It's crazy!Danny Guthrie reckons Newcastle United won’t have it all their own way in the ‘crazy’ Championship.
The midfielder said:
“When you look at this division it’s a bit of a crazy one. Everybody is capable of beating each other. And that has shown in some of our games so far this season. It’s something we can’t lose sight of.
“Every team still sees us as a scalp and we’ve got to be prepared for it. We won’t have it all our own way this season, that’s for sure.”
Guthrie, who chalked up his fifth assist of the season against Peterborough, goes on to say:
“We’ve had a few games where we went through a period when the ball didn’t bounce for us. Things weren’t happening for us in front of goal. In our last two or three games it has done that, it’s evened itself out.”
Spirits sound high though and Danny Simpson’s still getting ribbed about his goal:
“It was definitely a cross, especially on his left foot! There was no way he meant to shoot. We’ll take it – we needed a bit of luck. It was an important goal as it put the game out of their reach.”
Everyone's favourite MDIt’s been report that Derek Llambias, Newcastle United’s ever-popular managing director, has invited the Newcastle United Supporter’s Trust, or NUST as we know them, to a meeting to presumably discuss their intended buyout plans.
It seems apparent that he called for this as soon as the ‘Yes We Can’ campaign was launched, so clearly while others are sceptical about it, the board are taking it seriously enough. As it turns out, the NUST have turned down his request to meet before our game against Preston, and Neil Mitchell spoke on behalf of the NUST to say:
“Any negotiations conducted un behalf of the Yes We Can campaign will be conducted with the full knowledge of our potential investors and the fans in general.
“We see no benefit in meeting with Mr Ashley or his representatives until the campaign has fully got under way.
“The idea of the campaign is to bring trust and integrity back to the club, reflecting the values of the city as a whole.
“It will be conducted in the full glare of publicity I am sure and we want to ensure that our people, including investors and potential investors, know what is going on. Deals in smoke-filled rooms won’t be part of our negotiations.(more…)
Is he or isn't he?Chris Hughton doesn’t rule out bringing Sol Campbell to Newcastle United.
I think Hughton is yanking my chain because back on 31st October I wrote an article suggesting that Campbell was one of his transfer targets but then on the 3rd November I had to write an article saying he wasn’t after Hughton said:
“There is no truth in this whatsoever. The first I heard about it was when it was on the television in the morning. We are looking elsewhere and it is an ongoing thing. Sol is an excellent player but there is nothing happening regarding him coming to Newcastle.”
However, it now seems Sol Campbell is a transfer target for Hughton after all. Hughton said yesterday:
“Sol is one signing that might possibly happen here.
“He’s still got a lot to offer the game and, although he’ll get a lot of offers, I wouldn’t rule him coming to Newcastle out.”
“I wouldn’t expect Sol to be fit enough to play again until after Christmas.” (more…)
Made for each other?There aren’t many more popular former Newcastle players of recent time, in the minds of my generation, than John Beresford. Johnny ‘(oooohh Johnny, Johnny)’ Beresford was a major part of the squad that Keegan assembled to put us back on the map in the ’90s. He’s been speaking to Lee Ryder in The Chronicle and suggests he has some helpful advice for Gutierrez and Enrique, and he believes they what it takes to be a successful combination on the left.
Of course Bez had several ‘wingmen’, some more accomplished than others, notably Scott Sellars and David Ginola. And of course, he and Ginola had a bit of a ding-dong over ‘covering duties’ back in the day and Beresford was dragged off and reprimanded by Keegan. It was all water-under-the-bridge soon enough though and explained away as a misunderstanding, well that and the unspoken rumour that Davy G was a lazy git? Never!
Despite Ginola’s reluctance to track back on occasion, they got on well enough and Bez reckons that’s crucial to an effective partnership. (more…)
Fan ownership campaign startsThe Newcastle United Supporters Trust (NUST) has launched its ‘Yes We Can’ campaign, which aims to raise enough funds to finance a fan buy out of the club.
The NUST’s plan, which has been dubbed ‘Barcelona on the Tyne’ by the financial community, aims to democratise the club and ensure that the ‘current situation at Newcastle United does not repeat itself’ (NUST’s words).
Fans will be able to invest in the club via a number of ‘financial opportunities’ and the money will be held in Escrow by local solicitors to provide proof of funds to Mike Ashley.
Fan ownership is of course popular on the continent, perhaps most notably at places like Barcelona and Real Madrid. At Barcelona fans pay £139/year to acquire ‘socio status’ and for that you get the right to buy the best season tickets and take part in the club’s decision-making process. There are about 172,000 ‘socios’ whose fees raise approximately £24m/year before selling any season tickets, television rights, merchandise etc. (more…)
