This is a game tonight at Chelsea that Newcastle are not expected to win, and therefore the pressure is off the lads in London tonight, in the 3rd round of the Carling Cup.
The good news, if that’s the right way to put it, is that Carlo Ancelotti will not play his strongest side, and will field a number of the top Chelsea youngsters for tonight’s game, including 20 year-old Patrick van Aanholt, who was on loan at Newcastle earlier this year and was just fantastic for the Magpies.
Of course the changes will not weaken Chelsea too much, and Newcastle themselves will make around 8 changes from the side that started the game at Goodison Park, when Newcastle won for the first time there in nine years.
One way to look at this game, as Hughton has pointed out, is that it’s a chance to play one of the best club teams in the world, and see just how good this new Newcastle side may be right now.
Newcastle are an improving side, and it’s a good chance for some of the fringe players to learn a lot against the Premier League Champions, who play every game to win, and attack all the time. In short, Chelsea have looked awesome this season.
Chris Hughton has rightly pointed out that right now Chelsea ar the best side in England, and few would disagree with him on that, and they have won all their first 5 games, scored 21 goals and conceded one – not too bad a start to the season at all.
But Newcastle manager Hughton will still ring in the changes tonight and this is the likely side we think he will start tonight:
Krul
Taylor (R) Campbell Williamson Kadar
Ranger Smith (c) Barton Lovenkrands Gutierrez
Ameobi
Subs: Soderberg Tavernier Nolan Carroll Donaldson Tiote Ben Arfa
Steven Taylor, Danny Simpson, Danny Guthrie and Dan Gosling are all still on the injured list, and of course Steve Harper is out after getting injured Saturday – but all other players are available for tonight’s game.
It will be important to start well tonight, after seeing how Chelsea tore Blackpool apart last Sunday in the first few minutes of that game, and the longer the lads can keep a clean sheet the better it will be for Newcastle.
But every player will have to fully concentrate on the game, and the last thing we want to see against such a talented sides are any mistakes, especially at the back.
The news today is that Carlo Ancelotti will hand starts to his young stars Jeffrey Bruma, Gael Kakuta, Daniel Sturridge and Patrick van Aanholt against Newcastle.
It is fitting that Dutch youngster Patrick van Aanholt plays tonight, as we have said the lad was just outstanding for Newcastle earlier this year, and he looks a great player in the making, and of course is very good friends with our own Dutch U21 International goalkeeper, Tim Krul.
No doubt Newcastle fans will show their appreciation to the young left-back tonight, a youngster who became very popular on Tyneside.
First-teamers Petr Cech, Ashley Cole, John Mikel Obi, Michael Essien and Didier Drogba are all expected to be rested for tonight’s tie, and both returning players Frank Lampard and John Terry will be rested and likely to play this weekend.
So tonight’s game looks like it will be a very tough game for the Newcastle side, but we hope the lads can play well, and if they can get through to the next round, that would be a shock – but also a tremendous achievement.
So we really have nothing to lose tonight and we live in constant hope.
Howay The Lads!!
Comments welcome.
35 comments so far
shearermania
Sep 22, 2010 at 2:20 PM
Comment #1TITUS BRAMBLE ARRESTED ON SUSPICION OF RAPE…..
dirty unwashed mackem
G
Sep 22, 2010 at 2:26 PM
Comment #2I have a good feeling about tonights game for some reason. I suspect regardless of what the result is, we will see a good game of football played tonight. Lets hope the result goes our way, to be honest though, I wont be upset if we go out tonight. Prem is all that counts.
toonboyjake
Sep 22, 2010 at 2:40 PM
Comment #3think this team could do a job and get us into the next round, few inspired subs to take the result
Krul
R.Taylor Campbell Kadar Ferguson
Ranger Smith Vuckic Gutierrez
Lovenkrands Ameobi
Subs: Sodeberg, Tavernier, Collocini, Barton, Donaldson, Best, Ben Arfa, Nolan
Toon_Fresh
Sep 22, 2010 at 2:58 PM
Comment #4What is Danny Guthrie’s problem?? Why has he been out for so long? I fee like Chris has barely mentioned his name at all
Darling27
Sep 22, 2010 at 3:01 PM
Comment #5Krul
Tavernier Campbell Kadar Ferguson
R.Taylor Smith Vuckic Gutierrez
Lovenkrands Ameobi
Subs: Soderberg, Collocini, Barton, Donaldson, Ben Arfa, Nolan, Ranger
Ericles
Sep 22, 2010 at 3:01 PM
Comment #6We must play our best side that can take on Chelski at their own game on their own pitch. Chelski are NOT Acrington Stanley so wholesale changes by CH only betray a lack tactical sense. OK – if Chelsea are the best team in the Premiership at the moment it goes to say we will not beat their reduced line-up with a reduced line- up of our own. As good a coach as he is I really do think CH is naive at times.
Ericles
Sep 22, 2010 at 3:03 PM
Comment #7I would not put it past Chelsea to let CH think they are fielding a weakened side for CH to respond in kind. Then they turn out almost full strength and blow our hopefuls back on to our coach.
Ericles
Sep 22, 2010 at 3:14 PM
Comment #8It all counts. Not just the Premiership. We are playing in the best league going so we cannot pick and choose where we place our best efforts. Tonight is as important as the league. The bread and butter in your pay packet tastes the same no matter what game you get paid for. To say the Carling Cup has less importance is an insult to the competition itself, and insult to the players and fans of other teams who take part.
I am beginning to feel that the heart and soul has been taken out of the beautiful game by a bunch of glory hunters and pretenders. What next? Forget the FA Cup cos it may cost us our Premiership place? What defeatest nonsense. It all counts. So lads let us try and knock the so-called best team out of the Carling Cup eh?
AngelOfDeath
Sep 22, 2010 at 3:22 PM
Comment #9This ish what i predict/hope tonight line-up would be~~~
———–Ole Söderberg——
—Ryan taylor—-Sol—-Kadar—-Shane Ferguson—–
—-Ben arfa—–Smith—Haris Vuckic—–Jonas—-
—————Shola——-Peter Lovenkrands——-
Subs: Kevin Nolan, Mike Williamson,Nile Ranger, Wayne Routledge,James Tavernier ,Danny Guthrie(if fit)/Joey Barton,Tim Krul.
Quite a strong team u would say~~;)
G
Sep 22, 2010 at 3:26 PM
Comment #10Ericles at post 8. Valid points, but I have to wholeheartedly dissagree with you. It’s plain for all to see that we have a weaker squad than most of the teams in the Prem, and to be honest, I think we may even be better off without the distraction of a cup competition, so indeed, this year I may be all for treating the FA cup, the oldest and greatest domestic cup competition in the world. This does not make me a glory hunter of pretender. Football this day and age is a business, its plain for all to see, and in order to survive the lucrative sponsorship money is in the Prem and Euro competitions, which is where we have to concentrate our attentions in the former, in order to achieve the later. This isn’t defeatists, this is realistic. Could I also just remind you of one of the last finalists of the cup competitions being relegated, due to poor financial results and poor football results. I stand by my comments that the Prem is the only thing that matters to me this season.
Ericles
Sep 22, 2010 at 3:47 PM
Comment #11G. I understand and appreciate where you are coming from. You have summed it up really – the game is now a business. It may be that my 66 years make me nostalgic for when football was a game, a sport, when Wor Jackie got on the same bus to the ground as the fans who watched him play, even those turbine fitters from the Scotswood Road who often got paid more than him. No matter. Tonight I know you and me and all the rest will be supporting the lads right to the final whistle. Cheers.
canuck_geordie
Sep 22, 2010 at 3:48 PM
Comment #12first game tonight with the away fans… so excited.
G
Sep 22, 2010 at 3:53 PM
Comment #13No problem Ericles, I don’t like it either, but it’s a fact that the beancounters run football now. I often wonder if when Jimmy Hill argued for better wages for players, and got them off the minimum wage wether he would have bothered at all had he known how out of hand it would get.
Davies
Sep 22, 2010 at 3:58 PM
Comment #14This is a matter of prority. Please don’t tell me you’ll be happy to be supporting a CCC team next season Ericles. This cup does deserve more credit than it gets these days, but we don’t have the required amount of fully paid up forst team members to try to compete on more than one front this season. Maybe next year we’ll have enough to do it.
Try to remember that, last season, love him or hate him, Shola was our most consistent scorer until he got injured in an FA Cup game.
Also, let’s not write off the likes of Lovenkrands, Ameobi, Ranger, Raylor and the young lads. They might yet get us a result tonight.
hodnufc
Sep 22, 2010 at 4:03 PM
Comment #15The League Cup is a mickey mouse competition and should be abolished in my opinion, it is irrelevant nowadays. No teams take it seriously until the semi final stage and it is an unwelcome distraction in most cases. The Euro Cup place should be given for 7th place league finish.
BeeGuy
Sep 22, 2010 at 4:14 PM
Comment #16While CH is running out Sol C tonight, I hope it for a short shift. As if I were CH, I would save Sol to glue himself to Kenwyne Jones on Sunday. When I see Stoke, I see a team that gets their goals around Jone’s play. Shutting Jones down nearly guarantees a minimum of a point for NUFC.
G
Sep 22, 2010 at 4:16 PM
Comment #17Isn’t Jones knackered BeeGuy? I heard he was out for a few weeks? Or did I dream it?
xfer
Sep 22, 2010 at 4:25 PM
Comment #18Dont care about league cup. Our priority is PL. Lets face it, can our starting 11 compete in all the games? I rather they focus on the PL and excel.
tjshawsey
Sep 22, 2010 at 4:49 PM
Comment #19Does anyone else not think tiote and Ben arfa should also start? They maybe first teamers but only have had one game so far, I was thinking maybe 60mins each? I may not be thinking for “the greater good” here though…
tjshawsey
Sep 22, 2010 at 4:51 PM
Comment #20Jones is ok, he scored last night. His injury the other week turned out to be nothing.
NUFC_Richyg01
Sep 22, 2010 at 4:53 PM
Comment #21************** Soderburg
Raylor * Campbell(c) * Tavernier * Kadar
**************** Tiote
Jonas ********** Smith ********* McLoven
*************** Vuckic
*************** Ranger
G
Sep 22, 2010 at 4:53 PM
Comment #22Cheers tjshawsey @ 19, I was begining to think I had imagined the whole thing.
NUFC_Richyg01
Sep 22, 2010 at 4:53 PM
Comment #23I think Tiote needs to start and Arfa come on at maybe half time
Doha Mag
Sep 22, 2010 at 5:13 PM
Comment #24Team for tonight based on CH keeping Krul for the Stoke game:
——————Soderberg
Raylor–Campbell–Williamson–Kadar
Jonas–Smith (c)—Vuckic–Lovenkrands
——————Ranger
——————Ameobi
Subs: Krul, Taverner, Tiote, Barton, Ferguson, Routledge, Nolan
A good mix of young, old and the rested…..
themole
Sep 22, 2010 at 5:13 PM
Comment #25http://www.footballstreaming.info/streams/todays-links/
loads of great links for tonight game !!!!!
TheMightyOne
Sep 22, 2010 at 5:13 PM
Comment #26Any links please?
john_cena163
Sep 22, 2010 at 5:30 PM
Comment #272hr more cnt wait. 2-1 to newcastle.
MaccaToon
Sep 22, 2010 at 6:00 PM
Comment #28Howay lads… Virgin blogger here lol
Ben arfa to score another screamer in injury time to make up for reserve game haha
Off to Oz on monday for as long as they’ll have me 😉
Toon_Fresh
Sep 22, 2010 at 6:04 PM
Comment #29http://www.myp2p.eu/broadcast.php?matchid=88436&part=sports
BeeGuy
Sep 22, 2010 at 6:28 PM
Comment #30Hey, one thing I’ll be watching is how much Smitty learned and can apply after watching Tiote vs. Everton. Wouldn’t it be great if Smudger became a reliable man in that role? I still like and would prefer what I saw from Tiote, but a strong back-up goes a long way in this league.
toonster88
Sep 22, 2010 at 6:53 PM
Comment #31one hour.one hour before a clumsy defeat or and extraordinary win.imo though the premier is most important i do wish we all felt the league cup or the FA as important as possible.these are’nt just leagues where we should use reserves or 1st team substitutes.when was the last time we won anything big?
neeraj
Sep 22, 2010 at 7:04 PM
Comment #32Toon make 10 changes
NEWCASTLE UNITED: Krul; R Taylor, Campbell, Coloccini, Ferguson; Ranger, Smith, Vuckic, Gutierrez; Ameobi, Lovenkrands.
Souurce: Shields Gazette
slazberger
Sep 22, 2010 at 7:07 PM
Comment #33cheers neeraj.
i’m happy with that, although the midfield may struggle depending how experienced the chelsea midfield will be.
slazberger
Sep 22, 2010 at 7:14 PM
Comment #34Subs: Nolan, Williamson, Barton, Carroll, Tiote, Soderberg, Ben Arfa
balubas1
Sep 22, 2010 at 7:21 PM
Comment #35Ericles.
Might also be an idea to use the carling cup for maturing players like Vukic for instance.
Especially when the game actually “matters”. It is something to have a runout with the reserves, but it is also important for the young ones to play in more important games.
ALSO 🙂 what do you think our morale would be like if we got totally smoked by chelsea when playing our strongest squad? Not very good before an important home game against stoke. Tired players low on selfesteem… not good.
Anyways.. I actually don’t disagree with all you say. I just wanted to state that there are some sensible reasons for playing our “B” players tonight.