Newcastle United 0 - 0 Derby County - 28/12/09 - post match reaction from p12

[Jayson]

Several of Guthries assists have come from him dropping further into the middle anyway, so not sure where it comes from.

 

Probably only 2 or 3 of his assists have come from deep on the wing.

[Liam Liam Liam O]

Just got in having felt my fingers all day long with no problems. My new stadium puffy jacket is the fucking BUSINESS.

 

Anyhow, my analysis. Sheff Wed, early goal. Plymouth, early goal. Peterborough, early goal. Swansea, early goal. Boro, early goal. We start every one of our home games at a million miles per hour and tend to grab an early goal or two (or three). Today we didn't and it was almost as if every single man in black and white went "uh shit, wtf do we do now?"

 

We should have won that game by an absolute landslide. Derby parked the bus infront of goal and even then they weren't very good at doing so. They offered absolutely no attacking threat and we sneaked through their (pretty pourus, it has to be said) backline on numerous occassions.

 

Today made a massive case for the likes of Harewood. People don't want us to keep him on cos he's sluggish, has pretty poor technique, appears lazy, 'is no better than what we've got'. But the guy can put the ball in the net and that was the only thing we were lacking today. I said the other day, i like our strikers, there's potential with some of them - but the likes of Marlon have got ten years experience of being in the right place at the right time and we saw that in his most recent appearances. I know Hughton dropped a dispicable bomb by dropping Shola and Guthrie (the latter being an absolutely disgraceful decision which i honestly can't get my head round) - but today was one of those games which needed an old carthorse to stab the ball in the back of the net. And since Nolan didn't seem as predatory as previous games, we needed a Harewood in there.

 

I've said on several occassions here that, because of the way we defend as a team, all we ever need to do is sneak a goal and it's three points. Today was no different to any of those scrappy 1/2-0s (it was arguably a better performance, infact), but no one but the sodding thing in the net.

 

It's frustrating but it's not a massive concern in my opinion. Newcastle at Christmas is Newcastle at Christmas, only this time our festive underachievement hasn't come in the shape of losses. So given our variating mishaps over the past two games, we've escaped in some ways and that's what Champions do. We're still a few points clear with West Brom to come here fairly soon and we should be confident of beating them. Roll on Jan.

 

Hughton needs batting over the head for his last two performances though.

 

Ratings:

 

Harper - Barely worth even rating.

 

Simpson - 5. Comfortable at the back but he might aswell have gone and sat in the East Stand in that second half cos he contributed a frustrating amount of nothing.

Taylor - 7. Solid as ever but should have scored, arguably on a couple of occassions.

Coloccini - 8. Stalwart, long may it continue.

Enrique - 6. Best footballer in the league in the first half. Frittered out and got sloppy in the second.

 

Taylor - 5. Similar to Simpson really. Canny free-kick but that was a shocking miss towards the end of the first half. Corners were pretty hopeless too.

Smith - 7. Put himself about well, won some tackles, passed the ball forward (watch and learn Nicky Butt)

Nolan - 7. See above.

Jonas - 7. Decent performance. Piled forward to good effect and his delivery was fairly decent too. The men in the middle should have been a lot better...

 

Carroll - 5. Contributed virtually nothing.

Lovenkrands - 6. Would have received the same rating, only he actually broke sweat, unlike his counterpart.

 

I know I'm only picking up on a small amount of your post but I thought Smith & Nolan were both diabolical tonight.  Their midfield had 60 yards of free space in front of them every time they broke from the back.

[Frazzle]

Yorkie, 7/10 for Nolan?  He was rubbish.  

 

The reason Derby started to get into the game in the second half was because of the massive hole Nolan was leaving in the middle of the pitch.

 

2/10 for me.

[Mick]

 

He strikes me as the sort of manager that the players 'like' rather than one who they think is any good.

 

 

I agree, pity those whose opinion counts haven't a clue.

[Yorkie]

Yada Yada.

 

I know I'm only picking up on a small amount of your post but I thought Smith & Nolan were both diabolical tonight.  Their midfield had 60 yards of free space in front of them every time they broke from the back.

 

A 7 was generous for Nolan, probably - but not for Smith i'd say. Derby hardly came here to attack but Smith breaks up the play so well in this division and actually generates some forward momentum. He's meant to play deep - the full-backs have a chance to overlap and he passes the ball in a forward direction. It's good retaining of possession.

 

I honestly don't know what role Nolan plays. "The guy who scores quite a bit" is about the only label i can give him.

[Big Geordie]

Just watched the match - wish I hadn't bothered. Seemed to be an air of complacency amongst some of our lot. Some again seemed to be running on half steam. And once again, our lack of a Plan B was there for all to see. No-one in the midfield who could offer something a bit different and with our most creative player (Guthrie) sitting on the bench, Derby defended well (Addison looks like  he could be a player) and were worthy of their point. Our lot need to seriously need to buck their ideas up because this league is far from won.

 

Desperately need a quality playmaker sourcing in January.

[JH]

I know I'm only picking up on a small amount of your post but I thought Smith & Nolan were both diabolical tonight.  Their midfield had 60 yards of free space in front of them every time they broke from the back.

 

I agree. They're poor but can usually cover it up. Tonight, they were both shockingly bad.

[Mick]

 

I know I'm only picking up on a small amount of your post but I thought Smith & Nolan were both diabolical tonight.  Their midfield had 60 yards of free space in front of them every time they broke from the back.

 

And Harper kept us in it just before half time.

[Liam Liam Liam O]

I'd like to see Guthrie given a decent run in the middle because IMO you can see the Liverpool schooling in him; he's always willing to move in order to receive the ball and then gets his head up looking to pass it on. He also has a good first touch. He's by no means brilliant at it or else he wouldn't be playing for us in this league, but at this point in time I rate him higher than Nolan who simply offers nothing as a midfielder.

 

Good post.

 

Saturday was an opportunity against a very poor side to play Guthrie and Nolan in the middle if he'd wanted to do something forward thinking and positive.

[Yorkie]

Yorkie, 7/10 for Nolan?  He was rubbish.  

 

The reason Derby started to get into the game in the second half was because of the massive hole Nolan was leaving in the middle of the pitch.

 

2/10 for me.

 

Aye, dunno what i was thinking really. He frustrated me for the most part. He just got stuck in with a few crunching tackles that made me tingle with glee and levity; and i think those momentary bouts of excitement just carried over into that analysis. S'all i can put it down to.

[ElDiablo]

We're still unorganised as fuck, massive gaping holes all over the pitch. Derby got at our defence with ease whenever they wanted. We don't defend from the front either, which means anyone with an ounce of ability will rip us apart. I honestly think we'll get beaten off WBA in a few weeks.

[Amir_9]

Im not worried yet, if we dont beat Reading I will be worried, weve got WBA, Leicester and Cardiff coming up. We really need to up our game.

[Guest BlacknWhiteArmy]

It happens every time, we come out after the break in a good position to go and win the game (Or are already ahead- see Sheffield Wednesday away) and we come out relaxed and complacent and slow paced and either throw away the lead or don't get all three points. It makes you wonder what the hell goes on in our dressing room.

 

Guthrie should have been on for Nolan early on and Ranger should have come on for Carroll with at least twenty minutes to spare.

[Liam Liam Liam O]

Yada Yada.

 

I know I'm only picking up on a small amount of your post but I thought Smith & Nolan were both diabolical tonight.  Their midfield had 60 yards of free space in front of them every time they broke from the back.

 

A 7 was generous for Nolan, probably - but not for Smith i'd say. Derby hardly came here to attack but Smith breaks up the play so well in this division and actually generates some forward momentum. He's meant to play deep - the full-backs have a chance to overlap and he passes the ball in a forward direction. It's good retaining of possession.

 

I honestly don't know what role Nolan plays. "The guy who scores quite a bit" is about the only label i can give him.

 

I thought Smith was appalling when they were playing down our right hand side in the first half and 3 of them were playing triangles around R Taylor and Simpson, but Smith still refused to leave the D on the edge of the 18 yard box to help out or break up those attacks.

 

He is primarily responsible for the fact that we sit too deep and invite teams on because he himself sits too deep when the opposition have the ball. Whether that's as a result of instructions he's been given or a choice he's making himself is another matter though.

[Parsley]

Am I alone in thinking that Ryan Taylor played well tonight btw?

[Guest toonlass]

Harper - 6 - One decent save after he didn't bother to shout for an easier chance to come and get a ball. Kicking was terrible tonight.

Simpson - 6 - Nowt to write home about.

Taylor - 6 - Alright but not his usual standard tbh, wasted the header by putting it straight at Bywater.

Colocinni - 6 - The same as above. Not great. Not bad. Just average.

Enrique - 6 - Definitely had a couple of poorer games, poor going foward, alright at the back.

R. Taylor - 6 - Meh, hit the crossbar and missed the one on one when a few feet either way would have gone past the keeper.

Smith - 6 - Effort was there, challenges were alright in the main, but again nowt special from him.

Nolan - 5 - Very poor, looked lethargic and off the pace.

Jonas - 7 - The best player on the field tonight, and I am not his biggest fan, but he got forward, got back, crossed and should have had more support from his team-mates.

Lovenkrands - 6 - Alright performance, put in a cross early in the first half that Carroll should have done better with, and should have scored himself.

Carroll - 5.5 - Fluffed a couple of decent headed chances, not a great performance from him.

 

Ameobi- 5- Can't remember him doing much other than miscontrolling the ball

Pancrate - 4 - not good at all

Ranger - 5 - Unlucky not to score. Needs more than 10-12 minutes to play in a match tho.

 

For me it was an average game by all, we were poor from about the 25 minutes in mark until about 75 minutes gone, and wasted chances. Atmosphere was shit, with some comedians singing "Your support is fucking shit" to the Derby fans when we had sang nothing for about 5 minutes up in the corner. The players need to support each other more, there were loads of times when Jonas especially had no options as no-one would make himself available for him. A couple of times Simpson was free out on the right and was ignored, and players need to show more awareness as they seemed to be constantly looking to play it down the left despite there being players free on the right who were free.

[Mick]

Am I alone in thinking that Ryan Taylor played well tonight btw?

 

I didn't think he played well but his set pieces were our best chance of getting a goal and taking him off was puzzling. 

[ElDiablo]

Yada Yada.

 

I know I'm only picking up on a small amount of your post but I thought Smith & Nolan were both diabolical tonight.  Their midfield had 60 yards of free space in front of them every time they broke from the back.

 

A 7 was generous for Nolan, probably - but not for Smith i'd say. Derby hardly came here to attack but Smith breaks up the play so well in this division and actually generates some forward momentum. He's meant to play deep - the full-backs have a chance to overlap and he passes the ball in a forward direction. It's good retaining of possession.

 

I honestly don't know what role Nolan plays. "The guy who scores quite a bit" is about the only label i can give him.

 

I thought Smith was appalling when they were playing down our right hand side in the first half and 3 of them were playing triangles around R Taylor and Simpson, but Smith still refused to leave the D on the edge of the 18 yard box to help out or break up those attacks.

 

He is primarily responsible for the fact that we sit too deep and invite teams on because he himself sits too deep when the opposition have the ball. Whether that's as a result of instructions he's been given or a choice he's making himself is another matter though.

 

 

Said this to my mate, Smith thinks the way to play as a defensive midfielder is to stand in front of the two centre backs and try to block shots, Nolan does the exact same thing as well. Which meant Derby got down the channels easily, that good chance they had in the first half when Colo rushed out, that man who crossed it should have been Smiths or Nolans but he was just left to run, meaning Colo had a decision to make when he should have just held on to his man. Thick as fuck the pair of them. Nolan should be played off the striker or not at all.

[Liam Liam Liam O]

Pancrate looks a poor player having seen a bit more of him since the wonder goal.

[Weezertron]

All Hughton needs to do is play the soundtrack of the motion picture Rocky before the match and at halftime. Fuck his team talk and his tactics.

 

I bet we'd see a vast improvement.

[Cronky]

Yada Yada.

 

I know I'm only picking up on a small amount of your post but I thought Smith & Nolan were both diabolical tonight.  Their midfield had 60 yards of free space in front of them every time they broke from the back.

 

A 7 was generous for Nolan, probably - but not for Smith i'd say. Derby hardly came here to attack but Smith breaks up the play so well in this division and actually generates some forward momentum. He's meant to play deep - the full-backs have a chance to overlap and he passes the ball in a forward direction. It's good retaining of possession.

 

I honestly don't know what role Nolan plays. "The guy who scores quite a bit" is about the only label i can give him.

 

I thought Smith was appalling when they were playing down our right hand side in the first half and 3 of them were playing triangles around R Taylor and Simpson, but Smith still refused to leave the D on the edge of the 18 yard box to help out or break up those attacks.

 

He is primarily responsible for the fact that we sit too deep and invite teams on because he himself sits too deep when the opposition have the ball. Whether that's as a result of instructions he's been given or a choice he's making himself is another matter though.

 

I don't think Smith has much choice. He's not got the legs to chase the ball further upfield so he stays in position.

 

It looks to me that it is just part of the overall strategy for our rather immobile midfield to get behind the ball and snuff out attacks when they reach the penalty area. In nearly every game I've seen, the opposition has had plenty of possession, time and space - they just don't usually have the ability to take advantage.

 

I'm not very confident about Guthrie and don't see him as the answer. He's skilful but struggles under any kind of physical challenge and when pressured.

 

Barton can give us the boost we need. Is there any news about him?

[Dave]

Am I alone in thinking that Ryan Taylor played well tonight btw?

 

Nope, I think his delivery was good and he offers genuine width.

[Guest Heneage]

Pancrate looks a poor player having seen a bit more of him since the wonder goal.

How many starts has he even had though? Not every player is just good, he doesn't speak a word of English and is new here, I think it would be better to give him some time.

[Thespence]

Theres been nothing to base him being better on the wing on atall.

 

Hes done well on the wing, we've not even seen him in the middle in this league yet. Last season he did alright in the middle, played in several through balls for the strikers. He has good vision, hes good on the ball, he can move with the ball & he can loop it in from the middle anyway so makes no sense to leave him isolated on the wing. He can dictate play for us if given the chance.

 

Lets move the CCC 2nd most creative player if assists are a indicator just for the crack. The scouse thug should/is back soon so he will more than likely want to be/will be the main man in the middle of the park.

 

You're assuming that his assists will just dry up in the centre - why?

 

I want to know this as well...I'm confused.

 

He has not got the speed of thought for the middle of the park. A lot of his good work comes from when he has that bit extra time you need to think & he gets this by playing in the wide position.  A bit like why Fergie would never (rarely if any footy anoarks are around) play Beckham in the middle for MUFC, Fergie did try Rio in there once but he got fucking obliterated as the game was too quick for him.

[Liam Liam Liam O]

Yada Yada.

 

I know I'm only picking up on a small amount of your post but I thought Smith & Nolan were both diabolical tonight.  Their midfield had 60 yards of free space in front of them every time they broke from the back.

 

A 7 was generous for Nolan, probably - but not for Smith i'd say. Derby hardly came here to attack but Smith breaks up the play so well in this division and actually generates some forward momentum. He's meant to play deep - the full-backs have a chance to overlap and he passes the ball in a forward direction. It's good retaining of possession.

 

I honestly don't know what role Nolan plays. "The guy who scores quite a bit" is about the only label i can give him.

 

I thought Smith was appalling when they were playing down our right hand side in the first half and 3 of them were playing triangles around R Taylor and Simpson, but Smith still refused to leave the D on the edge of the 18 yard box to help out or break up those attacks.

 

He is primarily responsible for the fact that we sit too deep and invite teams on because he himself sits too deep when the opposition have the ball. Whether that's as a result of instructions he's been given or a choice he's making himself is another matter though.

 

I don't think Smith has much choice. He's not got the legs to chase the ball further upfield so he stays in position.

 

It looks to me that it is just part of the overall strategy for our rather immobile midfield to get behind the ball and snuff out attacks when they reach the penalty area. In nearly every game I've seen, the opposition has had plenty of possession, time and space - they just don't usually have the ability to take advantage.

 

I'm not very confident about Guthrie and don't see him as the answer. He's skilful but struggles under any kind of physical challenge and when pressured.

 

Barton can give us the boost we need. Is there any news about him?

 

In the Premier League perhaps, but even Smith & Nolan have their uses a level down.