Can Carroll be the key to survival?The month of December will mark the half way point in the Premier League season, and will hopefully give us an indication of whether or not we look set for survival or struggle for the rest of the season.
Of course nothing will be guaranteed, but it should give us a decent idea of where we stand with regards to ensuring Premier League football for next season.
With the way the season has gone so far it would be foolish to count any chickens until safety is mathematically assured. Teams are taking points from each other, from top to bottom, in what is turning out to be a very tight Premier League season. A couple of wins can push a team into a European spot, but also a couple of results that go against you could see a team being sucked into the relegation zone.
Luckily for us it has been the former so far this season, but there is always a chance that we could hit a sticky patch of form. Some will say that we are in one now having only taken two points from a possible 12 on offer, but all that really matters is getting enough points on the board to survive this season. I couldn’t give a toss where the points invariably come from, as long as we have enough come May. (more…)
Martinez brings his Wigan team to Toon next.Whilst I think it’s fair to say that Newcastle haven’t always got what they have deserved this season in terms of points, the fact is that we can’t change that now.
The games that we have played have gone now, and now the focus has to shift to what is in front of us and not what could have been.
Next up, after another irritating international break, will be Wigan at home, and that is a game that we simply have to take three points from. We can’t afford to keep slipping up against teams that are likely to be around us come the end of the season. The kind of slip-ups that we witnessed against Blackpool and Stoke cannot be repeated if Newcastle are to harbour any real intention of staying in the Premier League beyond this season.
It sounds harsh, but in my opinion it’s true. Newcastle simply must start putting points on the board. You could argue that we have played well anough to deserve points at Manchester City and at home to Blackpool all you want, but the fact is that we didn’t get anything. (more…)
Carling Cup anyone? Meh....I think it is fair to say that the Carling Cup has become a little devalued over the last few years.
It’s the same before every game in this particluar competiton. The team news pages of clubs that are participiating are full of names of reserve players who are set to get a chance and players who are just coming back from in injury or whatever.
The Carling Cup has now become the reserve cup, a poor relation to the FA Cup if you will. In reality it probably always has played second fiddle to the FA Cup although not quite to the extent we are currently witnessing. It just seems that nobody really cares about it anymore, me included.
That is not to say that if we got to the latter stages of the competition that I wouldn’t want Newcastle to go on and win it. Of course I would, seeing my team lift a trophy is what I dream about and is something I have yet to witness in my lifetime. If the Carling Cup changed that then I would be more than happy. (more…)
Dressed for success?Success is a very relative word and can be applied to any set number of targets. So with that in mind I ask the question, what do you quantify as success for Newcastle United this season?
People have differing views in where we should be, what we should be aiming for and what is acceptable come the end of the season. So why not share them?
I’ll use the game against Manchester United to show you how success can be relative. I guess given our past history at Old Trafford (1 win in 60 years) combined with the fact we are a newly promoted team would suggest that a narrow defeat would be a success for us. A draw would be an achievement and a win would be unbelievable to the point where I don’t think I would go into work this evening! (more…)
Ian Holloway - The surprise package of the weekend.Well that is pretty much it from weekend number one of the Premier League season, but what have you made of it?
I’ve been watching football most of the day and have been catching up on all of yesterdays Premier League games.
Some of it was great, brilliant, just what the Premier League is supposed to be about, but there was also a lot of dross on display yesterday in fairness. There is only us and Manchester United left to play this weekend, so now everybody has seen the other teams in action, have you revised your opinions on our fortunes for this season? (more…)
