We did ourselves a lot of good by winning the last two games at Leicester and at home to Southampton.
Both games looked difficult after we surprisingly were beaten at home by Crystal Palace and we did great to get all 6 points.
That has taken us to safety on 41 points, and we need 4 points in our final three games to beat last year’s points total of 44 points.
But it seems the best we can do in the table is to finish 11th – one place lower than last season.
Rafa Benitez – upbeat with thumbs-up
Here’s our league position after yesterday 2-2 draw at Stamford Bridge between Chelsea and Burnley – a good point by Burnley.
[table “76” not found /]And here are the three remaining games with Liverpool at home looking like a real corker!
Sat 27 Apr Brighton vs Newcastle 5:30pm
Sat 04 May Newcastle vs Liverpool 7:45pm
Sun 12 May Fulham vs Newcastle 3:00pm
And finally, to round things off here are all our goalscorers for the season so far.
[table “75” not found /]Comments welcome.
149 comments so far
Jail for Ashley
Apr 24, 2019 at 7:21 AM
Comment #121Sorry Munster,
It was me that mentioned Gracia, but you have said many times in the past you’d have him here.
hibbit
Apr 24, 2019 at 7:32 AM
Comment #122jail/munster
do you 2 really think that any of the names your both throwing about will be on ashLIE/chumleys manager replacement list ????????????????????????
Lee Charnley Bunga Party
Apr 24, 2019 at 7:41 AM
Comment #123That truly is a remarkable find about the Sports Direct payments for advertising!!!
Someone should share that to journalists we are being shafted!!
Add in merchandise, catering etc
Also what happened to the fun 88 money ?Why can’t that be used to pay for facilities?
Might seem small fry compared to the tv money but it would be the difference between having 3 or 4 top quality attackers on 100k a week which with Rafa In charge we could bother the top 6 every season!!
Jib
Apr 24, 2019 at 8:02 AM
Comment #124Gattuso to the Toon is all over the Italian media
However he has tried to dispel the rumours
saying on RAI sport
“With Mendes we often see each other. I like good food and talking about football.
Newcastle? Unfounded rumours. I repeat, with Mendes there is only one great friendship.”
Munster Mag
Apr 24, 2019 at 8:05 AM
Comment #125Hibbitt, his name came up in discussions previously along with gracia and others. Gracia is an example of the type of manager who is our there who could take a chance on nufc. With a budget of 50 mill plus sales I think there will be interest. At the end of the day though, no one wants rafa to leave but he may have to compromise a bit as I have explained before. Hope for best. Ideally he can insist on meeting Fats face to face.
Jib
Apr 24, 2019 at 8:10 AM
Comment #126Some fool journalist linked Klinsmann to us
because in the same article about Gattuso
there was a piece about the German managing
Hertha Berlin.
Sheesh
Tsunki
Apr 24, 2019 at 8:14 AM
Comment #127Exactly how much does Benitez need to compromise to keep his job? He insists improved training facilities and having control over player movement and a reasonably competitive budget, if thats all part of one plan, what good is the plan if he has to compromise on any one of them? Won’t he just be subjecting himself to Ashley’s business model and Charnleys fiddling bean-counting again? Will we be competitive? Probably – like Usain Bolt running with a bag of cement.
Posh_Geordie
Apr 24, 2019 at 8:15 AM
Comment #128Everyone looking forward to seeing the Mike Dean show against Brighton?
The conductor is Mike Dean casting the hero as Brighton and the villan as Newcastle. Be prepared to be shocked and awed as the masterful magical Mike Dean turns a football match into another fantastic Pantomime. After the season he will be touring the West End.
Tsunki
Apr 24, 2019 at 8:17 AM
Comment #129The managers who will come to NUFC are going to be rising chancers who know we are a potential leg up to managing a real competitive sporting institution, or just plain money grabbing journeymen.
Jib
Apr 24, 2019 at 8:17 AM
Comment #130https://www.telegraph.co.uk/football/2019/04/24/newcastle-need-harness-positive-mood-agree-terms-rafael-benitez/?icid=registration_eng_nba158433_personalised
I think fellow bloggers can access this through my account
Ron have a nice day reading the Torygraph
Mr Tuff and Jail don’t bother – there’s too many long words
Tsunki
Apr 24, 2019 at 8:18 AM
Comment #131There’s no surprise that nufc are built around TV and gate money. Keeps the engine ticking over. The real money is generated elsewhere.
hibbit
Apr 24, 2019 at 8:22 AM
Comment #132@125
that wasn’t the question Munster,
my question was do you think any of the names being thrown about on here will be be on ashLIE/chumleys manager replacement list,
not the type of manager we would like to replace Rafa.
Tsunki
Apr 24, 2019 at 8:25 AM
Comment #133Some people don’t get it. Benitezs departure will hammer a sign over the managers door “abandon all hope… “
Jail for Ashley
Apr 24, 2019 at 8:31 AM
Comment #134hibbit,
Do you honestly think that I think that any of those managers would come anywhere near the place under Mike Ashley?
DubaiMicky
Apr 24, 2019 at 8:32 AM
Comment #135(I’ll copy and paste the Telegraph piece shortly Jib).
https://twitter.com/IfRafaGoesWeGo/status/1120704634685927424
“Since the beginning of November, only Manchester City, Liverpool, Tottenham, Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester United have taken more league points than NUFC.
If Newcastle get Rafa’s contract wrong, they deserve their supporters to leave in droves – and they will.”
DubaiMicky
Apr 24, 2019 at 8:35 AM
Comment #136For Jib:-
Luke Edwards 24 April 2019 • 7:30AM
At the start of this month I described a mood of positivity pervading the ongoing contract talks between Newcastle United and manager Rafael Benítez.
It was based on the fact that, at the first serious meeting to discuss a new deal, Benítez had made it clear he wanted to continue as manager at St James’ Park for several more years and the club had, in turn, expressed their sincere desire that they wanted to keep him.
When you have a manager who is happy to stay, talking to a club that is adamant they are desperate for that to happen, these contract extension talks should have been simple to conclude.
In fact, there should have been an announcement this week, following the 3-1 win over Southampton that confirmed Premier League survival, that Benítez had signed his new deal accompanied with staged pictures of everyone smiling and shaking hands, with the usual bland statements from all the involved parties saying how happy they are to be given the opportunity to work together for however many years the contract was for.
Instead, all we have is silence. Well, no, not silence. There has been a lot of noise, but none of it has led to any progress.
Lee Charnley, Newcastle managing director, met with journalists last week to re-emphasise Newcastle’s desire for Benítez to stay and to stress that the club would do everything possible to ensure he did.
In the meantime, Benítez has claimed he has been given no answers to the questions he had asked about transfer budgets, player recruitment and investment in the club’s infrastructure. He had been clear in what he wanted, but almost three weeks later, he is still waiting, veering between exasperation, frustration and anger whenever he is asked about his future on Tyneside.
It is a ludicrous situation and hints at hidden problems. Do Newcastle really want to keep a manager who challenges them like Benítez does? Are they really willing to let him remain in complete control of the football side of the business, the thing they promised back in 2016?
Or are his demands too much for owner Mike Ashley to agree to? Does he once again believe that he knows more about football and how a club should be run? Do Newcastle really share Benítez’s ambition to re-establish the club as a consistent top 10 team in the top flight fighting for European qualification?
All is not lost, not yet. Benítez still wants to stay and the club do genuinely want to keep him and so maybe it is time for someone else to take charge of the negotiations.
Here is a simple five-step plan to bring the talks to a successful conclusion. It should only take a few days to thrash out.
1, Tell Benítez exactly what his transfer budget is and not vague promises that there is money to spend. Let him know the scope for increasing the wage budget, which should be considerable given Newcastle have one of the lowest wages to turnover ratios in the top flight. Benítez needs to be reasonable and realistic too – Newcastle do not generate enough money to spend £100 million in one transfer window, but as long as he knows what the budget is he can plan recruitment strategies and decide who he can sell to raise extra funds.
2, Let Benítez sign Salomón Rondón if that is who he wants. Newcastle are still reluctant to do this deal, having reached a compromise last year when he signed on loan from West Bromwich Albion. Newcastle do not want to spend £16m-plus for a player who will be 30 later this year because there is no resale value and he does not, therefore, offer value for money in their eyes. It is a ridiculous stance because Rondón has undoubtedly improved the team and he brings out the best in the players around him. Benítez likes him because he fits the system perfectly, he is also a good character and brings experience into the squad. Yes, they could buy a younger player in a similar mould, but if Benítez wants Rondón then listen to him, recognise the value to the football side of things and stop looking at a squad list like a balance sheet.
3, Offer him a one-year rolling contract or a two-year deal with break clauses. Benítez does not entirely trust the people above him and feels promises have been broken. Reassure him by providing an escape route, that he will obviously not need, because no promises are going to be broken. This does not leave them vulnerable as there can still be a compensation clause to protect the club if a rival tries to poach him while he is under contract.
4, Offer him a pay rise. Benítez is already one the best paid managers in Europe on around £6m a year, which is more than Chelsea are paying Maurizo Sarri, but he deserves a rise after three years. Nothing makes a manager feel more appreciated and wanted. Benítez is only human and while there are other considerations in his decision making process, a pay hike can only help him make up his mind.
5, Benítez is seeking a meeting with Lee Charnley this week in which he will try to get the answers he needs in order to begin summer recruitment. He wants to add quality players to the squad in defence, midfield and attack – and already has targets in mind. Newcastle need to have a look at his top-five targets and agree to sign at least two of them before any players are shipped out to make room in the squad. If Newcastle can give Benítez the players he wants early, which will mean matching the asking price of the clubs and wage demands of the players, there is no reason why he would want to leave at the end of the season. Charnley pointed out last week that no manager gets everything they want, but this isn’t everything, it’s just something. Benítez is looking for a reason to stay, so give him one.
Tsunki
Apr 24, 2019 at 8:38 AM
Comment #137Chief mechanic -” ok I need Snap-on sockets, a hydraulic ramp and an engine management laptop”
Garage boss – ” ok to the snap-ons and the laptop but no ramp, sorry – can’t see a need for it. “
Jail for Ashley
Apr 24, 2019 at 8:38 AM
Comment #138I’ve lost faith in him since his gut feeling article, his blame on both sides tweet and his claim that Ajax is his second club and Amsterdam his second home, one journo pointed out that he thought that was Ipswich!
Jail for Ashley
Apr 24, 2019 at 8:39 AM
Comment #139And from every article I’ve read, I haven’t sensed any sincerity in wanting to keep him or read that they’re doing everything they can to do so.
Jail for Ashley
Apr 24, 2019 at 8:43 AM
Comment #140Did we need a ramp to fix those cars last week. No.
“But a mechanic was crushed”
Staying in the garage is priority
Shuffling of paper,
I mean that was unfortunate, how much is it going to cost, the compo, not the new ramp, we’re still not getting one.
martoon
Apr 24, 2019 at 8:44 AM
Comment #141That Telegraph article makes some sensible suggestions but unfortunately this is Mike Ashley who doesn’t seem to do sensible and logical!
Jib
Apr 24, 2019 at 8:52 AM
Comment #142Dubai you misunderstood
My link allows all bloggers access to the Torygraph
You wasted all that ink on a copy and paste
😛
Jib
Apr 24, 2019 at 8:54 AM
Comment #143I always thought the car analogy was particularly fat-headed.
You take a car for a spin and it immediately starts depreciating
the one thing PL clubs don’t do is depreciate.
Jail for Ashley
Apr 24, 2019 at 8:57 AM
Comment #144martoon,
There’s no long term strategy at all, it’s getting made up from season to season, he’ll be looking at Gracia and Hasslenuts and thinking I’ll have some of that, no care that they’ll be off after a season or two, pocket the compo and start again. The nearest we did get to long term planning was when he struck gold with Pardew and gave an eight year deal, even auld rubber lips knew that once all Carr’s gems were sold and we were left with just the duffers on five year deals that it would be time to go, he jumped ship in the safest job in the world.
Jail for Ashley
Apr 24, 2019 at 8:58 AM
Comment #145Jib,
I doubt very much we’ll be a PL club in a years time if Rafa is forced out.
DubaiMicky
Apr 24, 2019 at 8:59 AM
Comment #146Ah OK Jib, apologies – psst……. Jib’s a racist/far right/Tommy/Farage lover!
😉
Jib
Apr 24, 2019 at 9:02 AM
Comment #147Micky you are right
I love Tommy Cooper
Jib
Apr 24, 2019 at 9:07 AM
Comment #148https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jYdZjgw60Ts
DubaiMicky
Apr 24, 2019 at 9:10 AM
Comment #149So do I Jib:-
A woman told her doctor, ‘I’ve got a bad back. ‘The doctor said, ‘It’s old age.’ The woman said, ‘I want a second opinion. ‘The doctor says, ‘OK. you’re ugly as well.’
A man walked into the doctor’s, The doctor said ‘I haven’t seen you in a long time’
The man replied, ‘I know I’ve been ill’.
A man walked into the doctor’s, he said ‘I’ve hurt my arm in several places’.
The doctor said ‘well don’t go there any more’.
I’m on a whisky diet. I’ve lost three days already.