Silver Supremo scolds Bordeaux bairns.Speaking after Newcastle United’s 2-0 capitulation to Bordeaux in their last Europa League Group D game, Alan Pardew blamed the fact that the side had already qualified for the next round, Bordeaux’s pitch and some disappointing performances for the younger players he fielded for the defeat.
Pardew wailed:
“Yeah, I was a bit disappointed really. We both played mixed teams, we both obviously qualified which made it psychologically a difficult game I think. The pitch was difficult, it was heavy. They play Rugby on that pitch and it was heavy on the legs. I thought they coped better with the pitch and they were the better side. They deserved to win.”
He then moved on, pouring scorn on the young players who he felt didn’t take their chance to impress him. He also suggested that they may have blown their only chance to put themselves in his thoughts for future games this season as more “Purple” first team regulars return, continuing: (more…)
Demba Ba and Vurnon Anita v Wigan.Ladies and Gentlemen, we have a guest blog this time! Many thanks to “ToonBano” from the Toon blog www.toonbano.com for his thoughts – wt.
What a relief.
NUFC have stopped the rot of 4 straight defeats, got a clean sheet and scored three well worked goals in the 3-0 victory over Wigan. What is even more of a relief is the system and the strategy used for the Monday night win. The 4-3-3 has been begged and pleaded to come out of retirement by myself and others this season because it is the system that suits our players the best. Against Wigan we finally used it properly, passing the ball to each other and created space with movement and fluidity, as the players were completely comfortable playing in positions that suited them as well as the team overall. Hallelujah!
We were far from perfect but it was a damn sight better than kicking the ball long, bypassing midfield altogether into the two strikers. This way of playing is rigid, lazy and has no place with the type of players we have. I never want to see us play like that ever again. Hopefully the penny has finally dropped with Alan Pardew but we will only know over the next month. It wouldn’t surprise me if he decided to go back to hoofball. He’s done it before. (more…)
Speaking in his post match interview after Newcastle United’s abject 4-1 capitulation to the Bluebirds Red Dragons of Cardiff, Alan Pardew blamed injuries to top players for the defeat.
In a fairly confusing message from the Grey Gaffer, he also blamed the attitude of the squad because they thought they should have brought the big names, (presumably Ba and Cisse who both missed the trip) even though they were carrying knocks. However, you can listen for yourselves in the video above. (more…)
Top Manager!Newcastle United’s Alan Pardew has been named Barclays Premiership manager of the season.
A very well deserved award and something else to put a strut into every Geordie’s step this summer when wearing the shirt with pride on your hollys in Europe’s top hot spots! This is the first time a United manager has ever won this award. But lets face it, in a season where most fans thought we would be mid-table at best, we are sitting in a guaranteed fifth place in the Premier League, and have also qualified for the Europa League.
And the season isn’t over yet of course! If results go our way on Sunday, we could still finish by qualifying for the Champion’s League.
But whatever happens on Sunday, this has been a highly successful season for United. We’ve made quite a few people in football sit up and take note. We’ve had some amazing results, well deserved too, and we’ve won over a lot of neutrals, and seen our team talked about in glowing terms by prominent TV pundits like Jamie Redknapp, who to his credit, has been a big fan of our performances from an early stage in the season.
I suppose the highest accolade for the team this season has been various parts of the media comparing the current team to the great Kevin Keegan “Entertainers”. A significant compliment indeed. (more…)
A Contender?The English media are a fickle lot. They campaign long and loud for whatever issues they perceive are popular with the public, whatever will get them readers, listeners or viewers – yet reserve the right to change their minds overnight and start saying the exact opposite without so much as a “by your leave”.
They bend with whichever breeze is blowing at the time, or whoever is shouting the loudest. Newspaper Journalists, Studio pundits on TV and Radio – we’ve heard it all and seen it all so many times. Many people now are immune to it, just as we are to the drivel that comes out of the mouths of politicians.
This curious way in which the media do their stuff is never more apparent than when they are discussing the poisoned chalice that is the job of England Football Manager. We’ve all seen in the past, examples of the media bellowing to have certain individuals installed as England Manager, only to spend the entire time the unlucky individual is in the job taking him apart, screaming about his ineptitude for every draw or defeat and explaining why he should never have been appointed in the first place! (more…)
