Pardew wants a top 10 finishBirmingham City are the visitors at St James’ Park on Saturday, where Newcastle United will be keen to go after all 3 points and try for a top 10 finish.
Birmingham are 3 places, 2 points and 15 goals worth of difference behind us in the league with them occupying 15th place against our 12th place.
They’re also just 3 places and 4 points above the relegation zone, although personally I think they’ll survive.
If we can take all 3 points and Stoke and West Brom have poor results we can sneak into 10th which, judging by his recent comments, is now Alan Pardew’s aim for the remaining 3 games.
Mike Williamson Injured – Steven Taylor In
Of course, thanks to a recent training ground mishap, Mike Williamson won’t be partnering Coloccini in his usual place in central defence. This means a return for Steven Taylor, about whom Pardew said:
“Steve had a fantastic younger part of his career and then he’s hit a bit of levelling-off when he’s not gone forward or backwards. That can be dangerous for a player. He needs to get his career moving in the right direction again.(more…)
Will miss the close season.Newcastle United have been hit, once again, with injury woes, with both Mike Williamson and Hatem Ben Arfa both being ruled out of contention for the final three games.
Word has it that Mike Williamson, the centre back who has played most games for Newcastle this season, managed to break his arm in training.
As unfortunate as it may be for Mike Williamson, the world of football is never about one player and operates with a one door closing, another opening. This now gives Steven Taylor a chance over three games, as well as James Perch to show why they should be regulars in the Newcastle XI. It could also give some of the youngsters a chance to earn their stripes and potentially make a cameo or two once we are mathematically safe. (more…)
£20m available for players. Maybe.Press speculation suggests that Alan Pardew will be given £20m to spend on players at Newcastle United in the summer.
If Louise Taylor of the Guardian is to be believed, Alan Pardew will have £20m of the £35m we got for Andy Carroll to spend in the summer. Taylor doesn’t say how she knows that and merely states it as fact, so there may or may not be some truth in it.
Apparently the remaining £15m will go on players’ wages.
As part of the article, Alan Pardew reflects on the sale of Carroll:
“Selling Andy was a watershed moment. You couldn’t tell what would happen. It was a bit like Kenny Dalglish going back to Liverpool – that could have been a disaster but proved the opposite.
“Fortunately we stepped up to the challenge and it’s definitely been good for some of our players. Our fans might be looking at strikers like Shola and Peter in a different light now.” (more…)
Williamson secures Tyneside future.There were some strong rumours last week suggesting that Nile Ranger and Mike Williamson were set to sign new long-term contracts with Newcastle.
It appears those rumours were indeed true as it has been revealed on the official club website that both playes have signed new deals that will run to the summer of 2016.
Newcastle seem to be getting the hang of this contract malarkey. Both Andy Carroll and Tim Krul, two of our bright hopes, have been tied down to long term contracts, and rumours are abound suggesting that Steven Taylor has been offered a new improved deal. Now we have the news regarding Mike Williamson and Nile Ranger to add to the good work the club have done in the last few weeks with regard to securing the services of some of our current players.
We’ll start with Mike Williamson, as I have him pictured in the article. Mike is quite clearly happy that he has secured his future on Tyneside after being at the club for only 11 months. This is what he said to the official club website; (more…)
Hughton: Defending his little angels.Newcastle United manager, Chris Hughton has recently come out and defended his team’s disciplinary record in the wake of three suspensions of major players, namely, Joey Barton for a crafty dig at Blackburn’s Morten Gamst Pedersen, Fabricio Coloccini for an elbow in in the face of Bolton’s Johan Elmander, and finally, Mike Williamson for a debatable ‘headbutt’, once again on Elmander.
Former Magpie, Alan Shearer, has accused the team of deliberately roughing players up in his role as a pundit on ‘Match of the Day’. However, Hughton responded to the accusations in an interview where he referred to a “freak fortnight” of disciplinary lapses from his little angels. He said:
“I don’t think that anyone who has seen us play would call us a dirty team.”
“It’s not a concern that we’ll pick up a reputation at all because we’re not that kind of side at all. But of course the players need to be aware of their actions and what it might mean.
“But what we have had really is a freak fortnight. To have one ban like this is quite unusual, but to have three in two weeks is really quite rare. (more…)
