Wayne Routledge off to Swansea.It seems Newcastle United have decided that Wayne Routledge simply does not fit into the Newcastle squad and have sold the lad to Swansea for a reported £2m.
Wayne hasn’t had much luck in the Premier League and received criticism when he left Crystal Palace for Tottenham Hotspur from the then owner, Simon Jordan. Last January the powers that be decided that Routledge was fit to be loaned to his former club Queens Park Rangers where he helped the club to automatic promotion with 19 appearances and 5 goals.
Loaning the lad out was a surprise to us all has he was our only designated RW – an area we have sorely lacked bodies in for a long time now. Perhaps it was the bicep in his jaw that prompted the decision – who knows?
Talking to the Swansea City FC website, he had this to say:
“I’m looking forward to the challenge. It’s taken a couple of days to get everything agreed, but I’m excited about getting started.
“I’ve had a good chat with the manager and he really impressed me. I had heard a lot of good things about him and the chat only reinforced my belief that moving to Swansea was the right thing to do.” (more…)
Call-ups for Colo and Jonas.Argentinian pair Fabricio Coloccini and Jonas Gutierrez have been called to the Argentina squad for their forthcoming friendly fixture against the Republic of Ireland next week.
Fair play to them and all that, particularly to Colo who missed out on the World Cup, but what a silly time to play an international friendly.
I’m talking in general now, not just because it affects some of our players, but whoever decided that playing meaningless international friendlies a few days before the domestic season is about to start needs their head looking at. Or on the flipside, the Premier League, who knew that this next week was an international week yet still decided to plan the start of the season a few days later, should take a long hard look at themselves. (more…)
Gary Hooper - Toon target?There seems to be a lot of speculation regarding Scunthorpe United’s 22-year old striker, Gary Hooper, and an apparent interest from Newcastle to want to buy the player for a fee of around £2.5 million.
Hooper scored 30 goals last season, which has obviously alerted clubs to the lads ability and prompted all this speculation as Scunthorpe look to cash in on their biggest asset. Can Hooper make the step up to the Premier League though? Or are there any other players in The Championship who could cut the mustard at the next level?
My main worry about signing Championship players is that we will end up with a Championship team. I understand some players will make the step up and we have this new policy of “building for the future” by signing younger players, but on the other hand, a lot of the players in The Championship just aren’t good enough.
For every Kieron Dyer and Jermaine Jenas there are one or two Des Hamilton’s and Carl Serrant’s, which is why it is important to choose wisely when delving into the lower leagues. Here are a few faces who I believe can make the step up. (more…)
Emotional tributes to an outstanding man.The focus may well be on the World Cup in South Africa at the moment, and football stories are being written daily as events unfold. But away from all the cameras and football there is another fantastic story emerging from the continent of Africa.
We are all aware of the loss of Bobby Robson, the loss of a man like that cannot simply be forgotten. The pure outpouring of grief, not just around Tyneside but also around the football world, is something that will live long in the memory of many fans. St James’ Park turned into a shrine in the week after his death as fans from all walks of life, from different clubs and even different countries, left their own tribute to one of the greatest English managers of recent time. These tributes came in the form of bunches of flowers, teddy bears, scarves, football shirts, anything that people felt they wanted leave in show of a tribute to the man who took us into the Champions League and brought joy to the people he knew and met. (more…)
