Dan Gosling: Ready for action at last!As most of you are no doubt aware, midfielder, Dan Gosling, was signed by prevous manager, Chris Hughton on a free when his contract lapsed at Everton. This was despite him carrying a fairly serious anterior cruciate injury, which he picked up after been flattened by Wolves goalkeeper, Marcus Hahnemann, in an Everton game with Wolves. This was always going to keep him out for several months, and he is still to make his Magpies debut. With the latest news coming in that the young star is finally ready for action, with current manager, Alan Pardew, arranging a special training game against Colin Calderwood’s Hibernian, I will take a look at Gosling, and what he brings to Newcastle United as a player.
Playing style.
I suppose that primarily, Gosling is what would usually be described nowadays as a classic “box to box” midfielder, ie a dynamic midfielder who can operate in many areas of the pitch, combining both attacking and defensive qualities as needs must, and not a million miles away from existing Newcastle players such as captain, Kevin Nolan, and Joey Barton. He is also what could be described as a “versatile” player too, who can play both on the right, in the centre, and also in defence at right back. He is also a player of some talent who has been sought by major clubs in the past, has played with England Under 21s and is still only twenty years old.
When he signed for Newcastle United, Chris Hughton described him thus: (more…)
Come home John, please!The Daily Mail is reporting that John Carver could be set to return to Newcastle and complete Alan Pardew’s backroom staff setup by becoming our new number two.
Carver has been is temporary charge of Sheffield United since the departure of Gary Speed, but any hopes of him getting the job full time at Bramall Lane have been dashed by the fact that Port Vale have given The Blades permision to talk with their manager, Micky Adams about the vacancy.
If that does go ahead then I expect that Adams will want to bring in his own man, just like Pardew is doing, and much like many managers do when they get a new job. That would put Carver out of work and would mean that no compensation would be payable for his services, and we all know that would be to the liking of the club!
Carver is a local lad who was assistant to Sir Bobby Robson when we were flirting with the Champions League. Carver knows Newcastle like the back of his hand, and is respected by a lot of fans. Now whilst it may be a cheap move on behalf of the club, it would also be a very popular move amongst fans who are still perplexed and angry over the sacking of Chris Hughton. (more…)
Hughton speaks.Chris Hughton has spoke publicly today for the first time since his sacking from Newcastle.
In an interview with Sky Sports News, Hughton spoke of the disappointment upon hearing the news that both he and Paul Barron were to be axed, his thoughts on the sacking, and his plans for the future after what was an unexpected sacking that caused an uproar from many quarters.
I’m trying to transcript what was said, so be warned that it may not be exactly word for word, but I’ll try and get it as spot on as I can. First off, Chris was asked about what happened on the day he got sacked and how the meeting with Derek Llambias was called.
“I got a phone call in the morning from the managing director, Derek Llambias, it was for myself and Paul Barron to meet him at the stadium after training, and of course I was told then.
“It was a surprise, and I think the fact that Paul Barron was with me made it more of a surprise. If it was a meeting on my own then perhaps I would have had a thought that perhaps something could happen, but it was a complete surprise”(more…)
Carroll is going nowhere.I see the Sunday papers are reporting en masse that Tottenham Hotspur are set to launch a January bid for Andy Carroll.
There are even reports suggesting that David Bentley and Peter Crouch could be used as makeweights in any potential new deal.
It’s all bollocks of course and is just the latest in a long line of clubs that Carroll has been linked to, including teams that are infinately bigger that Spurs, like Chelsea for example. I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but I have some for all of those dirty journalists out there – Andy Carroll is going nowhere!
You see, there has been no mention of anything about Carroll leaving around these parts, other than what has been written in the newspapers – quite the opposite in fact. I suggest that these journalists get their collective head out of the arse of the bigger clubs, give their tongue a rest, and do some investigating. (more…)
Together forever?Firstly, I felt it was entirely necessary to get one of former managers famous ‘Hughtonism’s’ in the title. Job done on that one.
But why though? Well the answer is simple, and that is that the good result over Liverpool at the weekend was almost entirely down to him in my opinion.
Football is a fickle game, and the record books will show that the 3-1 success was recorded under the tenure of Alan Pardew, but there was more than a hint of Chris Hughton about the performance. As time goes on that effect will wane, but it will also hopefully stand us in good stead as we go about the business of securing Premier League football for another year.
There was potential on Saturday for the match to become a watershed moment in our season, similar to what the Hull City game was in our relegation season. It wasn’t, and whilst some credit has to go to the fans who made St James’ Park a cauldron of noise and created one of the best atmosphere’s that I have heard for quite some time, a large bulk of the credit has to go to the players. (more…)
