Hughton: Which way will he turn tomorrow?Chris Hughton will begin the toughest week of his NUFC career tomorrow when his United side begin a home double against Arsenal in the Carling Cup before a derby day with Sunderland on Sunday.
Tomorrow night’s last 16 meeting with the Gunners was unexpected for Hughton and arguably a game he did not want his side to have after his second 11 edged Chelsea in a 4-3 thriller at Stamford Bridge.
But here we are facing a mid week game five days before his first derby as the United boss at home to Arsene Wenger’s side.
The big question however is what approach will the mild mannered Magpie boss take tomorrow? Will United again call upon the reserves of our limited squads with the likes of Nile Ranger and Peter Lovenkrands returning.
Or will he gamble against what is sure to be a young Arsenal side, after all If we can get past Arsenal that would leave only Manchester United left from last season’s top 6 assuming they get past struggling Wolves tonight. (more…)
Home comforts in the fourth round.After the highs of beating Chelsea away in the last round of the Carling Cup I think it’s fair to say that the fourth-round draw has brought most of us back down to earth with a bump.
The win against Chelsea was a fantastic result and well deserved given the effort that our lads put in on the night. A nice reward would have been a home tie against one of the so called weaker teams still left in the competition. Northampton at home would have done nicely.
What did we end up with? Bloody Arsenal. At least the game is at home though and will have to be sorted on the night in front of our own fans.
Deflated is the word I would have used after watching us get pulled out of the hat, but after pondering it I guess that we would have to play one of the big boys again at some point in the competition if we actually want to win it.
As ever, Newcastle will have to do things the hard way and will have to beat those famous Arsenal youngsters that play in the Carling Cup games if they want to progress in the competition. (more…)
Lost for words is one way I felt after last nights match at Stamford Bridge. It may only have been the Carling Cup, but if there were more matches like last night in the competition then I very much doubt that it would be carrying the label of being devalued by teams playing weaker sides.(more…)
It's Carling Cup time!Newcastle will be hoping their second string has enough to beat Chelsea’s second string in tonights Carling Cup 3rd round tie at Stamford Bridge.
Personally I don’t expect much out of the game tonight and I’m not overly fussed if we go out of the competition at this relatively early juncture.
My main hope is that the fringe players who will get their chance tonight go out and have a go and try to impress Chris Hughton and prove to him that they are worthy of a place in the first team. (more…)
Stamford Bridge - Home of Chelsea FC.Newcastle head to London on Wednesday for what will be a tough test against a rampant Chelsea side in the Carling Cup.
The reality is that both sides are likely to field watered down versions of their respective teams so it is very much going to be a battle of the fringe players at Stamford Bridge.
That won’t sit well with fans who would like us to make a concerted effort to get to the latter stages of the competition, but it is unfortunately part and parcel of what football is about these days. Premier League survival is the priority, and Hughton has made no secret of that, and if you look at the figures you can perhaps see why. A team that finishes 17th in the Premier League will recieve around £3.2 million in prize money plus the guarantee of another lucrative season of TV money compared to a team earning just £100,000 in prize money for winning the Carling Cup. (more…)
