Go on, nut himMartin O’Neill disputes criticism that his Sunderland side were ‘dirty’ in the weekend’s derby against Newcastle United.
Martin O’Neill has been responding to accusations that the mackems are a bunch of dirty, fouling thugs whose only aim was to kick the opposition of the park on Sunday. Some of those accusations were at least insinuated by Alan Pardew, who said:
“I didn’t like the way the game started. The first tackle [Cattermole on Tiote] set the tone for the first half. It was premeditated. I was disappointed with it and he could have gone off at any other time.
“There was a physical pattern to the game and it was just a matter of who could keep their head and I was just hoping to get to half-time with 11 players.”
Which I suppose could be interpreted as an accusation of dirty play.
Anyway, O’Neill is having none of it and has launched his own tirade upon Newcastle suggesting that we were the dirtier team: (more…)
Displaying financial acumen?Newcastle United are set to announce strong financial results, have settled a dispute with the tax office and have frozen season ticket prices for 9 years.
According to an article in The Telegraph, Newcastle’s results for the 2010/2011 financial year – which are due out later this week – are set to show that the club is in good shape. The Telegraph goes on to suggest that they will show the club has made a profit for the first time since Mike Ashley bought it in 2007.
Apparently said results will not include player trading, although we should still have change from the £35m windfall we received from Liverpool for the sale of Andy Carroll.
In a separate article, The Telegraph goes on to say that the results will also confirm that we’ve reached an agreement with the tax office over ongoing disputes we’ve had with them.
The main dispute with HMRC has been about players’ ‘image rights’. This was a kind of tax avoidance scheme where payments to players were labelled as ‘image rights’ rather than ‘salaries’, which meant that such payments could be made to companies rather than individuals and thusly attract 26% corporation tax rather than 50% income tax. This is something that at lot of Premier League clubs have been up to and most have reached agreements with the tax office about it. Allegedly the settlement agreed by Newcastle has already been accounted for by a contingent liability put aside in the previous year’s accounts. (more…)
Return of the Mackems.Venue: St James’ Park. Date: Sun 4th Mar 2012. Kick-Off: High Noon. Referee: Mike Dean.
It’s that time again. Time for the Mackems to rise the challenge of walking upright and drag themselves to St James’ Park for what is undoubtedly the best derby fixture the Premier League has on offer.
The Mackems have been somewhat rejuvenated under Martin O’Neill’s leadership although their form has stuttered a bit in their last two games. Then again, our form has suffered a similar dip in the last two games.
But form isn’t always a good indicator when it comes to derby matches anyway. Extra tension creeps in and it can sometimes be about mistakes and about which players rise to the challenge and which shirk away from it.
Both sides have been talking up the game of course. Yohan Cabaye said: (more…)
In the frame for the Toon?Newcastle United are being once again linked with Benjamin Corgnet and if reports about a French radio station are correct, Pardew is determined to get his man.
Rumours are circulating one again about our interest in Dijon midfielder Benjamin Corgnet. I’m not entirely sure why they’ve started up again at this stage of the season but the consensus in the press is that he’s likely to move to Newcastle in the summer.
We did make a bid for him in January, about which Dijon Coach Patrice Carteron said:
“He stays. We had a direct approach from Newcastle but Benjamin is of the same opinion as us, and wants to continue to complete a full season in Ligue 1.
“At the end of the season, of course, he will be allowed to leave. It is a good thing for him to be able to stabilise at the highest level. Newcastle’s offer was very high.”
Very high eh? I wonder what sort of offer that was. According to ‘transfermarkt’ he’s valued at approximately £3.1m, although I’m still not sure where transfermarkt gets its valuations from because the French press have been talking in terms of €8m-10m. (more…)
No new deal for Coloccini yetNewcastle United have been trying to negotiate new contracts with Danny Simpson and Fabricio Coloccini, so far without any success. We’ve seen before that the club is prepared to let players go if they demand what the club thinks is ‘too much’, so what does the future hold for this pair?
It seems like the contracts of Coloccini and Simpson have been ‘outstanding’ for ages and new attempts to get both players to sign new contracts this week have apparently failed. Nevertheless, Alan Pardew is upbeat about the negotiations and said:
“We’ve had conversations. I can see a little bit of light at the end of the tunnel now. I can understand why fans are concerned, but we’re making progress.
“It’s not easy, contracts, and we’re trying to do what’s best for the football club and what’s best for the player. Sometimes, they are worlds apart.
“There’s been a bit of antagonism with contracts in the past. There’s a lot more communication here and I think we’re trying to work through the process in a sensible manner.”
The press have suggested that Danny Simpson has turned down a £25,000/week 5-year deal and, although he still has 18 months left on his contract, there have been rumours in the past that he might favour a move away from Newcastle (and the higher salary that might bring him). (more…)
