Back in contentionNewcastle United injury round-up and manager’s opinions ahead of Saturday’s visit to Old Trafford.
There’s good news for Alan Pardew as the word on the street is that Gabriel Obertan will be fit for Saturday’s game, although it remains to be seen whether or not he gets a start. Less encouraging news is that Tiote is still ‘doubtful’ with his knee ligament problem, although as far as I understand he hasn’t been ruled out yet.
Leon Best is likely to be back in contention for his usual place up front alongside Demba Ba too but I wonder how Pardew will set things up. Hatem Ben Arfa showed signs of some of the skills we bought him for when he played against Manchester City, but is it enough for Pardew to start him even with Best fit?
Anyway, Pardew fears a backlash from Man United’s midweek draw and said:
“I know he will be smarting from Wednesday’s draw, so unfortunately, we are on the back of a negative from Manchester United’s point of view, so it will be a tough game for us.” (more…)
Take it or leave it stage?Comments from Newcastle United manager Alan Pardew appear to indicate that Danny Simpson is now at the ‘take or leave it’ stage in contract negotiations.
Further to my article a few days ago in which I mentioned the contract situation with Danny Simpson, it seems the club is toughening its stance a bit more if Pardew’s latest comments are anything to go by.
Pardew said:
“It will be as dangerous for Danny as it is for us to delay any longer.
“He is a player who within 18 months has broken into the first team and established himself. We are a big club and he has done very well.
“Now we have a situation where he has a contract and feels he should be rewarded with a new one. I agree with that. I believe that really all we’re talking about are the figures, but is very difficult at this level to say we think negotiations are at a particular point when he probably thinks they are somewhere else.(more…)
Dressed for MiddlesbroughIs there any truth in the rumours that Virgin Money are in talks about sponsoring Newcastle United by way of the shirts and stadium naming rights?
According to a site called ‘Marketing’, Virgin are in talks with Newcastle United about a possible shirts and stadium sponsorship deal. The rumours about such a deal have been bubbling along for a while but I’ve never been sure how much strength there is in them.
Of course it was Virgin Money who took over Northern Rock, our previous sponsors, and I did just wonder if assumptions had been made because of that.
The ‘Marketing’ site stresses that no deal has actually been struck but they feel that Virgin Money are a likely fit for such sponsorship. They cornered an ‘executive’ from ‘brandRapport’ in the middle of his cheese sandwich and he had this to say:
“Virgin Money could benefit enormously from taking on the Newcastle shirt sponsorship. The passion and loyalty of the Newcastle fans is legendary and the fans could definitely see it as a very positive move and confirm Virgin Money’s commitment to the area.
“The Newcastle shirt is one of the most iconic, most recognised and highest-selling shirt in the Barclays Premier League.” (more…)
Yanga-Mbiwa alleged latest targetNewcastle United allegedly turn their interest towards a 22 year-old Montpellier defender while both Simpson and Coloccini are yet to sign new contracts.
The last flurry of transfer speculation about Newcastle was mainly about attackers and, in the interests of balance, the press have been hitting us with speculation about defenders – either new or current – over the last few days.
The Daily Mail and The Sun, for example, have us interested in Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa, which is easy for them to say. He’s 22, plays for Montpellier and is a naturalised Frenchman originally from the Central African Republic, which is a place I really like on account of it being exactly where it says it is. A sort of geographical onomatopoeia.
Anyway, Yanga-Mbiwa started out as a right-back and has more recently played as a centre-back, which is the sort of versatility managers like. He’s been at Montpellier for his entire footballing career and has also notched up 8 appearances for France’s under-21 team. Arsenal were linked with the player, who is contracted with Montpellier until June 2013, at the end of last season. (more…)
Remains positive after defeatHow do Newcastle United fit into the Premier League landscape? And will the City result affect us?
Saturday’s defeat was disappointing, although hardly surprising. I’d be very surprised if any team takes points off Manchester City at Eastlands this season. The fact that we only let in one goal in open play, looked fairly solid for the first 40 minutes and even managed to breach their defence with a goal of our own are all plus points.
Manchester City look destined to join that ‘elite’ group of teams who will always be there or thereabouts over coming seasons. There’s the big money three of Man City, Man Utd and Chelsea; behind them there’s Liverpool and Tottenham – neither team being short of a penny themselves – and perhaps the more modestly budgeted Arsenal. Based on the past few seasons and the way things look at the moment, I would suggest that those are the teams most likely to occupy the top 6 spots. (more…)
