Shit on The Villa!Newcastle get the chance to taste Premier League football at St James’ Park again this afternoon as Aston Villa come to town.
Aston Villa were of course the team who nailed the final nail in our Premier League coffin last time out, although it wasn’t solely down to them in fairness as we paid the price for a whole season of shockingly bad results.
Somebody should have mentioned that to the section of their fans that rather thoughtfully created their own banners and props to bring to the match in the event that we did get relegated. It is those memories that will be in the minds of a fair few Newcastle fans today and a hot reception for the Midlanders can be pretty much guaranteed.
Tactics - It's a funny old game.Last season we saw a change in approach to some games, with the focus being on keeping things tight, particularly away from home.
It served us well last season, and it looks like it will be used again this season as Chris Hughton attempts to make Newcastle hard to beat.
The theory is that the game has moved on from simply playing that old favourite, the 4-4-2, and it is now a formation that is becoming redundant, out-dated if you will. Indeed you only have to look at the World Cup to see what is meant by that. Not many teams used a 4-4-2 other than England and a few others, and we all know how well England’s World Cup campaign went – Not very! (more…)
Stuck in a rut?I know it sounds like an obvious thing to say, but it really is important that Newcastle don’t get stuck in a run of defeats this season.
That is what happened in our relegation season, and confidence drained as a result. Now I know there were other factors at play, such as the behind the scenes turmoil, but getting stuck in a run of bad results will have done the players no good at all.
It’s a vicious cycle when it happens. One or two defeats can perpetuate into a run of defeats, just look at Sunderland last season – 14 games without a win wasn’t it? That is why it is important that we start picking up points now.
Now I don’t want it to sound like I am pressing the panic button already and I know it may sound like I am going a bit over the top, but getting points on the board early simply must be the aim. Once again if we take Sunderland as an example, an inbred, six-fingered example, but an example all the same, they would have struggled to survive last season had it not been for their good early season run of results. (more…)
Remeber this? The last time Villa won at SJP.The last time Aston Villa won at St James’ Park will be remembered for much more than the 3-0 scoreline.
In that match, Newcastle ended the game with just eight men on the pitch after Lee Bowyer and Kieron Dyer decided to have a scrap (as pictured), which resulted in red cards for the pair of them.
Then Steven Taylor also saw red for what can now be described as one of the funnier moments on the football pitch. The red was for deliberate handball and preventing a goal, but it was the way that Taylor tried to get away with it that will be remebered most. Watch this video to refresh your memories. Good times eh? Anyway, getting back on track, Villa have a pretty awful record at St James’ Park. (more…)
Tossers!Sunday lunchtime will see the return of Premier League football at St James’ Park as Aston Villa come to town.
That sounds suspiciously like the start of a match preview but I can assure you it isn’t. That won’t be along until closer to the match itself.
St James’ Park is likely to at least be near to being a sell-out for the match, and that should help to spur on the lads to get the first points of the new season on the board. However, if that doesn’t work then those players that were at Newcastle when we got relegated need look no further than the footage of them being mocked at Villa Park on that final day of the season for inspiration.
Still, much bigger than the need for retribution against the minority of their fans who acted like arseholes, the ones who unfurled their pre-prepared banners, the ones who lined the streets outside Villa Park to stir up trouble with a set of fans who had just seen their team relegated, is the need for three points. (more…)
