Archive for category: Europa League.

Anzhi Makhachkala vs Newcastle United match banter!

March 7th, 2013 | 103 Comments |

Anzhi Makhachkala v Newcastle United.
Moneybags Makhachkala.
Venue: Luzhniki Stadium, Moscow.
Date: Thurs 7th March, 2013.
Kick off: 5.00pm.
Referee: István Vad (Hungary).
UK TV: ITV 4.

Hello, good afternoon / evening and welcome to our “match banter” feature for Newcastle United’s latest Europa League game, this time against Dagestan’s Anzhi Makhachkala in Moscow.

Perhaps the two largest bits of team news for this encounter are that Cisse will be out with some kind of virus, and that Captain Colo has really done his back in something rotten trying to do that fancy bicycle kick against Southampton the game before last. He is back in Argentina and will be out for much longer than was initially suspected. You can see below the 19 man squad that Alan Pardew has taken to Moscow, where Anzhi have to play all their home games despite it being over 1000 miles from their home. This is due to Dagestan being a notorious haven for Mafia crime and terrorism.

The 19 who have flown to Moscow. (more…)

We are the loyalest football supporters? Not in the Europa League apparently

March 6th, 2013 | 15 Comments |

St James' Park empty.
St James’ Park: A Europa League ghost town?
“♫ For we’re the loyalest football supporters, the world has ever had… ♫”

So goes the terrace chant much favoured by we Newcastle United fans. However as you can see below, the attendance figures for this season’s Europa League could be calling that proud boast into question.

As you can see below, Newcastle United’s home attendance figures for Europa League games have hardly been impressive, with an average of only 24,154 Geordies attending St James’ Park for the games. This makes us the least supported of any of the English clubs competing in this years competition, and only the sixth most supported of the teams in the last sixteen.

In the table below I have only included the attendances of the remaining 16 teams, as there would be 80 teams if I’d included all who have competed in the competition! This means that Liverpool aren’t in there as they were knocked out by Zenit St Petersburg in the last round, but they were one of the most well supported teams with an average of 40,929 shifty looking scallies showing up at Anfield for their five games, with the crafty Cockney’s of Chelsea and Tottenham also beating Newcastle in the teraace table with an average of 38,642 and 36,240 respectively. It should be added that Chelsea have only competed in one game in the more recent stages which might affect things somewhat, though this isnt the case with ‘Spurs and Liverpool. (more…)

Who is right on Europe, Pardew or Laudrup?

March 5th, 2013 | 43 Comments |

Michael Laudrup and Alan Pardew.
Who is right?
Speaking in recent interview on Swansea City’s Europa League campaign next season, Chairman Huw Jenkins knocked Europa League knockers such as Alan Pardew, who has frequently used midweek European competition as an excuse for his poor League form this season (amongst other things), with Jenkins dismissing such talk as “rubbish.”

Meanwhile his manager, Michael Laudrup, has also welcomed the extra games next season, seeing no need to significantly increase the numbers of his small squad (around 23 currently) for next season’s European campaign. On this Laudrup commented:

“I know one year that Barcelona played with 19 first-team players, as well as a few younger players, and they played every three days. It is possible.

“I know again the risks if you get an injury. Look at what happened to us when Neil Taylor broke his ankle the day after the transfer window shut. That has special implications, but I don’t believe in having 27 or 28 players (27 was about the size of Newcastle United’s first team squad before the new French player were beought in). You won’t have 27 players who are at the same level, so you will still have five or six who never play. (more…)