Our top scorerKevin Nolan has been chatting to the press and said that Newcastle United must win today against Doncaster Rovers or we could have another ‘crisis’ on our hands, then goes on to state that Mike Ashley isn’t so bad once you get to know him.
About today’s game, Nolan said:
“I accept that if we don’t beat Doncaster at home then even some of our own fans might describe the situation as a crisis.
“That is down to their expectation and there is nothing wrong with having expectations. The fans should have high expectations, especially in this league with the quality we have got in this squad.
“We should not be losing three games on the run at Championship level anyway. It is an expectation that we put on ourselves.
“If it does happen on Saturday then no one will be more disappointed than the 11 lads that leave the field in Newcastle shirts. We need a reaction.”
Which I suspect is exactly what there’ll be if we lose. I doubt our decent start has pleased the press much and they’ll be as eager as usual to carry reports of our demise (ooh, that’s bitter and cynical Hugh). (more…)
Not a single serious bidderAfter a summer of discontent at Newcastle United, with the club having been up for sale since May, we’ve failed to attract a single serious buyer.
It seems Moat was all mouth and all the other ‘bidders’ were either publicity hunters, time-wasters or chancers who only expressed an interest in the hope of purchasing way below Ashley’s £100m asking price.
A few weeks ago I posted an article which quoted the Telegraph’s ‘source close to the club’ as follows:
“No one has come up with any money – no one.
“Barry Moat and the South Africans have one thing in common – they are all talking but they have no produced any money.
“There will be some preliminary conversations late in the week and I would think Barry Moat will have some provisional discussions with them although I can’t underline provisional enough.
“Until someone comes up with the money Mike Ashley has got to stay in control of the club. He has got no choice.” (more…)
Rudolfsen - on the radarAccording to The Chronicle, Newcastle United are tracking a 21 year old striker from Norway.
The striker is a lad called Joakim Rudolfsen and he plays for Norway’s famous third-tier Mo IL side. Apparently he was first spotted by Dennis Wise and has continued to be tracked by Norman Wooster, our Scandinavian scout.
Apparently Rudolfsen recently scored a hat-trick in 14 minutes against Asker and has scored 18 goals in 18 games this season already.
The Chronicle speculates that Hughton might make a move for the striker in the January transfer window, but I doubt it myself. Rudolfsen is the sort of striker who looks like an investment for the future and I’d be surprised if that interests Mike Ashley at the moment.
Even though Rudolfsen would only command a nominal fee I think Hughton’s concerns in the January transfer window will mainly be related to the current campaign. (more…)
Plenty in reserve!There are plenty of things going at St James’ Park at the moment. Some of them have an indirect effect on events on the pitch, and others slightly more direct. One of those which is plainly obvious to some of us, is the direct effect the exclusion of Nile Ranger is having on Newcastle’s first team affairs.
Surely it’s no coincidence that the last three games have been relatively fruitless as the young striker has sat as a frustrated spectator on the bench?
Of course, the beginning of Ranger’s end as a regular starter was the QPR game, and ironically the new boy’s arrival and his replacement that day, Marlon Harewood, came on to grab a valuable equaliser. But since then, Harewood has had more involvement and along with Carroll and Lovenkrands have occupied the front position(s), leaving Ranger with the odd ten minutes at the end.
It’s easy to be quite literal and say Ranger hasn’t actually scored but for me, Ranger offers far more than the other strikers and is more valuable overall. I’ve waxed lyrical before about his attributes but it has been glaringly obvious that his movement, desire and ability to bring people into the game are sorely missed. And he has already proved, once he breaks his duck he will almost undoubtedly score goals for fun. (more…)
New top manChris Hughton will be appointed as permanent manager of Newcastle United after the weekend’s visit from Doncaster.
Apparently Chris Hughton has been offered a £250,000 a year deal which is believed to be the same package that David O’Leary turned down in August.
I have no idea why O’Leary turned down the manager’s job at Newcastle United of course, but I would guess he feels he’s worth more than £250,000 a year even as an out of work manager coming into a Championship club.
£250,000 doesn’t seem a lot to me. Okay, hang on, £250,000 a year is a fair wedge of money to me and I could certainly afford a new hat on that sort of money, but I’m talking about in relation to players on our books who’ll be earning £2,000,000 a year. But I suppose market conditions dictate salaries and some players are simply valued higher than their managers.
Anyway, I presume Hughton’s happy with the deal and is looking forward to taking charge of the club even if it is only for the rest of the season.
Hughton talked about the team and our current rough patch yesterday, saying: (more…)
