Nolan joins the lengthly injury list.Kevin Nolan was a surprise omission from the Newcastle starting line up against Chelsea this afternoon after it emerged that he would miss the game due to suffering an ankle injury.
It’s a strange one really as there has been no hint of an injury as such. There was a rumour a few weeks back that Nolan was carrying a knock, but as he kept on playing I assumed that it had either sorted itself out or was at the very least manageable.
Apparently not, and Chris Hughton has revealed that Nolan has indeed been carrying a knock, and that it has got steadily worse to the point where there was no other option apart from leaving him out.
Newcastle manager Chris Hughton has been speaking to nufc.co.uk and revealed that Nolan is set to miss next weekends trip to West Bromwich Albion. Hughton said: (more…)
Adam Johnson in Toon?The Sunday Sun is suggesting that Newcastle could be lining up a sensational loan move for Manchester City’s England international winger, Adam Johnson.
The paper reports that Adam Johnson is unhappy with being out of favour at Eastlands as he bids to nail down his place in the national team. Of course there are question marks about the off-field behaviour of the lad, and he certainly seems to enjoy a drink or two, but there can be no questions over the quality of the lad as a player.
Now before people start getting carried away, let’s not forget that it is the Sunday Sun that is reporting this, and it isn’t really known for it’s accuracy. It gets called the ‘Sunday Stun’ from time to time due to the sensational headlines that get rolled out on a fairly frequent basis as it battles with much larger publications for a share of the Sunday newspaper market. Despite that though, I actually feel that the paper could be onto something, for once. (more…)
Up for the cup?The winter nights are upon us, it’s freezing cold, Christmas is just around the corner, and all of that can only mean one thing – The FA Cup is upon us.
The romance of the FA Cup is something that is recognised the world over. Every year there are shocks and success stories and tales of David v Goliath. People love to back the underdogs, and the FA Cup remains one of the only competitions that can pit Champions League teams against local amateur sides.
Newcastle haven’t had much luck with cup draws in recent years, and they usually get drawn away at some of the real big hitters like Manchester United or Arsenal or Chelsea. It’s very seldom that we get a plum draw, and the last time I can think of that happening was a few years back against Yeading, and a couple of years before that, ironically against Stevenage. We still managed to just about scrape through those ties aswell, with the help of a replay against Stevenage. That is the magic of the FA Cup. (more…)
Carroll makes it 1-0 to the home side.Newcastle battled their way to a creditable draw against reigning Premier League champions Chelsea this afternoon – A result that means that we still haven’t lost against any London team this season.
On the balance of play you could probably argue that Chelsea deserved to win the match, but that would take a lot of credit away from what was a fairly solid defensive performance from Newcastle. A bit of luck was needed at times from the home side, but I would say that we were just about good enough for the point.
Newcastle were forced to make a number of changes to their starting line-up, and with the squad already depleted by injuries and the odd suspension, the home side were dealt a further blow when it emerged that Kevin Nolan would miss the match after picking up an ankle knock.
Both teams came into the match looking to end a poor run of form. Chelsea had lost the last two games whilst Newcastle had only managed a point in the previous three games. Given the thumping that the lads got at Bolton last week I would hazard a guess that Chris Hughton and co will be more than happy with a point. Chelsea probably won’t be, but that isn’t my problem. (more…)
Chelsea come to Toon!Newcastle take on Chelsea today in what is sure to be a bitterly cold afternoon at St James’ Park.
The match looks set to go ahead after the club drafted in extra help in the effort to clear the snow and ice from both inside and outside of the ground.
You could argue that the fact the game is going ahead could be beneficial to Newcastle as there is simply no better time to face Chelsea. Currently they are missing some of their most influential players through injury and suspension, although on the flip side of that it must be recognised that this is Chelsea and they should have the squad to cope. After all, football is a squad game, and they are the reigning champions…
I mentioned the Chelsea injuries above, but if you fancy taking a more detailed look at the team news and expected line-up’s aswell as some fun facts then please feel free to click this link which will take you to my match preview. Feel free to peruse this momentarily if you haven’t already done so. (more…)
