[Mick]

After 15 minute of the second half I thought Beye had gone off and was looking for Guthrie, I even counted our players to make sure we had 11 players on the field at one stage.

[johnnypd]

Martins hurt himself going for that diving header and was struggling, tbf.

 

He seemed to rub his ear, I think he'd run that one off.

 

he was struggling but ironically he had seemed to have shaken it off before his number came up.

[NJS]

Since they took no confidence from the Chelsea result, we'd have been much better off getting hammered and beating Stoke or Wigan (especially the former).

 

The other thing about the Chelsea result is that it will encourage the gormless twat to do an Allardyce and play for more draws away (see Boro).

 

I enjoyed Chelsea in a sticking two fingers up to the world kind of way but I think it might cost us dear.

 

 

[Mick]

If Guthrie stayed on we would have won and probably doubled our goals tally.

[Newcastle Fan]

My god how this thread changed in 45 mins..

 

Thank god i didn't go see the game, went and played some football with my friends.

 

Its just too fucking typical isn't?

[Wullie]

Since they took no confidence from the Chelsea result, we'd have been much better off getting hammered and beating Stoke or Wigan (especially the former).

 

The other thing about the Chelsea result is that it will encourage the gormless twat to do an Allardyce and play for more draws away (see Boro).

 

I enjoyed Chelsea in a sticking two fingers up to the world kind of way but I think it might cost us dear.

 

Indeed, points like that are only any use if you win your home games against dross like Stoke. I'd rather get beat 10-0 at Stamford Bridge and beat Stoke than get a point down there only to end up fucking up like today.

[NJS]

If Guthrie stayed on we would have won and probably doubled our goals tally.

 

Injuries are part of football - its how you deal with them in the game and by having a squad that can cope that determines success - we're lacking in both.

 

 

[Gallowgate Toon]

Was inevitable with such a lightweight midfield against surely the biggest side in the league? They were just too physical and strong for our soft centre and ran through us. Too much pressure was put on the defence in the 2nd half because they had 4/5 men running at it with no help from Geremi or Gutierrez or Beye or Zoggy. Joe is a plank for his tactics though, yeah the players should show bottle but when you have a shape like we did in the latter stages, far too much pressure is put on you and you crumble. We lost shape because we had numerous square pegs in round holes which could have been so easily avoided if Colo had gone CM and Taylor CB or even Taylor CM but changing the team chemistry like that was ridiculous.