There is a report in thre Daily Mail today that says Chris Hughton has had talks with Newcastle United owner Mike Ashley.
Mike Ashley with Chris Hughton with the players
Also present at the talks was said to be club secretary Lee Charnley, and the meeting took place yesterday – wonder where Derek LLambias was?
We have no idea if the report is true, but it would seem like the right time to get together, fresh off the great 2-1 win at Reading.
The Daily Mail is reporting that the transfer kitty Chris will get will be about £15M, and that seems about right too.
We know Chris needs PL class players, but if we can pick up Wayne Routledge, Mike Williamson, Danny Simpson and Leon Best for around £4M in January, £15M will look a huge kitty to Chris.
It’s hard to believe the rest of the Mail report, that says Hughton wants around 10 new players before next season begins and that £15M is not enough.
Sounds to us like the media is again trying to stir things up into a controversy – and they missed out on the Carroll -Taylor altercation so they’re probably miffed right now – so don’t believe that Chris wants 10 players – a new team?
Chris is already on record as saying he’ll not need many new players this summer given the strength of the current squad, when everybody is fit.
With Steven Taylor and Andy Carroll both staying, we would think about 4 good new players is what is needed, and some of them will come on free transfers, so £15M should be enough for the summer.
With things on Tyneside now being almost as stable as they were when Bobby Robson was at the club, the gossip press may be panicking about what rubbish they can write this summer, since they may not get too much of that from the new Newcastle.
Well, there’s always the World Cup. 😀
Howay The Lads!!
31 comments so far
Toon Sweden77
Apr 15, 2010 at 9:40 AM
Comment #110 seems a lot, I agree with you that 4 players would be likely. What the articles also says is that he would like to bringin Marlon Harewood, Charlie Austin, Charlie Adams and Marc Wilson and thats hardly the players that will helt keep us up!
macn0ble (Finland)
Apr 15, 2010 at 9:44 AM
Comment #2Agreed 10 players is way off the mark. Then again 15mil should be enough, coz there are some interesting Bosman-players available. And World Cup brings its own twist to the market with the overly hyped succeeders of the games.
fongct
Apr 15, 2010 at 9:55 AM
Comment #3let hope we can get a few good PL standard bosman players or I cant see 15M is enough for 4 good players
The Entertainers
Apr 15, 2010 at 9:57 AM
Comment #4Its the Daily Mail ………enough said
Ericles
Apr 15, 2010 at 9:58 AM
Comment #5Agreed Ed. Pinch (more like bucket load) of salt time with the press – Daily Mail especially. Let’s face it they are no friends of NUFC! I reckon Chris will get in about 4 or 5 players, but they are not the names we have heard so far if the truth is known. 15 million judiciously spent could round off the squad for next season quite well. No more divas, divers, alcopop clubbers,
and wag dragger mercenaries please! We need quality – get some in cos we have a job to do in the Premiership.
fozzy88
Apr 15, 2010 at 10:09 AM
Comment #6Don’t believe the daily mail.
The guardian did an article a week or so ago saying we’ll get between 20-25 million. I think people may be pleasantly surprised with how much Ashley splashes out this summer. Here’s hoping anyway!
Captain Beefheart
Apr 15, 2010 at 10:12 AM
Comment #7I agree ith the drift of this, Ed, and think it will do us all good to stand back from the club for a few weeks and not inadvertently aid any destabilising media frenzy. If the media can whip up internal conflict and disgruntled fans it will gladly do so, Louise Taylor is but one who enjoys sticking her stilettos in.
However, older (and wiser) heads from outside of the club can sometimes shed a welcome impartial light, even if we don’t agree with every word:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/leagues/championship/newcastleunited/7590603/Brian-Moore-keeping-Newcastle-in-Premier-League-is-a-sensible-goal-for-Chris-Hughton.html?
nightfa11
Apr 15, 2010 at 10:13 AM
Comment #815 mil should be enough – bosman, transfers, loan signing,..plenty of options..
10 players? hopefully 4 first team & 6 youngsters 🙂
Seabass
Apr 15, 2010 at 10:22 AM
Comment #9On that budget go for some bargain scandinavians
S.Larsson Birmingham Free
Annan Rosenborg 2 mil
Sigurdson Gothenburgh 2 mil
Huseklepp Bergen 3 mil
Add a croat and an egyptian
Srna Shaktar Donetsk 4 mil
Zidan Schalk 4 mil
———————-
15 mil
Loan some prospects
Adiyiah from Milan and Van Aanholt from Chelsea
That would be great 🙂 With more scandinavians – more TV coverage for the NUFC fans in the nordic countries
Whumpie
Apr 15, 2010 at 10:27 AM
Comment #10Daily Mail. Hah.
3 1st-teamers and a handful of younguns will do it. 15M probably more than enough, but you can assume that this whole story was just made up like all the other guff they publish.
Nolan’s said it all this morning – basically anyone who reckons a team who can do what this one has in the CCC has no chance in the prem hasn’t been watching the prem this season.
Ericles
Apr 15, 2010 at 10:30 AM
Comment #11Do not think Brian Moore’s opinion is worth an impartial “grope” in a scrum. His piece in the Telegraph is still a belly gripe against NUFC and fans. He should stick to rugby. I will give him his due though – grammatically he is an improvement on much of the bilge in the banner press. Are there any reporters on our side?
Whumpie
Apr 15, 2010 at 10:34 AM
Comment #12I would like to see Van Arnie back permanently; very exciting player and just the sort of thing we need to strengthen key positions.
Too many discussions on blogs recently have been about the individual strengths of players, but that’s not how to look at it.
You look at the team and the squad. You look at which positions are strong with 1st, 2nd and 3rd choice players. You look at what kind of formations we’re good and bad at, and you look at which types of play (set pieces – doing and defending, through-the-middle, wide play and so on.) You look at which types of teams you’re good against and in which circumstances (league, cup, home, away). THEN you work out the type of players you need to get in.
Once you’ve done that you look at availability and budgets, and once you’ve done that you assess personalities.
What you DON’T do is start with individual current players, slag them off and chuck in names for their replacements. Which seems to be the norm around these parts!
MacToon
Apr 15, 2010 at 10:39 AM
Comment #13Pay peanuts and your likely to get monkeys!
Solaidback
Apr 15, 2010 at 10:39 AM
Comment #14Listen guys, we all should know by now that Mike Ashley would let that sort of information out of the bag, no matter what!! He never did it in Jan, so he ain’t gonna do it now, if the press have come up with that number, then its down to them & no one currently at the club!!!
As for llambias not being there, maybe thats why, because Ashley knows he can’t keep a secret, so had the meeting without him… lol
I reackon we need at least 5 new player, as we’ll be losing Butt, Pancrate & Hall, plus we should end Best out on loan & sell Ameobi, as he’s not PL quality, so 5 out, 5 in…
CH will find the players he wants, he won’t buy over priced players & Ashley will back him, they would have discussed prices but I doubt Ashley would have set a figure like £15m as his last amount, he will just say yeh or nah….
We just have to remember not to get onto the clubs back as we have in previoous years, let them do what they do & see what appears, like in Jan, we maybe surprised 🙂
Newutd
Apr 15, 2010 at 10:46 AM
Comment #15Seabass –
S.Larsson Birmingham Free –
Have had an mediocre season. Misses trickery and pace to get past on the sides.
Annan Rosenborg 2 mil
Very good player. Would cost at least 4-5 mil. Only problem i have with him is that he is kind of a bad sports…
Sigurdson Gothenburgh 2 mil
Don’t really know about this one. Young and experienced. Any swedish people with knowledge of this guy?
Huseklepp Bergen 3 mil
Nonono. Flair and tricky (sometimes) player. MUCH TOO unconsistent though. Lacks “calmness”. Would probably cost a bit more than 3 mil.
Add a croat and an egyptian
Srna Shaktar Donetsk 4 mil
Very good player. Will probably be too expensive.
Zidan Schalk 4 mil
Would be a good signing. A player with “international” quality. Would probably be a bit more costly than 4 mil.
Paul P
Apr 15, 2010 at 11:23 AM
Comment #16I think its going to take more than 15 million. More like 20/25 million at least. The squad is not good enough in my view. We went down with exactly the same squad more or less. It just was not good enough.
Do I think Mike Ashley will be still the owner come end of the summer?? Not sure. If someone offers him his money back he paid, I have no doubt he will be off. It could happen as we do not know what this guy is going to do next, so if he does sell up, it will come as no surprise.
If he keeps it, he then needs to put in 25 million to keep us in the prem. There will be some outgoings in Butt, Pancrap, all the dead wood championship standard players, which will create more money for wages and transfers.
I think we need the following
Right Back, Left Back cover for enrique, 1 Quality premiership centre half.
2 centre midfielders (attacking, creative, flair)
2 centre forwards (minimum) proven
1 winger,
Got to look at who is going to be available etc first of all and for what price, but you need a bit of skill and quality in this league, or we will find ourselves down and out again, and us loyal fans who have been home and away week in and week out for years now, do not want to see us relegated again.
G
Apr 15, 2010 at 11:54 AM
Comment #17Lets be a bit realistic here guys, our days of competing for Euro football are over for now. We need to buy a few players with just enough quality to consolodate our league survival for now. I beleive 15-20M would be more than adequate for the purpose. Unless you are Mancity or Chelski there is no way you should be spending inflated prices for average players, and given what has hapened to Pompey, and according to SSN is about to happen to Brum I think there will be a lot of bargains about in the next window. As long as we can survive 2 season in the Prem we will be on a level playing feild with just about every other team, once Platini’s new rules kick in. Forget about Euro football, give the cups just enough respect, and concentrate soley on Prem football.
Whumpie
Apr 15, 2010 at 12:01 PM
Comment #18Sorry, Paul – but I’m at the other end of the scale. This is nothing like the same team that took us down.
More importantly it’s nothing like the CLUB that took us down. Many prem clubs would kill for a cohesive team like ours with the attitude they’ve got now.
Why break it?
Agree with the need for more full-backs (van Arnie, please) and yes, you could go with one striker. But the team that’s won the last six games for us would be a headache for enough prem clubs to keep us up comfortably. Job done.
Evolve, don’t resconstruct. IMHO.
NOVA2967
Apr 15, 2010 at 12:03 PM
Comment #19I am thinking 15 mill + 10 more mill if needed
O’hara is valued at 5 mill that would be a large chunk and would be better spent up front
I’d take Taarabet instead
Albin on a free seems a must then
G
Apr 15, 2010 at 12:44 PM
Comment #20Just adding on to Whupie’s comments, I would also point out that on paper, I would much rather have our squad, than that of say ‘Stoke City’, who currently sit 10th in the Prem. Evolving the squad is deffo the way to go, as Stoke have just practically proven.
Paul P
Apr 15, 2010 at 12:53 PM
Comment #21G – To when Stoke went up and to what they have now, they have a totally different team. They signed Beattie, Faye, Sorenson, Shawcross, Higginbottom, Collins, Fuller, Etherington, Delap, Lawerence when they got promoted. Is only a handful of the squad that was in the championship left, such as sidebe, wilkinson, whelan.
G
Apr 15, 2010 at 12:59 PM
Comment #22You have a fair point Paul P, however, I would still rather put our squad out as is, than their current prem squad next season. I don’t suppose this is a ‘right or wrong’ discussion, I would just rather keep the players currently at our disposal, than theirs. Just an opinion like.
AndyE93
Apr 15, 2010 at 1:05 PM
Comment #23If Brum do end up being like pompey then i would have both of there centre backs at a drop of a hat. Cameron Jerome would also be good!
Heres hoping eh lads
Paul P
Apr 15, 2010 at 2:43 PM
Comment #24G – I definately think we have a better squad than sunderland, wigan, west brom, wolves, west ham etc, put in 4 quality players into the team, could set it all off. not making loads of changes to start, just do what kev keegan did and bobby did. 1st season back in prem, keegan bought allen, beardo, fox and peacock, and we finished 3rd.
Bobby bought, Robert, Bellers, Jenas, we qualified for champ league.
4 or 5 additions in the summer should see us progress, then another 1 or 2 in jan, should see us survive/mid table. The next season 4 quality signings to progress a little further. keep doing it this way instead of chucking money at it like we used to. hopefully we can attract a few cracking young players as well.
G
Apr 15, 2010 at 2:46 PM
Comment #25I’m with you 100% there Paul. I think we need to be cautious in our approach, and not let the muppets set our sights too high. We should be looking towards mid-table, and build slowly.
Seabass
Apr 15, 2010 at 2:48 PM
Comment #26Larsson has not had a bad season. Actually he was in great form until he got benched. The reason why Birmingham is not playing him is entirely because he hasnt signed a new contract with them and they risk loosing him. Their contract talks seems to have broken down. This is not a good sign though since he might demand too much money for us aswell. I’d take him instantly if it was up to me. A pleyer type we need.
NUFC HOPE
Apr 15, 2010 at 4:35 PM
Comment #27why best? he has failed to perform in all games in the championshit. the pl will only be tougher for him. Doesnt have the quality in my opinion. MAYBE WE SHOULD GET MO BACK LOLOLOLOLOLAWL.
toon18
Apr 15, 2010 at 6:25 PM
Comment #28What about Giovani Dos Santos? An attacking midfielder with pace and skill.
Newutd
Apr 15, 2010 at 7:28 PM
Comment #29Seabass
Maybe Larsson hasn’t had a bad season, but nothing more than mediocre in any case. Ask any Birmingham supporter out there.
baro
Apr 16, 2010 at 12:02 AM
Comment #30toon18
Really Giovanni Dos Santos would be an excellent player if we got him. Lots of pace, can score goals. Just a little weak, very small.
papscrunt
Apr 16, 2010 at 8:39 AM
Comment #31I think too many people play computer games and think these players will peform in *real life* This is the prem not a game. I’d really like some *Legs* in the middle of the park. Guthrie,Smith, Barton, Nolan ,Butt don’t cover the ground quick at all and some atheletism in the centre of the park would be a must for me. Even tho we’ve had a great season and players like Carroll have come on leaps and bounds. Just look at West Ham, near the bottom with good prem players like Green,Upson,Noble,Parker,Cole The prem is an unforgiving league and we must spend wisely.