In management you often get what you expect, so in football management if you think one of your players is a really good player the chances are they will play very well for you – and vice versa.
And since Rafa Benitez came into the club a short 11 days ago he has said he thinks Aleksandar Mitrovic – our £13M signing from Anderlecht last summer – has massive potential.
Rafa thought that when watching Newcastle on TV before he arrived and he still thinks that after training the 21 year-old over the last week or so.
Not only that but he has said Mitro can score the goals for Newcastle to survive, if only the team can provide him with better service.
Aleksandar Mitrovic after scoring a vital goal for Newcastle after 83 minutes
So it’s not all that surprising that Mitro has had two good games for Rafa Benitez, and he is easily out Man of the Match in Sunday’s 1-1 draw with Sunderland, in which Aleksandar got the sensational equalizer with a glorious header at the back post and the fans blew the roof off St. James’ Park.
That followed great work down the right wing by Gini Wijnaldum and a beautifully flighted cross from the talented Dutchman.
Mitro got 30% f the vote and showed his commitment to the Newcastle cause as he seemed to dance with a Newcastle supporter after scoring – as they both fell down.
Mitro ripped his shirt off and swung it around in the air to pick up that yellow card, but it was worth it.
And maybe with a little luck we could have had a second goal, but our boy was knocked out for an instant late in the game and the Newcastle doctor Dr Paul Catterson followed FA guidelines and prevented him from playing on and we finished the last few minutes with 10 men.
Aleksandar fought on the touch-line with Dr. Catterson to get back onto the pitch, but once he was told of the rules after the game he issued this apology to the Newcastle doctor:
“I didn’t know what the procedure was. I didn’t know the rules.” “I apologized to the doctor after the game because I knew I had to come off after being knocked unconscious for a few seconds. I’ve been through the examinations, my head is fine.”
That goal from Aleksandar could be a really vital goal for Newcastle this season, because it prevented Sunderland from gaining 3 points on us on Sunday.
Second in the voting was Andros Townsend (20%) who made his first start for Rafa and had a good game as he ran at the Sunderland defense and third was goalkeeper Rob Elliot (17%) who produced one world-class save in that second half that kept us in the game.
Rob has simply been a revelation for us this season and if we do survive we have to give thanks to the Irish Intentional, who is making a name for himself in the Premier League this season since he came in for the injured Tim Krul last October.
Chancel Mbemba was fourth in the voting with 9% and it was great to have him back in defense and he made a huge difference at the back.
Again we had a number of Newcastle players who had good games on Sunday – but as Rafa Benitez has said – it’s still not good enough and the team will need to do better.
We hope they do a lot better in future games starting a week on Saturday at Norwich City.
A win in that game could even see us on our way to safety.
Howay The Lads!!
69 comments so far
Jail for Ashley
Mar 22, 2016 at 7:46 PM
Comment #1Mitro IN.
Riverie OUT
ShirebrookToon
Mar 22, 2016 at 7:53 PM
Comment #2Nobody ever defended anything successfully, there is only attack and attack and attack some more
Lindisfarne
Mar 22, 2016 at 8:03 PM
Comment #3Benitez wants to focus on his 20 top players ahead of an eight game relegation run-in.
The former Real Madrid and Liverpool chief reckons there is no room for disinterested passengers in the next two months.
Is the Mirror article pure conjecture or is it true the U21 have been cleared off?
“”Rafa Benitez is ready to order moody stars to stay away from Newcastle’s inner sanctum.
The Spanish boss is bidding to improve the positivity and atmosphere around the training ground.
He has already ousted Peter Beardsley and his Under-21 and junior players, because there were too many fringe players milling around the first team squad.
Next Benitez will ask for disillusioned first-team stars who are not showing the fight and collective attitude needed to stay away.
Clearing out the training ground will leave key players more space to dine together, hold team meetings and bond over table tennis.
Benitez is seeking any advantage and change he can muster to grab the points the club needs – which could mean winning four of their last eight games.””
The reliability of this exclusive is hard to determine, especially as there is no direct quote.
9
Mar 22, 2016 at 8:03 PM
Comment #4I’m a fan of Mitro, big, strong, brave, a proper No 9, but no good this season, his first in EPL. We need goals, he has failed (not him alone, obviously). Why the divil we haven’t signed a proved EPL goalscorer, is the reason we are down Look how many games we have lost 1-0. Sunderland knew better, for heaven’s sake!
toon kk
Mar 22, 2016 at 8:05 PM
Comment #5We haven’t enough quality in our squad to stay up, Rafa can only try we can only hope but the outcome will be the same -relegation.
Shame.
The board new our weaknesses but chose to egnore them, big mistake.
Jib
Mar 22, 2016 at 8:24 PM
Comment #69
Have you ever heard of a player called Charlie Austin ?
Jib
Mar 22, 2016 at 8:32 PM
Comment #7I wish Jonas joy in his quest to boost his pension pot by £2 million.
However to be brutally frank the reason he didn’t get the requisite number of games to boost his contract was because he was shite at that time.
He’d fallen well down the pecking order long before he was diagnosed with cancer.
toon kk
Mar 22, 2016 at 8:33 PM
Comment #8Mitrovic would have got far more goals if we still had Barton, he was Carroll’s main supplier and that made us a threat in front of goal.
Not any more.
kakaobi
Mar 22, 2016 at 8:34 PM
Comment #9If we do stay can’t see Rafa staying if there’s no money for players probably end up another year of struggle Ashley has really made me look forward to next season now God help us
21st Century Schizoid Man
Mar 22, 2016 at 8:37 PM
Comment #10Yep,
Quality of service has been Mitro’s biggest issue.
Essex Geordie Bill
Mar 22, 2016 at 8:39 PM
Comment #11How many of the 20 squad are under 21?
Is Aarons and Sterry for example ruled out?
Essex Geordie Bill
Mar 22, 2016 at 8:44 PM
Comment #12Just had a look and it doesn’t look as in any are under 21 although Mbabu’s age isn’t shown on his profile.
21st Century Schizoid Man
Mar 22, 2016 at 8:46 PM
Comment #13Ian Toon // Mar 22, 2016 at 7:25 PM
You know sweet FA about my political opinions or allegiances and it is both pomposity and hubris for you to “sense your doing a power to the people salute as you read this.”
9
Mar 22, 2016 at 8:46 PM
Comment #14Jib@6: Hi, and your point is…………………..
Belfast
Mar 22, 2016 at 8:53 PM
Comment #15Aye I suppose it’s not the politically correct thing to say but Jonas was absolutely shite for a long time.
I remember the reaction on here when he was named in the starting line up most weeks.
He did play very well in the last couple of games to be fair to him.
Look at Rob Green at Qpr at the moment he’s getting the same treatment because he’s due a new contract if he plays another game. It happens quite regularly to be honest.
Belfast
Mar 22, 2016 at 9:01 PM
Comment #16Here Ian I prefer the old grumpy Jail.
I’m not that keen on the happy Jail.
Keep that between us though.
Jib
Mar 22, 2016 at 9:03 PM
Comment #17This is a post from 3 years ago when we lost to Sunderland at home 3 -0
MosesNUFC // Apr 14, 2013 at 2:50 PM
This is a terrible loss, but we’ve still got to stick behind pardew till the end of the season.But most of this wasn’t pardew’s fault. yes he set the team up wrong, but we had a goal offside that should of been a goal. before the game everyone was rimlikcing di canio which ruined the game for us. Jonas is a terrible player got to be shipped out. If we do manage to get 13th-10th, then pardew should stay, if not get in moyes or blanc. A tactician, something that pardew failed on today.
TacoFlavoredKisses ForMyBen-arfa
Mar 22, 2016 at 9:21 PM
Comment #18anyone know the last time we got a spot kick?
Graeme
Mar 22, 2016 at 9:25 PM
Comment #19Thank God it was his head that got whacked – he could have had a nasty injury otherwise!!
Hope he’s ready to knock a few past Norwich!!
Jail for Ashley
Mar 22, 2016 at 9:25 PM
Comment #209,
From previous, you asked me who’d bankrolled and appointed Rafa. To the first one I’d answer us and SKY. To the second I’d answer the same person that gave Pardew an eight year deal to keep us in tenth and the same man who desperately clung on to Mclaren in the hope that he’d get us around tenth next season.
Jib
I’m sure that with you being a pillar of righteousness the panel or committee will fully agree with you that Jonas was shite and his not being picked until the terms of contract could not be met was pure coincidence.
jane
Mar 22, 2016 at 9:39 PM
Comment #21are any of our players playing internationals in the break?
Jail for Ashley
Mar 22, 2016 at 9:41 PM
Comment #22NUFC.com
Aleksandar Mitrovic (Serbia):
Wed 23.03.2016 Poland (a) FR
Tue 29.03.2016 Estonia (a) FR
Georginio Wijnaldum (Holland):
Fri 25.03.2016 France (h) Amsterdam FR
Tue 29.03.2016 England (a) Wembley FR
Moussa Sissoko (France):
Fri 25.03.2016 Holland (a) Amsterdam FR
Wed 30.03.2016 Russia (h) Paris FR
Rob Elliot (Ireland):
Fri 25.03.2016 Switzerland (h) Dublin FR
Tue 30.03.2016 Slovakia (h) Dublin FR
Jail for Ashley
Mar 22, 2016 at 9:42 PM
Comment #23So much for Townsend and Shelvey being England Internationals
Jail for Ashley
Mar 22, 2016 at 9:43 PM
Comment #24Graeme,
Ha ha 😀
jimmysmith
Mar 22, 2016 at 9:44 PM
Comment #25I’ve seen milk turn quicker than Mitro. Then again he has other and genuine qualities, but sadly leading the line on his tod and scoring the goals to keep us up this season, isn’t among them, based on what we’ve seen so far. I’d prefer Cisse and De Jong, and Mitro and Perez as impact players from the bench. McC even managed some change out of that.
jane
Mar 22, 2016 at 9:44 PM
Comment #26thanks Jail
jane
Mar 22, 2016 at 9:52 PM
Comment #27worked well with Cisse, De Jong, Mitro and Perez all on at the same time or do we have to go a goal behind first.
Jib
Mar 22, 2016 at 9:53 PM
Comment #28As I said
I wish Jonas well in his action , the club can afford it .However I don’t think the law was conceived for millionaire pro footballers.
This is the best summary I could find.
http://www.doyleclayton.co.uk/blog/posts/disability-discrimination
Essex Geordie Bill
Mar 22, 2016 at 9:57 PM
Comment #29Taco
None this season, refs don’t like us.
Tsunki
Mar 22, 2016 at 9:58 PM
Comment #30Shows the frailty of relying on Googling powers when arbitrarily dragging up old posts about Jonas. Those who actually went through that period and actually experienced them first hand at pitch side and not as a list of search engine random snippets will recall that Jonas’ lack of form and motivation came from the ebullient and hard skulled nitwit Pardew playing him as a covering defensive winger for the ineffectual Santon. At the same time as the uninformed and tactically naive were bemoaning Jonas loss of legs and not getting forward enough, some of us also recall he regularly covered more ground than any other player on the pitch and was for a long time the fittest player on the pitch. A career blighted by the gutless mangling of the King.
Jail for Ashley
Mar 22, 2016 at 9:59 PM
Comment #31It should come out of Mashleys, Carzies, Churners and Monkers pockets, not the clubs!!!
jimmysmith
Mar 22, 2016 at 10:05 PM
Comment #32As in something like….
……………………….Elliot..
Janmaat….Mbemba….Collocini…Haidarra..
………………………Tiote…
…………….Shelvey….Widjnaldum..
…….Perez……….DeJong…..Townsend
……………..Cisse…………Mitro
You of course need to find room for Sissoko, who despite his detractors, is one of our few genuine match winners, but I’ve already picked 13.
I’d maybe start with….
………………………..Elliot..
Janmaat….Mbemba….Collocini…Haidarra..
…………………Tiote…Widjnaldum..
…….Sissoko………DeJong…..Townsend..
…………………………..Cisse..
Toon Tang
Mar 22, 2016 at 10:08 PM
Comment #33I’m all for this ‘fans buying the club’ lark and will gladly chip in a few bottle tops to the fund as long as belfast aint in on the deal.
I asked him to email his figures over for our last venture and got more than I bargained for.
Jib
Mar 22, 2016 at 10:11 PM
Comment #34Tsunki
I rely on nowt
I honestly couldn’t give a toss if he wins his case or not.
Just providing some background info for folk.
He was constantly an object for the fans ire for a good while before his injury at Arsenal.
The true irony of this case is his performance in the last game of last season , where he can truly argue his importance to the team.
Disabled man wins a disability claim by scoring a vital goal for Newcastle United in front of 52000 adoring fans.
Weird world we live in.
9
Mar 22, 2016 at 10:13 PM
Comment #35Jail@20 Both you and I are NUFC fans, so there’s no advantage in squabbling with each other, however there’s also no point in letting nonsense go unchallenged. You claim Rafa is paid by “us and Sky”- by which I suppose the fans of any EPL team could have added their ticket price to the money Sky provides. You know perfectly well Sky paid more money to 16 clubs than us, who didn’t sign Rafa. You also ought to be aware how small the income from fans is as a part of all EPL clubs’ income. To attempt to ignore the owner’s financial contribution to paying Rafa is frankly, cloud cuckoo land. Please do not let your obvious dislike/hatred of our owner blind you to facts – it does you no credit, mate.
And as to your second point, re previous managers, get real : Rafa is our owner’s chosen manager now, please don’t bleat on endlessly harking back to the past: everybody can see past managers’ failures, there is no dispute about that, get on with it, man.
jane
Mar 22, 2016 at 10:14 PM
Comment #36“But Gutierrez alleges the Toon also deliberately managed his selection so he did not reach a certain number of appearances which would have triggered a new one-year deal. ”
can’t a club do that anyway?
Tsunki
Mar 22, 2016 at 10:19 PM
Comment #37Jeff if that was what I was talking about I would care slightly. I am aware there were a ton of less than knowledgeable hysterics about Jonas. Same with HBA, how many games did that guy fail to win us therefore lost us those games ha ha ha.
As for winning his case I hope he does turn the tables on the Fat Bloke, anyone who wants to play the exclusion card to wriggle out of an onerous clause they agreed to in the first place cant botch and whine when their intended victim plays their own ace.
21st Century Schizoid Man
Mar 22, 2016 at 10:46 PM
Comment #38Confusing the issue again with half truths ?
Testicular cancer is not disabling once you have recovered Jeff.
Even a cheating American cyclist couldn’t finish a Tour de France if it was.
Also the seminoma form is less aggressive than teratoma and has very high long term survival chances (96%).
(and no I didn’t need to Google any of that)
Jib
Mar 22, 2016 at 10:47 PM
Comment #39.Co.Uk
tsunki
January 17, 2014 at 19:57
Toonsy @473 –
Pardew seems to have used the gains of his new fitness coach to get the workrate up but have you noticed which players have improved and which have deteriorated this season? We have real depth in central defence now, including the whipping boy of old, Williamson. The FB’s seem to be manageing better but especially in Santon’s case, they are protected by the covering work of Gouffran and Sissoko, especially Gouffran who is fading eerily in the way that Jonas did.
Whoops
Mister Tuff
Mar 22, 2016 at 10:58 PM
Comment #4021st – I was just about to add that Jonas WAS classified as disabled when he had the Big C – then after his recovery he was no longer disabled.
All enshrined in English Law.
So your jibe Jib was not accurate at all – Jonas was not disabled when he scored in the last game.