Enrique situation drags on. Sissoko not of interest. Wild rumour about Juan Manuel Martinez.

Posted on June 29th, 2011 | 11 Comments |

Enrique due to start pre-season training with Newcastle despite not having signed a contract yet.
Still no contract
Jose Enrique is to return to pre-season training at Newcastle United despite not yet having signed a new contract and the club allegedly deny any interest in Moussa Sissoko.

The situation with Jose Enrique continues to drag on. He has not signed a new contract with Newcastle and we understand that various teams are interested in him, yet he’s due to return to the club for pre-season training on Monday.

Assistant Manager John Carver said:

“As far as we are aware, Jose will be back on Monday – I have been told nothing to the reverse – and Jose will be getting a warm welcome like he always does.

“I know he will give us 100%, like he always does, and he wouldn’t dream of letting anybody down. As far as I know, everybody will be back, including Jose and Joey Barton, and it will be great to see them again.

“They are all still under contract and will be ready to start preparing for the new season with Newcastle United.“

This leaves Pardew with a bit of a dilemma as to whether or not to try and sign a replacement. The last thing he would want is for the Enrique situation to go to the last day of the transfer window only to find that he leaves and we don’t have enough time to sign a replacement. The problem is compounded somewhat by the recent news that our £1m bid for Swansea left-back Neil Taylor does not invoke a release clause as such, but merely means we can talk to the player.

Who knows? Maybe Enrique will actually signed what is allegedly a ‘fantastic’ contract that Newcastle have offered him, although his reluctance to do so must be a worry for Alan Pardew.

It also seems we are not pursuing Toulouse’s 21 year-old midfielder Moussa Sissoko at all, despite his agent claiming that we were. Or at least that’s what Sky Sports are saying. Their ‘sources close to the club’ have apparently said there is ‘no truth’ in the transfer speculation.

Finally, there is a wild rumour from The Mail and The Star that we’re targeting Juan Manuel Martinez, a 25 year-old Argentinian striker who currently plays for Vélez Sársfield.

Martinez – who is nicknamed ‘The Little Donkey’ – only has 29 goals in 177 games but 10 of those came from just 19 games in the 2010 season when he was also named ‘Footballer of the Year of Argentina’.

The thing is – as far as I can see – this particular rumour doesn’t even quote ‘sources close to the player’ and seems to have been plucked out of thin air, so I’m wearing my doubtful face as I write this. Which probably means it’s true!

This ‘little donkey’ scored a goal in 2010 that was described as Maradona-esque, which I’ve included here for good measure. It’s the second of the two goals in this video:

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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Posted on by Hugh de Payen in category: Alan Pardew and Contracts and Hugh de Payen and Jose Enrique and NUFC gossip and speculation and Transfers and Videos , with tags: , , , , ,
Comment on this post

11 Responses

  3. Bit slow this morning! I would have expected heaps of Shola/Donkey jokes by now ;)

  5. I is freakin bored wit all this talk, counter allegation, suggestions , goss, and general drivvle by the press to sell papers that are better used to wrap ya soggy piece of cod and crappy chips on a friday neet !

    Roll on NUFC V Arse and back to normal real NEWS ! …otherwise its just boring ……need me fix of futyy anyone else feel this way ??

  6. Had a look into this Martinez and four words came to mind Daniele Cordone and No thanks!!!

  7. never trust a bloke with a pony tail. Behind every pony tail there’s a horses arse ;-)

  8. I’m fairly sure that “both” those goals are actually the same goal with different camera angles. The “second” goal just happens to show it from earlier in the move.

  10. That’ll be because the 2nd time is the replay and the score has been updated! Unless he scored two similar wonder goals within minutes!

  11. it is the same goal.. the second ones the replay :S lmfao
    unless you think he scores identical goals in the space of 60 seconds. check you tube out you will see he celebrates for about an hour, i think he isnt used to scoring often..