The main news this morning is that the Newcastle manager Sam Allardyce has been talking to the media on lots of different topics and as usually he has some interesting things to say.
He acknowledges that with the strong squad he has it’s going to be difficult for him to keep everybody happy.
But there again that’s one of the managers major jobs with a successful team because by definition they usually have a strong squad with competition for places.
- We had a late article yesterday on Joey Barton talking about Newcastle. The surprising thing with Joey has been how upbeat and positive he has been. This continued in this interview he gives. Joey is now back in light training and starts full training with the squad a week come Monday. We think Joey can add a new dimension to the Newcastle central midfield.
Joey Barton – very upbeat on Newcastle future
- We put out an interview with Sam Allardyce late yesterday from the Daily Mail and never heard Sam be so upbeat and positive on the side Newcastle has assembled over the summer. We feel that once the Newcastle management team sit back and look at the dealings they did in the summer they can hardly believe how good a squad they actually got assembled. It’s already showing in performances from the likes of Cacapa, Rozehnal and Geremi and we still have to see quite a few of the new players in the Newcastle colors. It surprised us that admitted pessimist Allardcye was just so upbeat about things at Newcastle. That’s nice to hear.
Sam Allardyce – so upbeat on the squad he has assembled at Newcastle
- A good interview with the big man today as he talks about the Given – Harper competition for our goalkeeper spot. We expect Steve to be between the posts again on Monday evening but he will feel the pressure of Shay breathing down his neck. Hopefully that will produce the right response from Steve to give us another excellent performance in goal.
Steve Harper – we think he will start at Derby on Monday night
- Sam Allardyce talks about his new squad and the fact that people both on the playing and training staff still don’t know each other too well. We’re sure Sam (being the good manager he is) is trying to fix that with get togethers for his staff, the players and their families. But Sam points out the fact we have made a good start is at a time when that’s hardest to do. He points out that as the players and staff gel, things should only get even better 😀
Sam Allardcye – things will improve as players and staff gel
- With the great competition for places in the Newcastle team and the fewer games Newcastle will play this season because we are not in Europe, causes Sam to admit it will be difficult to keep everybody happy on the playing side. He’s right and he specifically talks about the challenge he will have with Oba Martins as Michael Owen hits his very top form. But Oba has been the perfect team player this season and he has twice come off the bench to either make a goal or score a goal. Oba is still contributing very well to the team and we hope Sam can keep Oba and all the other players reasonably happy this season.
Oba Martins – has been a good team player for Newcastle this season
- Sam Allardyce talks about how important the fans are to him at Newcastle. Sam makes a point in continually communicating to the fan base every week and thinks it’s a very important part of his job. He’s certainly an excellent communicator and so far so very good this season. We sure hope it continues because Sam is really admired by the Newcastle faithful for multiple reasons.
Sam Allardcye – Newcastle fan base is very important to him
- Joey Barton is now back in light training and is scheduled to begin full training with the squad in about a week. This should put him ready to play in the Manchester City game at Eastlands at the end of September. We have missed Joey’s creativity in midfield and we think he’ll give us another dimension when he returns to the side. It definitely looks like competition for places is heating up.
Joey Barton – back in full training in about a week
- What’s being discussed on our Newcastle United Blog?
Here’s some of the recent and popular discussions going on:- What Difference Will Joey Barton Make in Midfield
- Discussion of the next league game with Derby County at Pride Park
- Will Michael Owen be as good as before he was injured?
- As you know our site has been nominated for ‘Best Sports Blog’ as part of the Bloggers Choice Awards. If you would like to vote for us you can do so here. You can also browse through other nominations you can vote for. SoccerLens was also nominated and you can vote for Ahmed’s Bilal’s site here.
- Here’s some choice football quotes. These are to lighten up the day 😀
“Their football was exceptionally good – and they played some good football.” – Bobby Robson
“He should get his head to those. He is twelve foot tall.” – Ron Atkinson
“That would have been a goal if it wasn’t saved.” – Kevin Keegan
“The good news for Nigeria is that they’re two-nil down very early in the game.” – Kevin Keegan
Comments Welcome.
6 comments so far
JoshI
Sep 15, 2007 at 12:33 PM
Comment #1Ed- Just realised the header image needs Beye and Faye :O…. what a kerfuffle
dragoner
Sep 15, 2007 at 6:39 PM
Comment #2I just realised that Arsenal have the upper hand in our carling cup clash in a number of ways.
1. they have a 2day rest compared to our one day
2. their match prior to the 25th is at home so there is no travel for them
3. they play an easy team like Drby before so they will win & go into the game high on confidence, whereas we play West Ham, coincidently the ONLY team to have ever beaten Arsenal at their home turf.
4. confidence will also be high as they are likely to be top of the league come the 25th
5. The match is at The Emirates, which is a massive drawback to us in itself.
getting slightly worried, what does everyone else think?
Gallacher the Horse
Sep 15, 2007 at 7:10 PM
Comment #3Dragoner, if Arsene W is true to form, most of the CC squad he will put out will have had a four-to-five month rest since such an important game. If he puts out the team that beat Spurs today I’ll eat my hat! With any luck the fact that we have a great 22 man squad will mean we can put out a better team than them and play that much harder. I reckon we can send out an eleven the majority of whom want to prove their first-team worth. But then I’m an eternal optimist!
Gallacher the Horse
Sep 15, 2007 at 7:13 PM
Comment #4JoshI, I think it’d only be right to add Stevie Harper as well – eight players each side of BSA and our starting squad every game!
JoshI
Sep 15, 2007 at 11:07 PM
Comment #5Gallacher, aye mustn’t forget harper, good player good bloke.
Bobby Ollox
Sep 16, 2007 at 8:19 AM
Comment #6Harper is a smashing goalkeeper – the last of a breed of a player prepared to do their bit for their home town club at the cost of personal fame and glory. There would always be a place for him in my squad.