In a game where even Sky Sports pundit Paul Merson thinks Newcastle will beat Leicester City tomorrow, Newcastle fans are not too sure.
That’s especially true since one of our new strikers is out with injury; Rondon is not available because of a thigh injury.
He played at Crystal Palace last Saturday and struggled in the first half before he was replaced by Spanish striker Joselu.
Joselu is likely to start up front tomorrow and we seem to lack any threat in the final third of the pitch.
Joselu in action in the second half at Selhurst Park
Scoring a goal could be difficult for us if we are going to win the game tomorrow – but you never know.
Rafa is aware of the problem and the squad will have worked on that weakness this week in training.
But half the Newcastle fans in our poll think we will lose the game tomorrow afternoon and that would be disastrous.
What do you think?
Comments welcome.
24 comments so far
Ibizatoon
Sep 28, 2018 at 12:41 PM
Comment #1Win. Of course.
toon22
Sep 28, 2018 at 12:48 PM
Comment #2Win
Would be a shame if people made an official complaint about MAs none interest in Youth etc
Complaints should be made in writing and may be submitted by post to:
The Independent Football Ombudsman
Suite 49, 33 Great George Street,
LEEDS LS1 3AJ.
or by e-mail to: contact@theifo.co.uk
Its never MAs fault
Jail for Ashley
Sep 28, 2018 at 12:48 PM
Comment #3Next time you’re at SJP Ibiza I’ll pin it on myself 😀
Jail for Ashley
Sep 28, 2018 at 12:50 PM
Comment #4Going up to Kingston Park tonight, might be slightest bit interest in Rugby but it’s a free meal and drinks.
Ibizatoon
Sep 28, 2018 at 12:52 PM
Comment #5Jail…I wont say anything negative for fear of it ending up in my eye 😉
Bambams
Sep 28, 2018 at 1:01 PM
Comment #6Lesh (few posts back)
I would love to see the FA look into how ash now runs us, when you also take into account what happened at Rangers – surely they must be able to give Ash some kind of first warning. At the end of the day (answering my own question here) it’s his club to do as he wants but he ain’t running it as expected of a ‘fit and proper person ‘
As I said earlier this is his way of payback, bit short sighted act by him – if I had the chance to own a club like ours I would try everything to be remembered as the Chairman who won a trophy and that way stuck two fingers up at my doubters….He is just greedy for money.
Bambams
Sep 28, 2018 at 1:03 PM
Comment #7Jail
The Falcons is a great night out, I would of been there but I have ruptured or torn my meniscus ligament so leg is up !
Great craic and you can drink a pint whilst watching a live game of rugby. You will love it fella
RobLeenio
Sep 28, 2018 at 1:06 PM
Comment #8Bambams, they used to serve 2-pint pots, perfect for a half of Rugby. Haven’t been for a couple of years so you may tell me that’s changed, but there’s something very satisfying about 2 pints in one container and supping it while watching live sport.
I like the fact the fans mingle in the stands too, loads of banter, never any bother.
dig-n-dig22
Sep 28, 2018 at 1:08 PM
Comment #9Last week, I just put the poll lose votes down to an influx of Makem’s, this week there is an even bigger influx of Makem’s. Or trouble is brewing.
RobLeenio
Sep 28, 2018 at 1:10 PM
Comment #10If we were to make a formal complaint against Ashley, we’d have to ensure that the complaint was valid pertaining to current FA / EPL guidelines.
A complaint which said along the lines of “I don’t like the way the club is run” would achieve nothing.
A complaint which said “We have evidence that this specific thing has / has not happened and this contravenes this specific piece of legislation” is valid and something the FA could use to base an investigation on.
I’m not sure what kind of sanctions the FA can make against Ashley, however. The Fit and Proper owners rules are designed to prevent shady characters from buying clubs, not to remove them from a person’s control.
My worry would be that any sanctions would be visited on the club in the form of fines or points docked and would impact Ashley not at all.
Bambams
Sep 28, 2018 at 1:10 PM
Comment #11Robleenio
They still do fella, problem is unless I take the Metro I have to drive so only the one for me….
Food is much better than at SJP and my daughter used to work at Twin Farms so sometimes we would pop in there first for the craic
Great night out though – as long as we win !
Cheers mate
Bambams
Sep 28, 2018 at 1:15 PM
Comment #12Robleenio
I never thought about the club punished rather than the culprit.
It’s just the £123 + £27 millions that has not been used to assist the club, also taking into account he has allegedly dropped the price by £100 million – it’s looking pretty obvious where the coin went.
We can never prove where the money has gone, he is too shady for that. I ain t clued up on finances at this scale so will leave that to others better qualified.
Could you imagine what Rafa could of done with £120 + millions !!!
RobLeenio
Sep 28, 2018 at 1:23 PM
Comment #13Yep, it’s a difficult one. Ashley is not a member of the FA nor the EPL, as far as I know, the club are. Therefore what process is there to punish Ashley himself? It’s the club which is a member of both organisations so any sanction would have to be directed at the club.
It’s a crazy situation but one that should have been addressed before now, with the Venkys, Glazers and Oystons of the World having gone before Ashley.
I think one problem is that the EPL is essentially an association of club owners, so expecting them to vote through legislation which could be used to sanction them personally in the future is at best unrealistic.
RobLeenio
Sep 28, 2018 at 1:27 PM
Comment #14And yes, I’m aware that my first and last paragraphs kinda contradict each other, which shows I don’t have a full understanding of this, I’m just trying to speculate.
I think that the clubs are the members of the EPL but that the exec committee (whatever it’s called who votes on rule changes etc) is made up of club chairmen and their representatives, which is probably all kinds of wrong ethically, but it is what it is and has been for 25 years or whatever.
posada
Sep 28, 2018 at 1:41 PM
Comment #15Jail for Ashley
Sep 28, 2018 at 8:58 AM
Comment #1
Posada,
I’d think that all the players would be miffed that the lads brought in where ones from relegated clubs who they might feel didn’t deserve a second chence after they worked so hard.
*****************
Yeh, that’s about right.
Actually it’s not about relegation. Ki and Muto were not relegated. It’s about quality. They brought in extra bods, but they were no better than what we had.
The CB from Swansea is about our best signing. We only brought him in as Leguene was injured.
You see the club are not able to stay positive towards their players. Gayle was forced out and I think Ritchie was gonna go the same way.
Rafa perhaps has no choice but to do that. the tone is set by the owner.
Honestly I would have told him where to stick his job by now.
catchy in norway
Sep 28, 2018 at 1:41 PM
Comment #16AMAZING
people like Rotonda claiming the hi ground with super intelligence, yet finds it necessary to tell lies to prove a point.
i would love anyone to find where i have ever said P45 is better than Rafa..
I think what you will find that i have said that Rafas football style is the same as P45s, both love hoofball football.
i mean to be absolutely fair to P45, he always said he had the skill to manage a top top team, lets say Real madrid, maybe he could win the title or a cup, but in all honesty, even jail with his limited knowledge could do well there.
the Beauty of plonkers like Rotonda is, that one minute they want football because its a manger they dont like the look of, the next there praising a manager for that same style of football.
2008/9 long ball stats stats
1. Liverpool 2,714
2. Portsmouth 2,379
3. Hull City 2,363
4. West Bromwich Albion 2,311
5. Blackburn Rovers 2,307
6. Fulham 2,304
7. Newcastle United 2,300
2007/8 long ball stats
1. Liverpool 2,761
2. Tottenham Hotspur 2,428
3. Newcastle United 2,420
4. Manchester United 2,417
5. West Ham United 2,376
6. Middlesbrough 2,358
2006/7 long ball stats
1. Liverpool 2,800
2. Newcastle United 2,649
3. Blackburn Rovers 2,544
4. Charlton Athletic 2,466
5. Wigan Athletic 2,418
6. Tottenham Hotspur 2,408
managers like pulis and sam get slated for these type of stats, yet Rafa is the king of long ball.
catchy in norway
Sep 28, 2018 at 1:43 PM
Comment #17Posada
its seems to be a Rafa tactic, he didnt want arguably the worlds best MF player (at that time), he wanted him to join Chelsea
c-dog
Sep 28, 2018 at 1:44 PM
Comment #18@jail
I agree, Rafa would not have sanctioned certain sales had he known promises would be broken and we’d end up with Joselu & Rondon as our only recognised strikers. He should however hold up his hands and admit he make a complete mess of managing Mitrovic which has detrimented our options severely.
DubaiMicky
Sep 28, 2018 at 1:44 PM
Comment #19https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/vote/25-09-2018/which-stores-do-you-love-or-loathe
Go on guys, just vote loathe on SD, HoF and maybe Debenhams – you don’t have to vote for every shop, just 2 or 3 (max 10 if i recall).
RobLeenio
Sep 28, 2018 at 1:47 PM
Comment #20I wonder if the Keith Bishop Associates complaints against NUFC fans to the Met Police is just cause for a complaint to the FA.
Keith Bishop is a non-official but very prominent member of the Ashley team with control of NUFC. This is evident to anyone who’s seen the photos of him at many of our matches, including the Palace game when he sat with Ashley himself.
The Keith Bishop agency is 51% owned by MASH Holdings, Mike Ashley’s personal holding company.
If KBA are complaining to the police against their own fan base, is this not evidence of a serious and potentially terminal break-down of the relationship between the senior management and the fans? Is that just cause for a complaint to the FA and the EPL?
Again, just speculation, it would require a legal mind brighter than mine to assess and word it correctly.
Jail for Ashley
Sep 28, 2018 at 1:57 PM
Comment #21Posada,
Ki was relegated with Swansea and Muto was in a relegation scrap until three games to go.
RobLeenio
Sep 28, 2018 at 1:57 PM
Comment #22In fact, is the involvement of Bishop and Justin Barnes in the running of the club when they have no official role not valid cause for complaint? If they are not official employees of the club, how can they be held accountable to us, the fans? Perhaps we can make a complaint based on that?
sing in the corner
Sep 28, 2018 at 2:00 PM
Comment #23Dubai@19
Haha, fcuk off fat Ash, 95% of voters LOATHE your crappy shop, most disliked shop in the poll.
Essex Geordie Bill
Sep 28, 2018 at 2:01 PM
Comment #24Team I’d like to see tomorrow.
Dubkravk
Yedlin Lascelles Fernandez Dummett
Shelvey Longstaff
Ritchie Fernandez Kenedy
Muto
Rafa will not be that adventurous so the team I expect to see.
Dubkravka
Yedlin Lascelles Fernandez Dummett
Shelvey Diame
Ritchie Perez Kenedy
Joselu