2 goals in 3 game for Leon Best.Rather than bore you with an individual article concerning how both Leon Best and Xisco are doing, I thought it would be nice to combine the two together instead.
After all, they are two players who appeared to be following the same career path at Newcastle, and they still might, but what they have both done this pre-season is come back fighting for their lives. Not their real lives, but their lives as Newcastle players.
Now I know that they would only have been sold if the manager, Chris Hughton, didn’t want either at them at the club, but both players had become targets for the boo boys at Newcastle. Since they arrived back for pre-season training, with a hell of a lot to prove I might add, they have both been surprisingly good. We have Leon Best who has now scored two goals in three games, then we have Xisco who definately looked like he had a point to prove against PSV on Saturday when he came on. (more…)
Xisco - Now drinking in the last chance saloon?Spanish striker Xisco is back on Tyneside, and back in the black and white stripes, which has come as a surprise really as most fans expected him to be shoved out the back door over the summer.
It’s a match made from necessity rather than perhaps a match made in heaven, but now he is back from his season-long exile in Spain, can he make a good fist of it in the North East this season and prove his worth to Newcastle?
The former Spanish under-21 international played in last weekends pre-season friendly at Norwich and impressed despite the defeat.
Having said that, it’s easy to impress when there are no expectations I guess. He did give Shola Ameobi a massive hand for what was our equalising goal, and he played on the right hand side of midfield, something he is happy to do in the forthcoming season for Newcastle United. In fact he says he would be happy to play anywhere for Newcastle. (more…)
Hmm, where to strenghten?Whilst I was at work doing various bits and bobs, my mind started wandering. Not on to mucky stuff for once, but about Newcastle and how we should go about strengthening the team.
After all, as football fans we all reckon we know what would be best, and I am no different. The real problem I had with deciding on where to strengthen the team was trying choose whether I should decide with my head, or with my heart, the difference between the two could be millions of pounds! So anyway, after some more musing I decided to use my head. My heart wants us to sign players that will see us finish comfortably mid-table, and perhaps beyond. I would love it if that was the case, but then my brain kicked in and I realised that the players needed to finish so high up the league will be well out the reach of our alleged budget. (more…)
Point to prove?Newcastle go looking for their third ‘double’ of the season on Wednesday, to go along with the victories home and away against Crystal Palace and Cardiff, against a Coventry side unbeaten in five games and offering something of a resurgence since we beat them at the Ricoh Arena.
And while our home form looks good, we’ve suffered a few stutters in the last few games, so Chris Hughton will undoubtedly be looking to buck the recent trend and get back to winning ways. In order to do that, we’re going to have to start scoring goals, and preferably not at the death to rescue a point.
Hughton has some difficult decisions to make, with a number of options upfront and the obvious decision to be made whether to go with a 4-4-2 at home. Having come on and created Carroll’s late equaliser, Leon Best has given Hughton food for thought, who said of Best’s performances:
“You always want substitutes to have an impact and Leon has done that”(more…)
