Good club communication is about knowing when to shut up

Posted on January 15th, 2011 | 51 Comments |

Alan Pardew, Newcastle United
Tight-lipped or slack-jawed?
Some people have suggested that Newcastle fans are never happy at the club’s communication policies, complaining that we didn’t hear enough from the club under Chris Hughton but now complaining that we hear too much from the club under Alan Pardew.

But I think that’s an oversimplification.

Recently we had some snow down here in the South West of England where I live and – coming from the North East myself – I find it astonishing that the merest icing sugar-like coating of snow can bring the South West to a complete halt.

People spend hours looking up at the sky wondering what this white stuff is and, when told it is something called snow, they dash inside to look it up on the Internet.

No traffic moves of course – mainly because people have confused the phrase “can’t get the car out because of the snow” with “can’t be bothered to get out of bed” – which ultimately led to me getting no post for a week just before Christmas.

When Health & Safety had finally decided that there was no longer any danger of him tripping over a snowflake, the postman eventually resumed his rounds and I managed to have a chat with him.

He explained that they had loads of post to catch up on and that we’d be getting two deliveries a day for a while in order to allow them to do that. This was information I wanted.

He then went on to offer all manner of excuse for the failed deliveries, adding that he’d had a rotten Christmas himself because he had burnt the turkey and his wife had run off with a pygmy window cleaner from Indonesia. This was information I didn’t want.

Which brings me back to Newcastle United and the communication we expect from the club. It isn’t a simple matter of how much information we get from the club, it’s a matter of what that information is.

Remember when we moaned that Mike Ashley and Derek Llambias never told us anything? They then had a change of heart and started attempting to communicate. Some of it was useful, such as Ashley’s ‘Arsenal model’ plans to build an extensive scouting network and find young, upcoming talents.

Some of it wasn’t so useful though. In fact Ashley and Llambias began to put their feet in their mouths so often that we began to wish they’d shut up again. Which they eventually did.

Compare if you will Chris Hughton with Alan Pardew.

Chris kept as much as possible of the ‘bad stuff’ behind closed doors, never criticising players in public and simply refusing to engage with the press on anything that might be deemed ‘controversial’.

Alan Pardew by contrast has hardly shut up since he got here. Some of the stuff about his plans and aims has been useful, but I’ve found his willingness to have a go at players in public and adopt a demeaning attitude towards them to be unwelcome.

It certainly can look like we’re never happy, not hearing enough from Hughton yet complaining at what Pardew has to say, but I think that’s the oversimplification I mentioned at the beginning.

It’s not just the amount of information we receive that’s important, it’s the content too.

I’m all for Alan Pardew talking to us regularly, but surely a moment’s thought would tell him that criticising players in public will win him no friends and publicly airing his distaste at Jose’s texting activities serves no purpose, wouldn’t it?

NUFCBlog Author: Hugh de Payen I'm a baby-boomer of the punk rock persuasion, currently exiled in Somerset for crimes committed in a previous life where locals keep trying to poison me with something called 'scrumpy'. Hates sprouts, coat-hangers, Cilla Black, ornaments, Steven Seagull movies and 50 Cent (he's not worth 10). Hugh de Payen has written 634 articles on this blog.

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51 Responses

  3. Although I do like a lot of Ashley’s business model, I hope to god we get taken over soon and I hope the first act of the new owners is to sack Pardew for all of the following reasons:-

    1) Pardew’s long ball football, makes Allardyce and Kinnear look like Brazil

    2) Wants to keep ” cheerleader ” Smith and will play him tomorrow regardless of all other options.

    3)Puts on an injured Tiote when we’re 2-0 down and chasing a game.

    4) Is interested in buying journeymen donkeys like Bothroyd.

    5) Slags off young keeper Krul in public

    6) Slags off Jose for going on twitter, then announces to the world we won’t be playing Carroll!

    7) His top achievement was finishing 9th. Even Roeder finished higher with the hammers !

    8) He’s not looking to bring in any mobile, quick and skilful players who aren’t always playing with their back to goal. Ben Arfa is not a striker. Harewood and Bothroyd are Pardew’s level

    9) Plays Perch before Kadar and Ferguson.

    10) Managed to upset Tevez and Mascherano and played Harewood and Mullins instead before the hammers were rescued by Curbishley and Tevez was restored to the team after fan protests.

    Rant over. I just want Pardew gone. However, would be chuffed to bits if we won tomorrow and I’d take it all back !!

  4. Pardew is not a manager that’s for certain we he might just about manage the womens team, it also seems strange that he cannot get a number 2 to assist him in his job, or is it he’s not allowed one? so that we only have to sack him if we don’t start getting the results
    so far i haven’t been impressed 1 bit and to be honest i think we would have done just as well if not better under hughton, i also think imho that when pardew was installed alot of the confidence that WE (the fans) would keep our team together went down with it, i’m not confident that we will keep carroll, i’m not even sure he is still injured if you look at the facts.

    carroll said himself on twitter he was fit to play in the derby.

    he has been kept out since the end of december.

    why would they send him to dubai to aid his recovery?? (more like keep him out the way whilst a transfer is talked about)

    Ashley would sell his mother (anyone ever seen her?? see my point!!)

    Ashley has reported to be in talks about selling the club (not sure who to!!) but it’s well reported in the financial circles around london that a deal is on the table, so one last ditch attempt to have one over the toonarmy would make cashley’s day i wouldn’t put it past him

  5. nice article Hugh – agree completely.
    By the way – which bit of the South West are you exiled to? If you’re anywhere near Exeter the Saddlers Arms in Pympstone is showing the match live on its greek sat feed.

  6. Paul – Re Ashley selling the club, where did you get this info from? Not having a go mate, I would just love it to be true! If you could put some meat on the bones of this story I would appreciate it.

  7. Paul

    Andy doesn’t have a twitter account. Simpson, Gutierrez, danger danger Nile ranger, and Jose (cancelled now) are the only ones with/had accounts.

    Latest I heard was Carroll was nailed on for 20mil move to spuds. This was from some random claiming that llambiarses driver comes into his work and told him the deal was done.

    Domt believe everything you read!

  8. sorry fellas but there’s some old-fashioned Toon overreaction and jumping to assumptions on here. Pardew’s only just in the door and people are giving him no chance, slating him for decisions when we have none of the facts but all of the conspiracy theories and press bullshit that we continue to swallow.
    Get a grip, give the man a chance and stop feeding the press with more stories of deluded fans!

  9. i cant believe people are still on a out Carroll. Can anyone give me an example of Ashley selling a player we needed? Ever? And can anyone explain how selling a player for a huge amount helps make money when you have to spend exactly the same to reace him? And which part of: The club saying he’s staying and signing him on a huge pay rise for 5 years, the manager saying he’s staying no matter what, and the player repeatedly declaring his total commitment to the only club he’s ever loved, are you using to back up your stupid conclusions?
    I’m ranting because it makes us look stupid and because it’s disrespectful and insulting to the player. If you want to piss him off and make him leave this is a good way to go about it.
    Fekkin idiots.
    Gullible, paranoid, idiots.

  10. Paul says:
    January 15, 2011 at 10:07 am

    ZZZzzzzzz, sorry I fell a sleep halfway through that.

    Nice try, but you have to try better than that, troll.

  11. Whumpie

    Pardew shouldn’t be here on merit. end of. All the things I’ve heard fom west ham fans etc are coming true. He’s a narcistic, egotistical twat of the highest order who thinks he’s god’s gift to women and football, not necessarily in that order.

    Kinnear and Pardew are scraping the barrell appointments, because they are mates of Ashleys.
    Look at Pardew’s Cv compared to that of SBR. SBR is the level of appointment a home crowd of 52,000 should have.

    Why have the likes of Colo on 90K a week and Barton and Jose etc on 60K a week when the manager has a p..s poor record. The manager should be a proven success in his own right not get a top job which NUFC is, because he is a cheap failure, but has connections !!!!!

  12. ‘coming from the North East myself – I find it astonishing that the merest icing sugar-like coating of snow can bring the South West to a complete halt.’

    It doesnt take much snow to bring the north east to a halt either these days.

  13. Whunmpie

    A good scouting network would have an instant replacement like Arsenal always do. If you got 25 M for Carroll and had a Wolfswinkle or similar lined up for 6M, then it’s hard to argue. You wouldn’t just go and sell for 20M+ and then buy like for like for the same amount. With goods couting you’d probably have 3 good players in for that, ie another Tiote for 3.5M.

  14. Mick Toon,
    if your concentraition levels are that low perhaps you should see the doctor??

    toonie1949, sorry no i just work in canary wharf and hear about alot of businesses for sale but i don’t get to hear the details about them but being a toon fan and exiled geordie in london my ears are tuned to these things :-)

  15. Regarding Whumpie – alright “Mike” calm down, get Alan and Derek to rub your shoulders for a bit, they still love you.
    (only joking mate!! )

  16. 2./10 for effort “Paul”.

    So sad that you have to troll on here, haven’t you got anything better to do?

  17. Whumpie, I’m with you on this one, you could put Jesus H Christ in as our manager and the whingers on here would still find fault, we have a manager and a team and we should be getting behind both, end of.

  19. kev,

    I am a customer of NUFC and as such I’ve got every right to an opinion if I think the product is not good enough.
    When we had SBR and KK (first time) I was delighted. if ”whingeing” is saying you’re not happy with how the team you support is being run, then yes ok, so be it.

    Blind faith only gets you so far, about 45 years and counting in my case.

    if you were just a tiny bit discerning and woke and smelt the coffee

  20. I’m with you as well Whumpie, apart from Pardew’s sometime unnessecary media talks I think he has started well.
    3 wins out of 5, played brilliant against Man City also, Stevenage aside I have no complaints with how we’ve played.

    Also while Pardew was at fault for bringing on Tiote, the defeat was more down to the players, Stevenage simply wanted it more, had we played our youngsters and lost people wouldve moaned they wanted a cup run now that we’re almost safe. These things happen in the cup, we’ve scored 6 and conceded 0 in our last two league games and that’s all that matters, people need to get a grip.

    And Nick D, you are talking out your ar*e.SBR?! Name a manager one tenth his quality that would come here, he got us to the second round of the Champions League with our defence consisting of Bramble, Dabizas and O’brien. Because of suspensions we had Shola and Lualua starting at the NouCamp! These managers don’t grow on trees ffs.

    We need to step back and take a look at our preseason wishes. We’re more than filling them at the minute so people need to stop whining.

  21. Also, I have a feeling, and definitely hope, the Shearer is well and truly Carrolls idol, and I don’t think it’s out of the realms of possibility that Carroll could stay with us for a long long time, Shearer turned down Man Utd and Barca for us, who knows, our new geordie number 9 could do the same, he’s getting England call ups regardless anyway.

    Watch this video on the rise of Andy, I think there’s a certain moment when he thought to himself ‘I could be the next Alan Shearer’, and decided to give himself a trademark celebration, I can’t think of any other strikers in the prem that live by one celebration, it’s there to see, he’s modelling himself on Alan!!!!

  22. whimper @ 8 – it was just a couple of weeks ago you were calling for the players to – refuse – to play & have a – sit in – or something daft like that ! – so you wanna shut ya gob & stop having a go at the proper toon fans..

    i did say it’ll only take a couple of wins before you fall back in line.

    your like an open book.

  23. “Also while Pardew was at fault for bringing on Tiote, the defeat was more down to the players, Stevenage simply wanted it more”

    Ask yourself why that was ST?

    You and I both saw Barton deep in conversation with Nolan and Smith during a break in play. IMO he was trying to effect change and had words with the senior pro’s on the pitch in an effort to bring about some sort of solution.

    However I really feel aggrieved when I hear the manager claim “Stevenage wanted it more”. That admission is a massive indictment on Pardwho’s inability
    1. To select appropriate alternatives, when his obvious first choice is unavailable.
    2. To change formations when the need arises.
    3. To motivate players sufficently to “want it more”.

    Surely thats what a manager, even a half decent one, is supposed to do ?

  24. Pardew isnt the problem, Ashley is, tight arsed billionaire who will only provide managers with the bare minimum to operate, thats why we are stuck with championship players dominating our squad.
    I’m not saying we should spend a shit load of money on players, and the 6m Birmingham for Keane is madness, but we are just treading water with the current regime and the best we can hope for is survival with this lot.
    I hope Paul is right and we are being sold, but only to the right people with ambition.
    Hughton and Pardew have done ok with the limited squad but once you get beyond our best eleven, its grim.

  25. and as for Whumpie’s assertion that “Pardew’s only just in the door and people are giving him no chance”.

    You’re absolutely right whumpie but that’s only because this new administration has quickly fallen into the ways of the previous one by appointing has been, journeymen managers. Just as Fat Freddy did with Allardyce, Souness, Roeder, Gullitt and Dalglish (yes the same King Kenny who’ll make no difference to the BD’s now he’s in charge) we now have an average manager who more likely than not will last the standard eighteen months in position and will then be ushered out of the door.

    Until this club manages to work out the relatively simple equation of “Good manager+Good Players = Good Team” then you will always have discontent from the fans simply because this club deserves better than Pardwho.

  26. I’m going to go on a rant here, but Andy Mac tell me a manager you would be happy with? Yeah the regime is far from perfect, Hughton being sacked was a disgrace to football and Pardew’s appointment is still a hugely confusing and disappointing, but if the fatman is willing to stick with him, then we have to live with.
    This is my most enjoyable season being a Newcastle fan since Bobby Robson, we have a young squad, full of spirit and people need to stop trying to ruin it, how many memorable games have we had this year? You can literally lose count.

    04/05 — 44pts -10gd
    05/06 — 58pts +5gd
    06/07 — 43pts -9gd
    07/08 — 43pts -20gd
    08/09 — 34pts -19gd
    09/10 — CHAMPIONSIP
    10/11 — 28pts +3gd with 17 games to play

    Now can people look at those stats, look at our starting 11, with players full of passion, two great young keepers that could be in the sticks for over a decade, try picking a favourite player from the team now, it’s bloody hard, I have about 6, compare that with the years since Bobby, and you would be hard pushed to find more than 2 players playing for the shirt.

    Can everyone stop being so fcking negative, we’re on course for our second best season since SBR left and we’ve just been promoted, so get behind the team, our dodgy regime and look at all the positives, because there’s a hell of a lot. I’m going to keep ranting untill people stop moaning.

  28. When you’re looking to re-establish yourself as a Premier League team the choice of manager says a lot about your levels of ambition.

    The Pardwho level suggests hovering above the relegation zone with the possibility of a cup run thrown in is what you’re aiming for.

    We’ve always needed a level or two above that and its no coincidence that you’ve highlighted the barren years ST because all we had during that period was “Pardwho level” managers.

    The SBR level is, I admit, a lot more difficult to achieve with the likes of Mourinho, Hiddink, Capello and Ancellotti as obvious candidates and all unlikely to leave their current posts.

    However below that is the Jol, Pellegrini, Advocaat, Rijkaard and Deschamps layer where these guys have all been able to effect change and take clubs forward – particularly into Europe which, from an outsiders point of view, is the minimum requirement we should have specified on our job ddescription.

  29. Well if statistics count for anything, the way we’re going this season we’ll end up with 53 points, give or take a few. I can’t see us ending up with anything less than 45 points, so that’s safety garunteed. You would have to say its going pretty well for a promoted side in its first season!!

  30. I have been a season ticket holder at St James’ for over 30 years and during this time have seen my fair share of managers, some that have arrived with huge reputations and failed, and in some cases disastrously, Gullit, Souness, Dalglish, Allerdyce, Shearer etc, you put that alongside other teams with the likes of Hodgson, Houllier, Ancelotti etc. and it doesn’t take much to understand that “the grass will be greener if we could just get rid of a manager who we don’t like, who isn’t a geordie, never managed a big club, never won anything, doesn’t communicate, over communicates etc” just doesn’t work, we need to stick by the one we have and do what we do best, support them. Football is all about confidence and commitment, our role is to help keep the confidence high and our commitment strong.
    Role on tomorrow, and I hope that Pardew has a welcome derby win to add to his first year at the toon.

  31. Ha, cheers Whumpie!
    Yeah exactly right Kev, he’s here now, lets get behind him. Liverpool and Hodgson is a prime example of fans not giving managers a chance, it demoralising the players, causing the manager to go a bit nuts (face rub against us) and perform even worse.

    Andy I’ll let slide that you feel ‘taking a just promoted club, that didnt have a proven premiership goalscorer before this season, into Europe’. But you know two of the managers you suggested are our standard have managed Barca and Real Madrid in the last 3 years?

  32. “I have been a season ticket holder at St James’ for over 30 years and during this time have seen my fair share of managers, some that have arrived with huge reputations and failed, and in some cases disastrously, Gullit, Souness, Dalglish, Allerdyce, Shearer etc”

    Precisely the point I’m making. Those are all crap managers who have gone on to do nothing whatsoever at other clubs and shouldnt have been at SJP in the first place. Its fairly common knowledge that Fat Freddy didnt want SBR and it was up to SJH to persuade the Fat Twat to go and interview him.

    A club has a duty and responsibility to source the best people possible to take the club forward. After all SAF tells us that the Manager is the most important person at the club.

    Pardwho will, like all the others, have his up and down days but he’ll be gone within eighteen months and then we’ll start all over again. You may be happy with that cycle of mediocrity but personally I’m not :(

  33. pardew is a tit of the highest order , who’s only goal in life is self promotion.it really counts for jack s**t,whether fans like him or not , the chances are he wont be here long enough anyway.the first blow was struck last weekend during the embarassing cup exit.
    what’s the betting he underestimates the derby game,like joe kinnear did a couple of year back.
    the stupid c**t doesn’t want to be too negative or he’ll get bruceyed up,in the same way plastic fantasic did in the first derby.

  34. “Andy I’ll let slide that you feel ‘taking a just promoted club, that didnt have a proven premiership goalscorer before this season, into Europe’”

    Sorry but have you seen the standard in this league this season ? FFS its not difficult to find yourself in the top seven if you had someone who knew what they were doing and AC was always going to be a top goalscorer as he has proved already this season.

    “But you know two of the managers you suggested are our standard have managed Barca and Real Madrid in the last 3 years?”

    I suggested that “layer” of manager. Those with European credentials and those who know how to take a club to that level as a minimum. Too often we’ve sold ourselcves short by appointing people with either no “upper level” experience or those who have reached their “sell by” date like Souness and Allardyce.

  35. Good grief – barely back in the top flight and all those “deluded fans” the press go on about are back in force. Get the message lads: our target this year is survival. That is all.
    Personally I wouldnt put my money on AP being a big success either – but I’m looking forward to him proving me wrong and I’m buggered if I’m going to actively make it less likely by getting in his back.
    My disgust at CH’s sacking has nowt to do with it (but good call Roy!)

  36. it’s a knocking bet mr i love myself,will not be newcastle manager in 5 years time.personally i think chris was sacked because he was popular among the fans,fat boy couldn’t have this,so he sacked him and put in an unpopular prick.if no one is going to love fat boy,then he we damn well make sure the manager is as hated as he is.
    how long will it be before pardew stands his ground,then gets the et tu brutus straight in the back?the only manager fat boy could get to put his so called blue print roy of the rovers,arsenal,aston villa,everton,birmingham city,etc……..where are we now the sheff utd model? is someone like dario gradi he’s the sort of manager who would be taylor made for fatty arbuckle,s**t i hope he’s not reading this,it will probably give him ideas.

  38. I was wary of Pardew and agree with this piece, Hughton didnt give anything away, and largely stopped the media and people talking about us as there was nothing to talk about. I fear Pardews mouth may start it all off again. Sometimes its better to say nothing!

  39. Whumpie

    Exactly. Totally agree. Our target and ambition is 17th spot. No matter how we get there, by 20 points or one goal.

    Next year it may be reasonable to suggest pushing mid table/top ten. If we stay up and then people start shouting for europe next year problems with expectations will set in and it will all start again.

  40. Wow man I’m starting to believe the “deluded” side of things myself now !

    Get real man, who is the blogger who earlier in this string labelled Gullit, Souness, Dalglish, Allerdyce, Shearer etc as “crap” managers. Howay man, these are exactly the kind of appointments which could have worked out, but unfortunately didn’t. One thing is for sure though, the toon was the death knell for the majority of these seasoned professionals.

    As fans we have to get behind the current regime, like it or not. As individuals we are all allowed our own opinion, Pardew is not everyones cup of tea, but he has to be given a chance.

  41. I just don’t get it, 8th in the league shouldn’t we all be pretty happy? All the people who are moaning about AP are predicting failure before it actually happens, how negative can you get? We have looked a decent PL team this year, nothing more nothing less. Survival is the only target this season, we can worry about how far we can push on in the summer when we see who (or who we dont?) sign but for now we should be delighted with our standings.

  42. I have to say I’m a fence sitter on this one. On one hand despite some decent results I still think Pardew is riding on CH’s coat-tails and doing it with his team.

    He hasn’t done anything to convince me he is a long term holder of the job and his team selections has a curates egg aspect.

    It would be nice however to see someone (anyone) actually stay in the job for a few seasons and succeed and if it is him then so be it.

    Ashley, despite some really venomous criticism, is still with us and the reality is, is that he is bringing some financial stability into the club and he has actually splashed out for new players. So love him or hate him he does appear to be walking the walk, whatever the reasons. And he does react with pleasure (real or feigned, I don’t know) when we score. So he does seem to be making an effort.

    So I don’t know whether praise or criticise the owners and management, I just live in hope.

  43. GrumpyOldToon agree 100% mate, Pardew is riding on CH’s coat-tails, and will do so for a while to come, it’s the nature of things. Also a natural state of things is the scepticism surrounding his appointment, and dissappointment and anger with Houton’s sacking, which makes life really difficult for Pardew to begin with.

    At the end of the day, he has to earn the respect of the toon fans, and that can only be achieved by getting good results, playing good football and winning fans over with his own ability. Time will show if he is capable of this.

    Ditto Mike Ashley, he needs to win fans over and he can only achieve that by building a good club for the fans (and himself of course). He will never fully win the fans over in my opinion, and everyone has there own reasons be it sacking CH, attempting to change the namne of SJP, sacking KK, or whatever. But he’s the owner, and we gotta get on with it.

    One thing which pleases me is the yokel like “Cockney Mafia” crap seems to have died down…

    Let’s give the makkems a good game tomorrow, play with 100% commitment and passion, and come home with a point or three. That would be good for starters !

  44. McToon,

    What a pathetic lack of ambition. We’ve got some of the highest paid international players in the country. If we were really in 17th place you would be as angry as the rest of us. Pardew has had 2 wins against 2 very weak teams.

  45. Munich Mag says:

    “Get real man, who is the blogger who earlier in this string labelled Gullit, Souness, Dalglish, Allerdyce, Shearer etc as “crap” managers”

    Can you honestly tell me you had faith in Souness to take the club forward ?

    Or Allardyce ?

    Or Gullitt ?

    Or Shearer ?

    I dont think its me that needs to get real MM.

  46. solano’s trumpet.

    thankyou for your concise, constructive and well thought out comments.

    That’s sarcasm by the way, cos god knows what you’re talking out of

  47. Grumpy Old-Toon says:

    “It would be nice however to see someone (anyone) actually stay in the job for a few seasons and succeed and if it is him then so be it”

    100% agree with that sentiment however WHEN and only WHEN we appoint someone who can genuinely be seen as a manager to take the club forward.

    If you count the number of years (highlighted by ST earlier) where we had journeymen managers trying to do something they clearly werent capable of doing, we end up with almost eight years of treading water.

    So my question is “How much lomger do you want to wait until a suitably qualified, technically astute, man manager comes along to lead this team forward ?”

  48. AndyMac…as above read “deluded” mate…you slagged off a bunch of “senior” managers, you are obviously new to all of this…

    “The SBR level is, I admit, a lot more difficult to achieve with the likes of Mourinho, Hiddink, Capello and Ancellotti as obvious candidates and all unlikely to leave their current posts”.

    However below that is the Jol, Pellegrini, Advocaat, Rijkaard and Deschamps layer where these guys have all been able to effect change and take clubs forward – particularly into Europe which, from an outsiders point of view, is the minimum requirement we should have specified on our job ddescription.

    Sir Bobby Robson and Kevin Keegan the first time round were the only real class managers which we have managed to attract in recent years, and even one of those got fired by one of Geordielands finest sons. Unfortunately we have a history of appointing mediocre managers, don’t know which toon history you grew up on though mate..

    Why shouldn’t Pardew be give a chance, there again we could whistle and Rijkaard and Deschamps would come running, then we would be sure of success…not..

  49. AndyMac…who would you like to have as toon manager by the way, and under which credentials ?

  50. Well sarcasm is the lowest form of wit so I’m not too surprised Nick D.
    All I’m saying is that you and a few others on here are the reason we are labelled as deluded. We haven’t got a devine right to be challenging for Europe, or even have a manager capable of taking us there, the managers suggested above, how much would they want?

    We have just been promoted, newly promoted teams are happy with survival first season. Ambitions can wait till the summer, I just want to be in this league come August.

    Secondly, what the hell are you even moaning about! We are 8th in the league, with an exciting crop of young players.

    And all the people moaning that ‘Pardew hasnt signed a quick striker or a creative midfielder’, give it time! We should be delighted enough that we got Hatem, thats a great window right there!