Hurrah for the two Dannys!When Danny Guthrie arrived at Newcastle I instantly thought of the time we signed Robert Lee!
I know, hang on a min how the hell did I come up with that comparison? Also, in the seasons that have followed he has been mostly a bit part player only showing flashes of what he is capable of. But the comparisons were there as it was one of Keegan’s first players to arrive after taking charge for the second time. He wasn’t expensive and has that very hard quality to find in a midfielder, in that he’s a box to box type of player with a broad range of passing, has an eye for goal, who can win the ball and drive the team on like a poor mans Steven Gerrard!
Also with Dan Gosling, when we also managed to sign him on a free with the feeling amongst the fans that finally we are looking at sensible up and coming players and not getting ripped off paying for expensive big names who don’t perform. Having arrived injured we are still waiting to see the best of the former England U21 who had shown so much potential at Everton and warranted the cheeky deal that we managed to get him on. (more…)
Has been a key player for us.Having already taken a look at our goalkeepers and defenders, the focus for the next edition of our player review moves up the pitch again to see how our midfield have performed throughout the season.
It’s been a strange position for us this year. On one hand, some say the midfield has been our achilles heel, it lacks mobility and creativity. On the other hand though, it has been a position that has yielded a return of 30 goals from the season. Without checking, that is probably a damn sight more than what we have had in return from the past few seasons. Of course 17 of them have come from Kevin Nolan which has helped improve that figure, but despite the criticism that has been aimed at them from time to time they have chipped in with their fair share of assists aswell. After all, strikers need service from somewhere, right? (more…)
'Big' miss?If reports in the The Dail Mail are accurate then top goalscorer, Kevin Nolan has joined Newcastle’s list of crocks and misses out on the trip to Watford. With Wayne Routledge a disappointing absence from the first team squad against Preston after a good start to his Toon career, Danny Guthrie almost inevitably moved across to the right. Smith took over his role and Newcastle fans were left frustrated by a narrowing of the play, after we’d played with such freedom on the wings in previous home games.
Tightening things up and narrowing the play away from home is something that Hughton has done throughout the season mostly to effective, if ultimately a little uninspiring, ends. Certainly after the Derby hammering, you imagine he will be more cautious than ever, as proved at Swansea where we played a 4-4-2 but mostly tucked in as a 4-4-1-1. (more…)
Looking and feeling a little rusty in the middle?The previous review of the current squad, took a look at the Newcastle defence, an area that this season we’ve been surprisingly strong in, given our poor reputation in recent years.
Today’s review looks at arguably the fulcrum of a successful team, the midfield, the place that could and should control a game and dictate the style of play. Our midfield this season has been very much part of a strong defensive ethos, and while we have grafters in there, we’re also lacking some natural creativity and pace.
Looking at the current crop, it really makes you pine for some of our former midfielders who have graced the hallowed St James’ turf in the last couple of decades. Reminisce about the grace of French wingers David Ginola and Laurent Robert. Recall the guts, determination and drive of Robert Lee and Gary Speed. Consider the guile we had in Emre, albeit fleetingly, and the sheer brilliance of Nobby Solano. Even having pure pace a la James Milner, Keith Gillespie to worry the opposition. You can even look at some of the less popular characters. We would kill for the pace of Kieron Dyer and dare I say, I could forgive Jermaine Jenas. Possibly even Damien Duff is a big miss? Maybe that’s stretching it…
Anyway, that was the past, what about the present? (more…)
Sucker-punch!An early boxing day start took me to Hillsborough in the hope we could continue our fine run of form against struggling Sheff Wed. It’s been well documented recently that our boxing day winning record has been less than impressive – the next chance we get, it will have been 22 years since we won! Here is my account of the match, and the day out in general…
After arriving in Sheffield and quickly finding a car parking space, me and my mate set off for the pre-match ritual pint. After a half-mile walk up an icy hill, The White Horse beckoned. Honestly, it was just like old times when we used to take over pubs and city centres, with toon flags outside and toon fans only inside.
Feeling refreshed, we walked to the ground taking our seats (second row, directly behind the goal), and sat down to enjoy the warm-up. I experienced that heart-sinking feeling as I watched our boys warming up, and quickly worked out that there was no Alan Smith, and that Nicky Butt was warming up with the starting XI (more…)
