The Newcastle United Blog

Written by Dr. Ed Harrison

1:00pm Tuesday, September 14th, 2010

Commented 8 times

Most Newcastle fans are pleased with what they saw from Ben Arfa in the 18 minutes run-out he got on Saturday afternoon.

Ben Arfa – devastated at the end of the game on Saturday

We also noticed the lad looked devastated at the end of the game, when Newcastle’s great unbeaten home run came to an end, and his comments of yesterday verified that he was upset that Newcastle had lost the game, on his debut.

But Newcastle fans saw enough of the skills this lad possesses to know from instinct, that the Frenchman can become a huge favorite on Tyneside.

Yes, it’s early days yet we know, and in a way we are hoping he’ll become a huge favorite on Tyneside.

We also like the way the 23 year-old seems to be loving it at the Tyneside club, and already he seems to have forged a good relationship with the fans, and his heart is certainly in the right place.

Chris Hughton talked about Ben Arfa today:

“There’s no doubt he has ability – we knew that before he came and I’m quite sure we’ll be seeing a lot more of him.”
“The most important thing was that we had a squad good enough to cope with the rigours of this division over the length of this season.” “That’s the reason why we brought lads like him in.”
“He’s feeling his way in.” “The language can be a little bit of a problem, and getting used to the tempo of the Premier League.” “These are all factors.”

Bobby Moncur makes an excellent point today in his Evening Chronicle interview, when he says it was on the wings that Newcastle didn’t deliver the goods on Saturday.

Both Jonas and Routledge were not keeping it wide enough, and both wandered infield far too much. And Newcastle tried to go through the middle far too often, and that made it much easier for the Blackpool defense to cope.

It was only when Ben Arfa came on after 72 minutes, that he made runs to the byline and crossed the ball – a move which always leaves defenders exposed.

That’s only one reason why we want to see Ben Arfa start the game at Everton – on the left wing or right wing – it doesn’t seem to matter.

Comments welcome.

8 comments so far

Toon XI
Sep 14, 2010 at 1:18 PM
Comment #1
Hopefully more than 18 minutes next time around.
0
dave 1961
Sep 14, 2010 at 1:28 PM
Comment #2
what a lot seemed to miss about Ben Arfa was his tracking back.
0
Brutooon
Sep 14, 2010 at 3:37 PM
Comment #3
Routledge can run but not a good crosses.
Jonas, too much effort to little end product
Both NEED to cross for carroll to head in.
0
Nick 69
Sep 14, 2010 at 4:20 PM
Comment #4
Routledge is not good enough for the prem, hes had several cahnces at premier league clubs and hes came up short everytime. He needs to accept hes only good enough for the championship
0
WesJameson
Sep 14, 2010 at 7:33 PM
Comment #5
i should fekking hope so 🙂
0
StuW
Sep 14, 2010 at 9:58 PM
Comment #6
To be fair, he didn’t get any time to impact the game against the Tangos. HBA gives us a fanastic option, as he is so versatile. Obviously, he is a AM, but he can play on either wing, and at a push can play as a forward.
He has pace, skill, vision, and the creativity to craft chances for players such as Carroll, Lovenkrands and co to put away.
@dave1961 – I do agree with that, but he is an Attacking MF, who you want in the opponents half more than in your own. His tackling reminds me of Paul Scholes, if you know what I mean…
Jonas needs to work on his end product, as does Routledge. Both can beat players without a problem, and then get to the byline, and deliver a ball thats either too long, too short, or straight at the GK. However, the arrival of Hatem will hopefully kick their arses into gear.
0
baro
Sep 14, 2010 at 10:30 PM
Comment #7
Can’t wait to see more of this dazzling young French playmaker. His creativity is what we are lacking most of the time. He can also put in that magic cross to the perfect spot most of the time. And that will make Carroll to score. Drop Routledge and pick up Ben Arfa at Right Wing.
0
Brutooon
Sep 15, 2010 at 1:07 AM
Comment #8
Routledge got pace
he need to improve his cross
he dont have the hunger of a winger such those of lennon/ronaldo/etc
HBA for Routledge
0

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17 February, 2023

I have an update on what's happening with my treatment for prostate cancer.

Last week, my oncologist called me late in the day and said he thought it was best to terminate my treatment with radium 223 dichloride because it was having such a negative effect on my health - specifically my digestive system.

I had completed 3 of the planned 6 infusions.

They had looked at the bone scans and three CAT scans I had early last week, and they showed no signs of the cancer spread being slowed or stopped: in fact, it was continuing to spread and my PSA account continued to rise.

The only treatment left now is to go back and have another bout of chemotherapy with docetaxel being the medication used.

I understand this will be a 7-month job with 10 sessions 3 weeks apart - almost double my first chemo treatment in Apil 2017, when I has 6 treatmnts.

The problem I have is that I'm in a very poor physical state right now, due to my digestive system being basically torn apart by the radium 223.

The radium 223 has leaked into my digestive system and caused me to have severe diarrhea, nausea, and heartburn, and it was (is) very serious.

They said it was too dangerous to proceed with the radium 223 treatment, with little benefit being shown.

I am also suffering from severe exhaustion, basically, because I have zero testosterone, and all the treatments I've had for the cancer, have further lessened the energy available to me.

It reminds me of the saying that if cancer doesn’t kill you - the treatment will (laugh).

It will probably take up to 8 weeks to get back to a physical state where I can start chemotherapy, and that's where I am now, but the cancer continues to spread in the bones.

I've also been put in touch with the dietitian from UNC Healthcare, who will help me get back my health - she is very helpful.

So that's where it stands it's been quite a journey over 12 years and I think I've had almost every treatment available.

It has really taken a toll on my body and on my energy, but that's where it stands and obviously, I'll do the best I can in the upcoming months with chemo and hope I can get through it.

It is as it is - and another challenge in life.

Ed Harrison