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…)
Nearing full fitnessNewcastle United centre-back Mike Williamson nears fitness and, whilst an alleged bid for a West Ham defender fails, it seems that Modibo Maiga is actually heading to Tyneside.
With our central defence currently emptier than a Mackem’s head, there’s some welcome news that Mike Williamson managed 45 minutes for the reserve team against Bolton yesterday and apparently feels okay after it. Williamson said:
“I feel completely fine. That was the plan today – to play 45, to get myself back in and try and get the cobwebs out and then train on Thursday and Friday.
“It reminded me of what I’ve been missing. It was good and I enjoyed it. It was great to get the boots back on and now that I’m back, hopefully I can just get fitter.
“Injuries are frustrating but it’s just part and parcel of football. It has been really good to see the team doing so well and enjoying the plaudits that they deserve for working so hard.
“I’ll accelerate it as quickly as possible, but not to the detriment of anything. But my knee and ankle are completely fine now, so it’s just about getting the minutes under my belt. And I’ll try to get as much fitness and running as I can.“
I still doubt he’ll be fit enough to play in the Swansea game though.
Who will replace them?Newcastle United’s 3-0 defeat at the hands of Chelsea pales into insignificance compared to the prospect of playing without Fabricio Coloccini and Steven Taylor.
I’m not particularly worried about the 0-3 scoreline on Saturday. Things didn’t go our way with the sending off that didn’t happen, the loss of Coloccini early on then Taylor near the end of the game and the infernal woodwork that saved Chelsea on a number of occasions.
That’s not to say that Chelsea weren’t threatening – they were – but on another day I could have seen us get a draw from that game, or at least only lose to a scoreline that was more reflective of the game than 0-3. I think what I’m trying to say is that we certainly weren’t completely outclassed or anything like that.
Looking ahead, though, what is worrying is our extensive injury list, particularly in the defensive region. (more…)
50-50?Newcastle United have injury worries ahead of their visit to Eastlands on the weekend, so who will be fit enough to play on Saturday?
There are a couple of ways to look at our next three games against City, United and Chelsea: either we’re in with a chance of some points if we have a fully fit squad or we have no chance and it’s therefore a ‘good’ time to suffer injuries, given that we have to suffer them at all. Either way, we do have injuries and I thought I’d round up the latest news I can find on them.
Cheick Tiote had a medial ligament injury which has caused him to miss the last two games. Apparently he’s been working with medical staff all week to try and get fit for Saturday’s game and as far as I can tell it’s about 50-50 as to whether he’ll be fit in time. It’s (usually) caused by a high-impact landing on a slightly bent knee and the fact that Tiote has any chance of being fit for the game at all probably means it’s the lowest grade of medial ligament injury, which can apparently take anything from 2-10 weeks to heal.
Presumably Guthrie will continue to be the man to step in for Tiote if the Ivorian remains injured. (more…)
Newcastle United: Taking on the "big guns" next.The testing never stops ’round here! As we go into the lull that is international football and worse still, friendly internationals, we see our first major flood of injuries hobble into the Saint James’ Park sickbay.
At least we’ll have a couple of weeks to try and get over some of them. All the while attempting to ready ourselves for the next round of tests. Next up will be the Manchester’s of City and United. With City returning to the place where Hatem Ben Arfa was so cruelly hacked down and the Lads were cheated out of a result with ref decisions, what with a dodgy penalty for them, and a clear one for us turned down. Citeh have spent even bigger since then and it’ll be one tough game. Of course the ‘pundits’ will at least be satisfied that we’re being tested properly for once. If we get an better ref, who knows what can happen?
I saw enough of Man City’s game at QPR to suggest that if you have a go at them, goals are available as their back line looks a little suspect at times. It’ll be interesting to see if Hatem Ben Arfa gets to play this game, and it would be even better if he did and made them pay for last seasons debacle. (more…)
