Shola Ameobi has come out today and said he wants to play European Champions League Football again with Newcastle.
Shola Ameobi – wants to play Champions League football – again
Newcastle finished 4th, 3rd and 5th in Bobby Robson’s last three seasons as manager of his home town club, before Freddy Shepherd, in all his wisdom, decided 5th place was not good enough for Newcastle and fired Robson in August of 2004.
After losing at Aston Villa 4-2 on 29th August, and gaining just two draws in the first four league games, Freddy sacked Bobby on the following Monday, and from that time on, Newcastle went into decline, significant decline if we are being honest, until Chris Hughton took over two years ago and propelled Newcastle forward again – in great style.
Alan Pardew took over about 6 months ago, when Chris Hughton was surprisingly fired, and did well enough to have Newcastle finish in a very respectable position in the Premier League, and the lads just missed out on finishing in a very good 9th position – in those final 30 minutes of the season when they conceded three goals to WBA, after being a comfortable 3-0 up shortly after half time
Shola is one of the few Newcastle players still at the club who played in those European Champions League games, and he has today said getting back to that level has to be the aim of the Newcastle club.
This is what Shola said:
“We know we can get the big results – especially at home,” “We showed that last season with our result against some of the teams who have been right up there at the top end.”
“It is another season for me but a very important one for the football club.” “We achieved what we set out to do last season and we done it with time to spare in the end.” ” That was great for us, but the aims for next season will be different again and we will look to kick on.”
“Home form will be important for us and that’s one thing all of the lads want to improve on,” “For me, it is always a great challenge being here,”
“I will be looking to stay fit and to play in as many games as I can. You always want to contribute in that way, but I will be looking to add to the goals I already have here.”
“I have played in the Champions League which was great, and you always want to get back,” “Perhaps when I was younger I took it for granted and it would be every year. You have to work for it and thrive on it, otherwise why are we here?”
Things are a lot tougher to get into the Champions League is a lot tougher than it was in 2004, because for one thing Chelsea and Manchester City have Billionaire owners who seem willing to spend any amount of money to ensure their clubs are successful.
In the case of Manchester City their owners have spent close to £500M on players since they took over in September of 2008 – less than three years ago – you see what we mean.
Yes, it is true that Newcastle must try to get into the top four again, but with perennial powerhouses like Manchester United, Arsenal and Liverpool also challenging, it will be very difficult for Newcastle to finish in the top four anytime soon.
That’s the reality of things with Newcastle right now, and of course that relegation didn’t exactly help the club much.
But at least Newcastle United are on the way back again, and building for future success – and that’s what we want to see.
But whether the lads can win anything soon, and in the lifetimes of some of us older fans – has to be questionable at best.
Well, at least some of us saw the Inter-City Fairs Cup win back in 1969 – the last trophy Newcastle United ever won.
😀
What do you think?
Comments welcome.
314 comments so far
stuckdownsouth
Jun 30, 2011 at 8:26 PM
Comment #1We need to take it steady. Many on here want us to follow what Spurs did by spending big and getting in to the Champions League, but there not there this year are they?
Next season the aim is top 8, anything else is a bonus. The new players will probably need time to adjust.
Dan in france
Jun 30, 2011 at 8:27 PM
Comment #2hahaha the joke! xD if we get into it he wont be part of the team! he served us well over the years but not consitent enuf! and well always injured
grumpy_old_sod
Jun 30, 2011 at 8:27 PM
Comment #3Shut up shola, idiot.
FootballShirtsUnited
Jun 30, 2011 at 8:27 PM
Comment #4buy your new toon shirt for only £29.99
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Adult-Puma-Newcastle-United-Home-Shirt-2011-12-73956901-/230622895128?pt=UK_SportsLeisure_Football_FootballShirts&var=&hash=item7b68255f1c#ht_1819wt_905
free giveaways
Jun 30, 2011 at 8:31 PM
Comment #5We will never play Champions League football while Ashley owns the club.
DaraghL
Jun 30, 2011 at 8:33 PM
Comment #6pretty certain I read this a good month ago? anyone else?
howay the daz
Jun 30, 2011 at 8:33 PM
Comment #7we can all still dream lol
boater
Jun 30, 2011 at 8:34 PM
Comment #8Take cover the mob are coming for shola punch bag time…
DaraghL
Jun 30, 2011 at 8:36 PM
Comment #9http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11095_6899871,00.html Knew I wasn’t going mental ha!
supervil
Jun 30, 2011 at 8:45 PM
Comment #10christ… can people read the quote? it’s Ed who’s over reacting here…
Shola says everyone aims for Champions League football, why else would they be there…. and why is that ridiculous? He’s not saying they expect it, they’re not saying that it’s going to happen, but he’s saying that all footballers are ambitious… and who knows what may come at the end of the season?
Honestly, it’ll be the same people who whinge about a lack of ambition at the club who shoot Shola down for daring to even speak about how he’d like to play in the CL.
GET A GRIP MAAAN.
Angryman FCB Apologist smasher
Jun 30, 2011 at 8:46 PM
Comment #11I will bet anyone on here 10 thousand pounds that we will never get into the champions league with the current management regime!!!
Serious!
ilovetoon8788
Jun 30, 2011 at 8:46 PM
Comment #12When Pardew comes out and says we are getting only 2 more players in a paper thin squad and no sign of 35million spending we are light years away from c.league football. forget it. we should finish in the top 10 atleast 3 seasons in a row and we can work from there.
twgp
Jun 30, 2011 at 8:47 PM
Comment #13I don’t see champions league on the horizon at all. There are so many other teams that can get there easier than us. Not to forget that wealth comes into it. Manchester United, Manchester City, Arsenal, Chelsea, Tottenham? No chance Shola. It’s a dream and it’s staying there for a long time.
Something more realistic? 5th to 8th place every season. Europa League at a push.
MacToon(Vive le Neuchâtel)
Jun 30, 2011 at 8:48 PM
Comment #14Well said supervil
Angryman FCB Apologist smasher
Jun 30, 2011 at 8:48 PM
Comment #15It will never happen! Not with this bunch in charge!!
And if people can’t see that then they seriously need a headshake!!!
geoff777
Jun 30, 2011 at 8:50 PM
Comment #16lol Ed nearly fell of my chair laughing.
We need to get rid of Mr Cheap and Nosferatu first.
The windows over.
A couple of cheap squad players and whichever 4-7M striker they can get. Erdinç, Long, Ing …. Carlton Cole on Aug 31st.
cousto
Jun 30, 2011 at 8:52 PM
Comment #17Anyone read up on the UEFA finance fair play rule?
NUFC will meet the requirements since they have decimated the wage bill and have a good matchday turnover.
And with the squad they currently have a 6th or 7th place isn’t impossible, Champion’s League could happen.
Maybe not this season, but next season is a possibility.
BonVoyageBenny
Jun 30, 2011 at 8:52 PM
Comment #18That’s one thing I want from my lifetime – to see my football team win a cup. I’ve got a few years to go, so hopefully I’ll be lucky.
AndyMac
Jun 30, 2011 at 8:58 PM
Comment #19geoff777 says:
“We need to get rid of Mr Cheap and Nosferatu first.” 🙂
I had him down as Dracula or maybe Grampa Munster ?
http://sas.guidespot.com/bundles/guides_x7/assets/widget_aSlHfllDja-zuANqZUxniQ.jpg
http://profile.ak.fbcdn.net/hprofile-ak-snc4/173834_100002023429320_5725534_n.jpg
geoff777
Jun 30, 2011 at 8:58 PM
Comment #20@cousto
No one else seems to care.
Ferguson’s been buying at Man Utd with all their debt.
Liverpool have gone crazy.
Chelsea are expected to spend big.
Spurs and Sunderland have been big spenders for 2-3 years.
—–
Great that so many NUFC fans are accountants and love cheap stuff.
No wonder we get the crappiest looking Puma shirts in the league.
If you don’t complain about being served shit you’ll be served shit tomorrow and the day after …
Ing or Sturridge —- accountant or football fan?
BonVoyageBenny
Jun 30, 2011 at 9:02 PM
Comment #21Also, has anyone else read the article about our transfer policy on Football365. I agree with every comment made, I really do not see why we will not be challenging for Europe with Ashley around.
http://www.football365.com/f365-says/7007553/If-I-Were-A-Newcastle-Fan…
ilovetoon8788
Jun 30, 2011 at 9:05 PM
Comment #22longer window drags without signings the lesser our chance of getting our targets.. already lost gameiro payet and gervinho. and erding is slipping away… cmon atleast nzog by this week.
Ashton
Jun 30, 2011 at 9:07 PM
Comment #23The idea of watching Shola play for us next season is frightening. He is by far the worst player I’ve ever seen. Xisco is a far better player than Shola and I think Xisco is crap. Please Shola if you love the toon Just GTFO !!! .
cousto
Jun 30, 2011 at 9:07 PM
Comment #24Well we’ll find out.
Platini has spoken, he wants the Oligarch owned clubs to stop pricing the other teams out of competitions, so will bar any club that fails to meet the requirements and the champion’s league places will pass to those in the europa spots.
It’s ridiculous, Man Utd could have a 200,000 seater stadium and would still fail to make a profit.
belfastmagpie87
Jun 30, 2011 at 9:09 PM
Comment #25haha,shola must be on the drink………..
dazza
Jun 30, 2011 at 9:09 PM
Comment #26See Sydney Govou and Lucho Gonzalez are available for free…
Also read we missed out on Kevin Gamiero who just signed for PSG
ilovetoon8788
Jun 30, 2011 at 9:12 PM
Comment #27@cousto
the clubs especially the g-14 or g-16 have so much power they just dont give a damn. no top club in the world seem like they bother about the rule. so is platini going to kick manchesters madrids and barcas out of europe because they fail to meet the criteria??
NO. which is why no one gives a damn about the financial rules.. and so why should we?
leeb1982
Jun 30, 2011 at 9:14 PM
Comment #28Haha i wanna smoke of what sholas been on
BOOM BOOM THE 1ST
Jun 30, 2011 at 9:15 PM
Comment #29@ DAZZA u know the tore the berlin wall down dont u.
ilovetoon8788
Jun 30, 2011 at 9:15 PM
Comment #30@cousto
its more like platini’s wishful thinking that they follow fair play. if the barcas and manchesters are kicked out, it will cause a nightmare on uefa’s own finance! lack of viewership etc etc..
i.e. the financial rule are rubbish which is why manchester is spending almost 50mil++ this window..
Marty-Toon
Jun 30, 2011 at 9:16 PM
Comment #31A long way off
BOOM BOOM THE 1ST
Jun 30, 2011 at 9:18 PM
Comment #32SHOLA turns up on matchday carrying a backpack securitystops him and asks whats in the bag shola, he replies a hash pipe two bottles of vodka and some porno dvd’s security man says thank f**k for that i thought u had ur boots with u. HAHAHAHAH good auld shola in the champions league what a legend.
demba_ba_ba_ba
Jun 30, 2011 at 9:19 PM
Comment #33sunderland have been linked with dj campbell they already bought wickham(dnt understand y we didnt go for him) sum south korean nd now dj campbell for 1.25millon does anybody agree with me that we shud give campbell a try
coments please
belfastmagpie87
Jun 30, 2011 at 9:19 PM
Comment #34look at the amount of money, man city have had to spend to break in to the top 4.
ilovetoon8788
Jun 30, 2011 at 9:21 PM
Comment #35yes as ashley is not going to give high wages to even proven players in the epl like sturridge and nzog, we should grab dj campbell and also odemwingie. could be quality additons..
KillyMansGiro
Jun 30, 2011 at 9:21 PM
Comment #36dole rekon they hev foun a job for me, i will hurt myself an get mure. they hav no rite makin me work,cum on toon.
pizzicatochan
Jun 30, 2011 at 9:22 PM
Comment #37When ManUre got their cups more than 10 years ago, how many players were home-grown?
Buying buying buying… can we ever give chances to our own lads?
burnsie
Jun 30, 2011 at 9:22 PM
Comment #38not at all demba baba……not at all.
BOOM BOOM THE 1ST
Jun 30, 2011 at 9:23 PM
Comment #39demba_ba_ba_ba were u at the sherry cabinet with strolla. dj hahahahahahaha u header.
dave 1961
Jun 30, 2011 at 9:23 PM
Comment #40ilovetoon8788 the first time one of the big clubs get kicked we will get the European super league, if you read the fair play rules it simply says could be banned. it is a great idea but it will fail.