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Is he the single most gifted footballer to ever play for Newcastle?

 

A better player than Shearer? A more talented player than Gazza? A better brain than Beardo?

 

I know Ben Arfa could do with playing a full season before being mentioned among these players but does it really matter? O'Sullivan is considered the most naturally gifted snooker player, without winning every tournament?

 

Just thought I'd open up a can of worms ;)

 

Peter Beardsley was twice the player Ben Arfa is and I love our Frenchman. Beardsley had it all. In many ways Ben Arfa, given his talent, should be up there as one of the best players in the world but he isn't and that is down to inconsistency and from what Pardew alluded to, perhaps a rather lacklustre approach to training. That and his attitude of course. He is 26 now and should be for France for example what Zidane was, their main man. That's the kind of talent he has.

 

Back to Beardsley, he would be worth 30m or so today. Easily. Beardsley was an extremely hard working player in the mould of say Tevez or Rooney but he was immaculately discplined. He had amazing vision and his dribblibg, sorry but as good as Ben Arfa is, Beardsley was twinkle toes. He was genuinley two footed as well and could score all manner of goals from all over the park. He was an unselfish player too and a real team-player. People say Gazza is the best we have ever produced but do you know what, in terms of general all-round ability and being able to put it to full use, I don't think this region has produced anyone as food as Beardsley. If we had him today, he would make the difference between Europa and CL footy.

 

Great post, couldn't agree more.

 

Speaking of Pedro being two footed; that last minute goal down at Palace in 94-95, man. Past two players and top corner with the left foot from 20+ yards. I'll consider myself pretty lucky if I ever witness an NUFC player with that level of ability again.

 

Agree with HTT and Ronaldo points... Beardsley is the best player i've seen playing for NUFC... I'd honestly put 100 of Beardsley's best goals and assists up against anybodies and they wouldn't be disgraced...

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£30-35k basic...

 

If that's true it would be wise of us to improve his contract and also extend it. The likes of spurs and Liverpool would kill for

a player like Ben Arfa and if (heaven forbid) we have a poor season we might just end up with another Jose Enrique situation.

We should try and tie him down now while his morale's good as we should have done with Enrique when he was waxing lyrical

and saying he would stop here for the rest of his career.

 

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Hatem and the consistency thing. I can see where it comes from but when we punt it (only sometimes now), and like on Saturday where we didn't get the ball to him until the 10 minute mark. He needs to see more of the ball and thats down to how we play for him to be consistent and involved in games. Messi is the focal point of Barca's attacks and with their style and possesion will always see more of the ball.

 

Its so hard to compare players unless they play in the exactly the same role in exactly the same team. Saying that Messi is going on to probably be the best player there been so far, looking at his age now.

 

I think the question is - how good would Ben Arfa be at Barcelona, or how well would Messi do at NUFC. We shouldnt forget the quality of the players around you. Thats why Smith/Butt/etc can be ok at MANURE whilst crap everywhere else.

 

 

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£30-35k basic...

 

If that's true it would be wise of us to improve his contract and also extend it. The likes of spurs and Liverpool would kill for

a player like Ben Arfa and if (heaven forbid) we have a poor season we might just end up with another Jose Enrique situation.

We should try and tie him down now while his morale's good as we should have done with Enrique when he was waxing lyrical

and saying he would stop here for the rest of his career.

 

 

If at all possible, we should certainly try to get Ben Arfa tied down for 5 years.

 

That said, he's got 3 years left still so it's not like he's in the danger zone yet.

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£30-35k basic...

 

If that's true it would be wise of us to improve his contract and also extend it. The likes of spurs and Liverpool would kill for

a player like Ben Arfa and if (heaven forbid) we have a poor season we might just end up with another Jose Enrique situation.

We should try and tie him down now while his morale's good as we should have done with Enrique when he was waxing lyrical

and saying he would stop here for the rest of his career.

 

 

If at all possible, we should certainly try to get Ben Arfa tied down for 5 years.

 

That said, he's got 3 years left still so it's not like he's in the danger zone yet.

 

Toon_Mad_Chris and Chris_R the same person?

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Now wearing Nike boots? 3rd boot manufaturer in 12 months for HBA, he must just order them off pro-direct.

 

He wore Nike at the start of last season also.

 

Pantafolos in pre season last year, nike early on, then various pairs of adidas for the rest of the season. I was half joking when i said he orders them off pro direct, but he surely can't have a boot deal.

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Guest Howaythetoon

Beardsley would be worth an absolute fortune if he was in his prime now.

 

Not saying as good as Messi, but he'd certainly be in the second tier of gifted footballers, ala Ribery, Robben.

 

Much better than those players. If I could compare Beardsley to anyone in the modern game it would be Tevez but with much quicker feet, dribbling skills and vision.

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:DReally worries me if Ben arfa gets injured, he's our only really creative player/winger. Against spurs he was our only player who looked capable of creating anything and hurting them. If he gets injured then who on the right? Marveaux looked very poor today and i'm not surprised he wasn't on the bench if he's been like that in training. I like Sammy but can he create against top premiership teams? Ditto for amafilato.

 

Debuchy our number one priority transfer wise, but i'd love it if we did manage to sign Adam Johnson (and Carroll too :D ) .

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:DReally worries me if Ben arfa gets injured, he's our only really creative player/winger. Against spurs he was our only player who looked capable of creating anything and hurting them. If he gets injured then who on the right? Marveaux looked very poor today and i'm not surprised he wasn't on the bench if he's been like that in training. I like Sammy but can he create against top premiership teams? Ditto for amafilato.

 

Debuchy our number one priority transfer wise, but i'd love it if we did manage to sign Adam Johnson (and Carroll too :D ) .

We know why he wasn't on the bench.

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£30-35k basic...

 

If that's true it would be wise of us to improve his contract and also extend it. The likes of spurs and Liverpool would kill for

a player like Ben Arfa and if (heaven forbid) we have a poor season we might just end up with another Jose Enrique situation.

We should try and tie him down now while his morale's good as we should have done with Enrique when he was waxing lyrical

and saying he would stop here for the rest of his career.

 

 

If at all possible, we should certainly try to get Ben Arfa tied down for 5 years.

 

That said, he's got 3 years left still so it's not like he's in the danger zone yet.

 

Toon_Mad_Chris and Chris_R the same person?

 

Definitely not the same person. Not unless I'm suffering from some form of schizophrenic amnesia that has gone undetected for 25 years  :lol:

 

I would love to see us buy Adam Johnson, our last two performances have proved we need more creativity. I hate to admit it but Gutierrez has

completely lost his spark after being so defensive for the last two seasons. If we bought Johnson we could even play him on the right and give

Ben Arfa a free role in attacking midfield, I can't see any defence coping with both of them.

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Jonas hasn't lost his spark IMO, he's just not the type of player we assumed he was.

 

I think he has. Before he was great at just run past players. Now he just can´t do that. He has become a different type of player that demands a different kind of position.

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Guest Spiria

Hatem Ben Arfa: The Superstar Who Will Continue To Lift Newcastle

 

 

 

 

How far would Newcastle fall when they opted to sell Andy Carroll in January of last year? The club’s supporters expressed huge levels of dissatisfaction at the appointment of Alan Pardew as manager, and it was a great act of heresy to officially change the name of the club’s iconic stadium.

 

The poison that saw the club relegated was effectively washed away, yet little niggles remained. However, at this stage, I’ve yet to be more impressed with a football club in the Premier League.

 

The signing of Papiss Cisse seemed to happen in flash. That now famed scouting network at Newcastle had brought to light another gem from the continent who so many had overlooked in the past. Demba Ba was a gamble that paid off extremely well, while no one could have predicted the impact Yohan Cabaye would have had at the club.

 

But the signing of Hatem Ben Arfa was the difference maker. It was, without cheaply using the term, a superstar signing the club needed.

 

It shouldn’t take a great deal of knowledge of French football to know that Ben Arfa was one of the two darlings of Olympique Lyon’s side. Alongside Karim Benzema, the two youngsters were lighting up Ligue 1 and forcing their way to successive league titles. How long would it be before one of the big names in European football grabbed both of those stars?

 

It also shouldn’t take a lot of knowledge to know that Ben Arfa and Benzema were hardly best mates off the pitch. The club knew who the bigger money-maker was and who was worth letting go. Ben Arfa’s move to league rivals Marseille allowed all of the focus to be switched to Benzema but also raised questions as to what Ben Arfa’s future would hold.

 

Even now, I’m stunned that Newcastle were able to land Ben Arfa largely unopposed. The midfielder’s injury early in his first season should have brought back one of those nagging worries at the club. Would Newcastle be given a good run without any major headaches or complications?

 

But Ben Arfa has returned as if he’d only been away nursing a slight muscle problem. His talent has by no means diminished and he is undoubtedly the superstar of this Newcastle side.

 

His wizardry in midfield was made even more apparent following that wonderful solo goal last season against Bolton, while he has an insatiable desire to further his already magnificent talent.

 

Ben Arfa always seemed destined for the Premier League, but it was obviously a little way south that his more likely destination was. Arsenal had expressed interest in the player many times, with the club opting for Samir Nasri instead during the summer of 2008.

 

The Newcastle midfielder, however, is capable of playing for a Real Madrid or AC Milan, and he’s even more capable of becoming an important figure at one of those clubs.

 

But that shouldn’t worry Newcastle fans just yet. This is a club who want to prove they can be mainstays among the giants of the Premier League and they have more than enough talent to launch that attack. The dizzying heights will be the Champions League, where the injection of revenue will only help this Newcastle side to further establish their credentials as heavyweights in English football.

 

But the important figure is Ben Arfa. A player who, like many, was born to play with the elites in club football’s grandest competition. This isn’t a player who looks set to depart for sunnier shores just yet, instead he’ll help bring the sunshine and Hollywood lights to Tyneside by acting as the bedrock for Newcastle’s drive to the Champions league.

 

Hatem Ben Arfa is a ready-made European superstar at the club. He didn’t force the club to part with hazardous transfer fees, nor did he push the club down an avenue of parting with other established players in order to fund his arrival. This is very much the key figure in Newcastle’s exciting side, and a player who will help the reputation of Pardew’s wonderfully assembled band of continental talents to grow even further.

 

Some part are a bit optimistic but we can all hope.

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Guest Spiria

According to l'EQUIPE, if Ben Arfa proves he can be good for French team, Deschamps will not hesitate to call him. He disapproves his attitude in Ukraine, but pre-called him for the match against Ukraine and looks forward to what he can do.

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