Pardnocchio’s been at it again!With two one goal victories under his belt against Fulham and Aston Villa, Alan Pardew has started getting very cocky again. Speaking in one of his post match interviews after the Villa game he said the following amongst other things:
“Our home form since I’ve been at the football club has been brilliant”
So, I thought I would look deeper at his bullish claim and put it to the test, as going from what I have seen at St James’ Park in Pardew’s time at the club, it certainly hasn’t seemed that way. It has seemed like more like one good season sandwiched by one and a half poor ones.
Before I begin though, it should be remembered (though I’m sure you know already) that a team’s home form is almost always better than it’s away form, and sometimes much better with even mediocre teams getting around a 50% win percentage, though if those teams had a 50% win percentage for ALL their games, they would stand a very good chance of getting into the European places, not at the very top, but like Tottenham, or Pardew’s Newcastle when we came fifth and competed in the Europa League the following season. In that 2011-12 season, Newcastle United won 50% of all it’s Premier League games (19 out of 38), and 51.16% of all games (22 out of 43). So, bearing all that in mind, I have looked at ALL of Pardew’s home games at St James’ Park, both in the Premier League and in cup competitions. (more…)
Pardew: Persisting with phony Cabaye narrative.In the latest chapter in the Yohan Cabaye saga, Alan Pardew has been speaking further on what he calls “the situation” with the French midfielder.
Despite a constant campaign of innuendo against the French midfielder, and ably assisted by his friends in the local media, he still steadfastly refuses to mention whether the player actually went on strike for the first two games of the season, instead preferring to hide behind vague terms like “the situation.”
Whether Cabaye went on strike or not, the idea, as stated by Pardew himself that he has been “protecting” the player from the savagery of we fans if he reveals the real facts is obviously ludicrous, not to mention an insult to we fans. He knew perfectly well when he said that he was protecting Cabaye from being savaged by primitive fans that most of us would only assume one thing, that Cabaye was refusing to play. If he really wanted to protect him, he would have kept his mouth firmly shut (If that is possible for Pardew?). It was either very stupid or very devious, and I’m pretty sure it wasn’t the former. We are being played again, just as we have been so many times in the past. Meanwhile, being almost certainly bound by a gagging clause in his contract, Cabaye probably can’t speak for himself. (more…)
More Cabaye cobblers?Tweeting on his Twitter page earlier today, the BBC’s James Pearce claimed the following:
I’m told Mike Ashley let Cabaye listen to phone negotiations last week + he heard Arsenal say: “25 million a lot for a reserve” #moodchanger”
Of course, it was rapidly retweeted all over the Tooniverse, with the story being repeated on quite a few web sites, based solely on the tweet you see above. However, none of stories I saw seemed to ask the obvious question. Presuming for a moment that Pearce is actually telling the truth and someone did actually tell him that, then who was it and WHY?
After all, the club have placed an iron wall of secrecy around what has really been happening with Cabaye. If someone did actually tell Pearce that, and I have doubts about that, I would also seriously doubt that it would be something that was picked up by a cleaning lady who was hoovering under the desk or dusting the shelves at the time. It would be far more likely that it would be someone FAR higher up the hierarchy at the club if they were privy to that information. It also fits in perfectly with the constant stream of carefully crafted but ridiculous and insulting innuendo put out by Alan Pardew in recent days suggesting that Cabaye has been on strike, but that he can’t say that outright because of his wish to “protect” the player from the fans, even though he is letting the cat of the bag merely by mentioning it. (more…)
Cabaye: The soap continues…There have been many baffling comments so far from Alan Pardew on the current Yohan Cabaye situation which have been about as clear as mud.
There have also been conflicting reports about Cabaye being on strike / Cabaye not being on strike, with Pardew speaking of Arsenal trying to drive his well maintained Cabaye 2.8 away from the car dealership (NUFC motors presumably) without agreeing a price, suggestive comments about how “there has to be a way back for Yohan,” how he is protecting the player and the club, how the club always comes first with him and much more…
Now, in his latest suggestive statement on the imbroglio, Pardew says that he “expects” Cabaye to be playing against Fulham:
“What I have said to Yohan Cabaye is I expect him to play this weekend. Until another bid comes in from Arsenal that is accepted or not that will be the situation.”(more…)
What’s the real story on Cabaye?My latest blog on metro.co.uk is now up!
Entitled “What is the truth on Yohan Cabaye and Arsenal? Newcastle fans may never know,” as you might guess, I take a look at current Yohan Cabaye transfer imbroglio. This includes conflicting stories in the media about whether Cabaye is actually on strike, or whether he is just being protected from injury in anticipation of a “world class bid” that would “blow the doors off” (to use two of Pardew’s recent terms).
I also look at Alan Pardew’s approach to the drama, where instead of either keeping his mouth shut and refusing to answer questions, or alternatively, making some kind of honest disclosure on what is going on, he has chosen to resort to innuendo and riddles, usually followed by something like “but I can’t say more than that”. Along with the conflicting media reports, especially the ones from the Evening Chronicle’s Lee Ryder about Cabaye allegedly refusing to play, this has led to alot of unhelpful speculation. (more…)
