Cheick Tiote - The impressive Ivorian.Whilst the vast majority of the headlines and adulation may have been directed at Hatem Ben Arfa over the weekend, we mustn’t forget the role that some of our other players played in the victory at Goodison Park on Saturday.
It is correct that Ben Arfa should recieve some praise for the way he played during his full debut. His goal was fantastic and some of his play was exceptional, but how did the other debutant of the day get on?
Very well by all accounts, and if I was Alan Smith I would be quite concerned over how I was going to get back in the team after the way that Cheick Tiote performed on Saturday. The Ivory Coast international looked every inch the accomplished Premier League player on his debut and went about his work exceptionally well. I hope that is a flavour of what is to come from Tiote. (more…)
Timmy, Timmy Krul. Timmy, Timmy Kruuuul.Steve Harper now looks to be out for some time following the shoulder injury he picked up against Everton this weekend, which is unfortunate for the guy who has waited so long to be our number one in the Premier League.
Early indications suggest that Harper has suffered a shoulder ligament injury and will be sidelined for roughly three months although I must stress that nothing has been confirmed officially as yet.
As I say, it’s unfortunate for Harper, but now that the door to the first-team is temporarily closed for him, it means it is temporarily open for our young goalkeeper, Tim Krul, to make his name in the Premier League.
Most of us are aware that Krul has some significant talent, but are you aware that Krul is yet to concede a goal in any league game he has featured in for us? Neither was I until earlier! Granted, his appearances have been limited, but it shows that he can do a job for us, which is why he was kept at St James’ Park I would guess. (more…)
Cheick Tiote - A pleasant surprise.The aftermath of the result against Everton yesterday is still rumbling on in the minds of many today. After all, it was a fantastic result, and far more than most of us has thought we could get from Goodison.
I’ve been out most of the day taking in some fresh air and walking the dog up and down some big hills, which has given me a fair bit of time to reflect on things.
Are we not getting just a little bit carried away?
As I said in the opening paragraph, there is no doubt beating Everton in their own back yard is a fantastic result. My concern now is that after the exceptional full debut performances of Hatem Ben Arfa and Cheik Tiote yesterday we get ourselves into the position where too much is expected of them. I mean they have started off pretty well in the black and white, but what if they don’t perform like that in every match? (more…)
Hatem Ben Arfa - A full debut goal from the Frenchman.Well that was certainly unexpected. Not so much the performance as they have been fine in the main so far this season, but the result most definately had a hint of unexpectancy surrounding it.
The reality is that Newcastle deserved their win despite Everton looking below-par. They deserved to take the three points back to Tyneside this evening and the 2,500 travelling fans deserved to have something to cheer about for their efforts – Once again they were magnificent.
Much debate was had before the match regarding the team selection and whether or not Chris Hughton would ring a few changes. It’s his job to make tough decisions, and that is what he did today by handing both Cheick Tiote and Hatem Ben Arfa their full debuts in the black and white stripes at the expense of Alan Smith and Jonas Gutierrez. It was a decision that ultimately paid dividends. (more…)
Sticky Toffee time?Game number five of the season takes us to Everton where we will be looking to bounce from a disappointing result against Blackpool last weekend.
Goodison Park is not an easy place to get points from and to be fair I think most fans realise that and aren’t expecting too much from the match other than it being a tough, physical game.
A draw would be a good result for us, any away point is a bonus in my opinion, although I won’t deny that it would be fantastic if we could sneak all three.
As ever, this is that place to come together and piss and moan about all that is going on within the match. The game itself is being broadcast by a number of overseas companies so if anyone knows of any links and would like to share them then please feel free to post them in the comments section at the bottom of the page. (more…)
