Archive for tag: Newcastle United squad strength.

Newcastle in the Premiership: How do we measure up with the rest?

May 16th, 2010 | 93 Comments |

Will the current squad measure up next year?
Will the current squad measure up next year?
In this, the second of my series looking at Newcastle United’s return to the Premiership, I will be looking at how the squad as it is right now would measure up to other squads in the top division. There have been many voices crying that Newcastle will need to draft in lots of big name players merely to survive, harking back to the days of Fat Freddy, perhaps, when Newcastle would waste huge sums on superannuated has-beens and untested overseas players who never seemed to find their way in the Premier League, something we are still paying the price for, even today.

All the noises coming out of the club seem to suggest, well, more than suggest that the days of the NUFC retirement home for football gentlefolk has gone, with an emphasis on younger players and a much more careful and measured approach. It is time to forget the past though and move on. Of course, being relegated to the Championship also had a huge financial price, and many of these ‘big ticket’ players were offloaded ASAP. The rollcall including Michael Owen, Damien Duff, Habib Beye and someone who came out of nowhere (well, Metz actually) to make a name for himself amidst the wreckage of last season, Sebastien Bassong. Some key players were kept on of course, and Chris Hughton signed reinforcements, albeit on a budget that was somewhat less grand than in the past. So, as things stand at the moment, how does our diminished squad measure up to the rest of the sides competing in next year’s Premier League? (more…)