Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa will make his full debut at right back for Newcastle United in tonight’s Europa League game against Metalist Kharkiv of the Ukraine at St. James’ Park.
This is almost as strong a side as Alan Pardew can start – in fact for players those who are eligible to play the Newcastle manager has selected his strongest side – and that’s good.
You just have to look at the bench – Rob Elliot, Danny Simpson, Massadio Haidara, James Perch, Vurnon Anita, Sylvain Marveaux, Shola Ameobi – to see what a really strong squad Newcastle now have.
Yohan Cabaye and Cheick Tiote are in central filed for Newcastle and apart from the ineligible Mathieu Debuchy and Yoan Gouffran – who is injured at the moment – this is the strongest side Newcastle can field – with Ben Arfa still out injured.
Teams:
Newcastle United (4-2-3-1): Tim Krul; Mapou Yanga Mbiwa, Steven Taylor, Fabricio Coloccini (c), Davide Santon; Cheick Tiote, Yohan Cabaye; Gabriel Obertan, Moussa Sissoko, Jonas Gutierrez; Papiss Cisse
Substitutes: Rob Elliot, Danny Simpson, Massadio Haidara, James Perch, Vurnon Anita, Sylvain Marveaux, Shola Ameobi
Metlaist Kharkiv – 4-2-3-1): Olexandr Goryainov; Cristian Villagra, Papa Gueye, Marco Torsiglieri, Fininho; Edmar, Juan Manuel Torres; Marlos, Cleiton Xavier, Jose Ernesto Sosa (c); Jonathan Cristaldo
Substitutes: Vladimir Disljenkovic, Andriy Berezovchuk, Oleg Shelayev, Sebastian Blanco, Jaja, Oleg Krasnopyorov, Willian
Referee: Tom Harald Hagen (Norway)
440 comments so far
Twatter
Feb 14, 2013 at 7:04 PM
Comment #1Strong team. Looks promising.
Howay the lads.
JackButler
Feb 14, 2013 at 7:04 PM
Comment #2Why does Pardew insist on playing players out of position???
Something I simply can’t understand myself
toon1707
Feb 14, 2013 at 7:06 PM
Comment #3Looks like we are going to get a good win tonight so that we don’t have to risk many of our purple players a few days before the saints game
rainrix
Feb 14, 2013 at 7:07 PM
Comment #4Would’ve started marv or anita in place of jonas but whatever i suppose. Thats likely the strongest defence we’ve had in a looooong time.
Ketsbaia9
Feb 14, 2013 at 7:08 PM
Comment #5For god sake. Why is Danny Simpson even on the bench. He should be playing league one football by now. I’d rather lose Pardew than potentially lose Marveaux and Anita. I can’t understand why he keeps leaving them out.
Ibizatoon - Back by popular demand
Feb 14, 2013 at 7:08 PM
Comment #6Right then, I’ll leave you lads to it.
Pardew Out!
HWTL
Mister Tuff
Feb 14, 2013 at 7:09 PM
Comment #7Why oh why does Percy persist with Obertan -he will never make the grade. Probably because he was solely responsible for signing him.
mattnufc
Feb 14, 2013 at 7:10 PM
Comment #8Probably the strongest team that could have played.
Looking forward to it!
Robby Bobson
Feb 14, 2013 at 7:10 PM
Comment #9We have tiote cabaye and colocinni in same team for second time this season…and even on the last time it lasted half hour when tiote got sent off.
santonthenewmaldini
Feb 14, 2013 at 7:10 PM
Comment #10Apart from Obertan that is a near full strength line up!!
What has Anita done wrong though as cant understand how he cant get back into the team?!?
Just hope Obertan has been watching how Gouffran plays as thats the standard that he needs to reach now to get back into the fold
darrenfletcher88
Feb 14, 2013 at 7:11 PM
Comment #11Kets it’s not football manager son,please be quiet u complete arse hole!!!
francesco-hba
Feb 14, 2013 at 7:12 PM
Comment #12I dont understand why Pardew wants Mbiwa playing rightback… i could have try a new central duo in this type of game, and could have try Haidara left side and santon right side
and give a Jonas a breath, he cant play every 3 days…
other thing, i saw everywhere that Gouffran will be back in training on Monday, but yesterday i saw this video where we can see him in Metalist’ pretraining, so is he already back? the video’title talk about Ben arfa, but I didn’t find him on the video :http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bO6kceCW2LI&feature=youtu.be&a
toonicle
Feb 14, 2013 at 7:12 PM
Comment #13Really curious what Anita did to get dropped so abruptly. He should be getting the start it seems to me. And interested to see how Obertan does tonight, hope he can be something of a factor as he usually isn’t.
obatoyou
Feb 14, 2013 at 7:12 PM
Comment #14Thanks Ibiza for the link~
Jonas's better than Messi
Feb 14, 2013 at 7:13 PM
Comment #15Competition for places … tough on Anita but if he steps up and trains hard he might get a chance as sub to claim his shirt back.
Good team, I expected Saylor and Santon to be benched.
Let’s hope we can score a few.
HWTL
northernirishtoon
Feb 14, 2013 at 7:13 PM
Comment #16Think obertan has put in some decent displays in Europe and think he will do well 2nite. Like for like with him for goofy
northernirishtoon
Feb 14, 2013 at 7:14 PM
Comment #17Only not as good
Twatter
Feb 14, 2013 at 7:14 PM
Comment #18Pardew picks probably the strongest line up yet in the Europa League and people are still only finding complaints.
Come on now.
nick_9
Feb 14, 2013 at 7:14 PM
Comment #19I make that one full back? Who is playing right back? Mbiwa, Taylor or Jonas? Little bit perplexed that Marv and Anita haven’t been selected but I’m guessing they will play a part. I don’t think Jonas offers enough either, sooner Benny is back the better.
spitfire_
Feb 14, 2013 at 7:14 PM
Comment #20Could 3-5-2 be on agenda?
toonarmydownsouth
Feb 14, 2013 at 7:15 PM
Comment #21Why the hell is mbiwa playing fcuking RB? Wherea the point in signing a £8 mil CB and using him at RB? Seriously? Its fcuking baffling!
Jonas's better than Messi
Feb 14, 2013 at 7:15 PM
Comment #22f-hba
Gouffran might be doing light non-contact training atm.
nick_9
Feb 14, 2013 at 7:16 PM
Comment #23Twitter Pardew can never win really, I don’t think he has I’ve picked the eleven I would haha. Pretty strong line up but Jonas has poor service and obertan is hit and miss, not ideal wheel your main striker needs a few chances to score now.
beefman13
Feb 14, 2013 at 7:16 PM
Comment #24What is his mans fascination with jonas, marv n anita cant get a start, its a decent team apart from jonas, sick of looking at the kid, pissed off again, is he not allowed to be rested, looking forward to the game, team selection again has question marks.
nick_9
Feb 14, 2013 at 7:17 PM
Comment #25Damn phone. Not ideal*
Not long now until kick off, hope we can win and keep a clean sheet.
Jamiemac
Feb 14, 2013 at 7:18 PM
Comment #26M’biwa can play anywhere along the back line as well as cdm.
JackButler
Feb 14, 2013 at 7:19 PM
Comment #27Kharkiv play a high line so we need pace to exploit that, but, although Obertan has the pace, he has little else.
And has Anita punched Pardew in face and we simply don’t know about it??? Shame he hasn’t been so eager to drop one or two other’s this season
Twatter
Feb 14, 2013 at 7:20 PM
Comment #28He plays at rightback, he has done many many times.
Get a grip! Learn something about the players we sign before you claim he’s playing Mbiwa oput of position.
Call Pardew out for playing Gutierrez if anything, but give him credit where it’s due. This is a strong line-up, FFS.
Big Pappa Cissé
Feb 14, 2013 at 7:21 PM
Comment #29I bet Anita wishes he’d stayed at Ajax right about now. Guy plays his heart out when the rest of the team was playing like sh*t and he gets dropped ? . Where is the loggic in that ?
Ketsbaia9
Feb 14, 2013 at 7:22 PM
Comment #30Mbiwa can play at right-back, but his natural position is at centre back. He’ll be slashed off playing out there. God knows why Pardew’s put Obertan and Gutierrez in the team when we’ve got players like Marveaux and Anita on the bench. Maybe he wants less ability but more physical presence?
I’m losing patience with Pardew. If we don’t finish at least mid-table and don’t get to at least the quarter finals of the europa cup, I want Pardew terminated with Sven Goran Eriksson coming in to replace him.
toonbrother
Feb 14, 2013 at 7:23 PM
Comment #31pardew’s overburdening cabaye again. Watch him have a stinker this weekend. moron of a manager
TorqToon
Feb 14, 2013 at 7:24 PM
Comment #32Kets – can you not see the benefit of playing Obertan with his pace against a Metalist side who keep a high line?
Also Yanga has played many times at RB so can play there. Althought I would prefer him at centre half.
Who do you think from the Metalist side is going to “slash” Yanga playing at right back? Just out of interest?
toonbrother
Feb 14, 2013 at 7:24 PM
Comment #33dumb as they come pardew.
Dannyo
Feb 14, 2013 at 7:26 PM
Comment #34Any streams good folk?
beefman13
Feb 14, 2013 at 7:26 PM
Comment #35He will do owt to fit jonas in, makes me puke does pardew, no campbell again in the squad why not rest perch out of the squad, ideal situation to get other players involved, he just bugs the hell out of me, bloody picking his boyfriends again.
JackButler
Feb 14, 2013 at 7:26 PM
Comment #36Twatter
He may have played at right back many times but it’s not his natural/best position, Jonas has played there plenty as well and i wouldn’t want to see him there either.
francesco-hba
Feb 14, 2013 at 7:27 PM
Comment #37twatter, i’m french and i follow the ligue 1
i can tell you that at Montpellier or in FRance ‘squad, Mbiwa has quite never playing right back. And, if i think he could play here, its another thing to have bought a CB when you have bought already a RB(debuchy) and have Simpson, Santon (and Tavernier) which can play this role, so its clear that Mbiwa is here to play CB in the future, so why didn’t he set him CB in order to prepare??
shearerclass09
Feb 14, 2013 at 7:27 PM
Comment #38@toonbrother you do know we are not playing this weekend ? we have a break of ten days till our next game,, of course he should play cabbaye ,,hwtl
TorqToon
Feb 14, 2013 at 7:27 PM
Comment #39Toon brother
Are you going to do this all game long, mate?
We get you don’t like Pards or rate him, but maybe give him a chance tonight before deciding he is totally incompetent?
DaveD1000
Feb 14, 2013 at 7:28 PM
Comment #40@ dannyo try this nearer KO
http://www.firstrow1.eu/watch/168973/1/watch-newcastle-united-vs-metalist-kharkiv.html