United are expected to today announce that goalkeeper Rob Elliot will miss the rest of the season as well as the European Championships for the Republic of Ireland.
News filtered through of the 29-year-old’s injury during last night’s set of international friendlies with the Irishman hurting his knee in his Ireland side’s 2-2 draw against Slovakia.
Elliot, who has made more appearances this season for the Magpies than he has compared to the rest of his Newcastle United tenure combined is expected to take no further part in Newcastle’s season.
This certainly comes as a blow to Rafa Benitez’s side with Elliot’s understudy Karl Darlow flattering to deceive in his one substitute appearance for the club this season, a 1-0 defeat to West Brom with his blunder leading to Darren Fletcher’s late winner for the Baggies.
With first choice goalkeeper Tim Krul out for the season following his injury also sustained in international duty for the Netherlands, the club’s woeful injury luck continues to rear its ugly head for Newcastle this season.
Nicky it’s a devastating blow, can’t help but feel we are done for now. Elliot has been arguably our player of the season, who knew he’d be so good and calm when the back line in front of him have been impersonating headless chickens for much of the season. Key for me is defenders sticking to defending now, stay back keep your position so we don’t get caught out. I know we like to see Janmaat get forward and put in a cross but too often he gets caught out of position when we are counter attacked. I suspect much of Colo’s blunders and last ditch tackles are because of this. Rafa is known for organising well defensively, he’ll need all his skills now, if he can pull off our escape it will truly be a miracle .
kimtoon(Quote)
It’s a massive blow and I have no faith in Darlow personally. Is it too late for an emergency loan?
Forgot to say well done on your Rafa piece by the way Kim, really enjoyed reading it!
Andy The Magpie(Quote)
Cheers Andy. We are not able to have an emergency loan apparently as Darlow was originally bought in as second to Krul but was also injured when Krul got crocked so Elliot stepped up. I guess they will recall Woodman from loan too?
I know what you mean about Darlow, he did look like a rabbit in the headlights against the Baggies and was at fault for a soft goal, but.. he also made a couple of good saves that game too if I remember rightly. We just have to get behind the lad and hope he grasps this opportunity to shine. In the end it’s the fault of the club that it chose to spend £13m on Thauvin rather than another defender of quality which would help ease the pressure on Carl.
kimtoon(Quote)
Kimtoon: Darlow was terrible and made one decent save at WBA. He fell into his own net once and let in a goal that a schoolkid could save. Hopefully it was only nerves as he played 46 times for Forest last year:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IfhMqvxLymk
Sorry for the doom and gloom but this is about as bad of news as we could have got.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Over reaction on here. How can people say Darlow is no good. He has only played one game.
As for Elliot being our player of the season you’re having a laugh. We have let more goals in that just about every other club. I have no faith in Elliot If we get relegated it won’t be Darlow’s fault. More we have missed Krul who is a proper No.1
Toby le Rhone(Quote)
TLR: I don’t know which games you have been watching but Elliot has been much better than Krul who had made a number of errors before he was injured and has the worst ditribution in the PL. The only time I can remember Elliot possibly making an error was when he stood rooted to the spot for a goal the other week. Not sure if he was unsighted or even could have saved it anyway.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Elliot’s possible error was Shaqiri at Stoke.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Hell, you only have to think of our last game when Elliot kept us in it against the Mackems when we were 1-0 down with an amazing reflex save.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Huge blow. How many other clubs have to face their top 2 goalkeepers out for the last 8 games of the season? That’s grossly unlucky.
But…fans were writing Elliott off last summer and he’s been one of our best players this season. Now fans are doing the same thing for Darlow?
Bad news for sure, but we need to hope that Darlow can do the business for us now, just as Elliott has done after the Krul injury.
ToonDarnSarf(Quote)
TDS: I seem to remember Forest fans saying Darlow was a decent keeper but we have some evidence from WBA that nerves can set in. Hopefully, that was a one off.
I don’t remember much being said about Elliot except he became 3rd choice when Darlow arrived. How could anybody judge him when we had never really seen him?
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Bloody pointless friendly games at this point of the season can only hope it doesn’t spoil Rafa plans,no chance of a loan FA says we have two fit keepers on the books,the lad might come good as Ime sure the Norwich players will give him some stick in the box,things seem to have conspired against the club
Icedog(Quote)
When Krul was injured last year, didn’t Elliot get that thigh strain and Alnwick was in almost immediately?
Eric Sykes(Quote)
I seem to remember fans giving Elliot stick and saying he was **** when Krul was injured and couldn’t catch a sheet of paper never mind a ball turned out the player of the season imo let’s hope the kid does the same
Icedog(Quote)
Ice: I looked up Elliot’s stats and he had only played 5 (4 1/2) games in the 2 seasons prior to this one. He played 10 in the season before that but I honestly can’t remember if he was **** or not.
At that point Krul had a stellar reputation with NUFC fans and noone really noticed his **** distribution, and the fact that he never came for crosses. Krul seemed to get more inconsistent in the last couple of years although he remained a great shot stopper.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
But… I go along with everyone. Let’s hope Darlow is good for all our sakes and that West Brom was a blip.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
ERIC Ime sorry but I never rated Krul that highly,great shot stopper but it ends there but there’s a lot more to it than that,in fact the international managers used him as second choice Vorm the Swansea keeper often first choice when he fell away a bit Van the man hardly picked him as first choice,one mans meat and all that
Icedog(Quote)
Elliot’s had a few decent games but he’s no great goalie in my mind. Slow to come out and a bit of a lumberer. When he’s beaten he’s well beaten. Krul, despite his faults is a much better keeper. I was looking forward to seeing Darlow until the WBA game. Mind you he only had a couple of hours notice and was understandably nervous. Presumably Rafa’s had him involved in training for two weeks now so we’ll soon see.
Georgio(Quote)
Georgio: I will go along with Shearer and say Elliot has been our best player. Are you arguing with Big Al 🙂
Eric Sykes(Quote)
I’d argue with anyone Eric as I’m always right. He may well have been our best player but in a season of only 6 wins it wouldn’t take much would it? In fact, thinking about it he has very little competition. Mbabu with his 3 appearances maybe. 😛
Georgio(Quote)
Elliot – player of the season imo
Darlow – nervy at West Brom and doesn’t fill me with confidence
Fingers crossed that he can do the job, but I fear the worst.
Sorry for the happy clappers to be such a realist, but thats the way I am. Fear the worst until proven otherwise…
Munich Mag(Quote)
and now we proper fu ked
TOONARMYELITE(Quote)
Can we bring in an emergency keeper? I’m not sure Darlow can handle this. A relegation scrap. He has very little experience and looked very shaky in the one game he played.
GeordieTwo(Quote)
G2 no sorry mate FA say we have two keepers on our books,Darlo,Woodman
Icedog(Quote)
Darlow will need the fans’ full backing. whether he is any good is irrelevent at this stage because an emergency loan is not an option and he is the man we will be relying on. If he makes a mistake I hope the fans dont get on his back and instead make him feel like hes got an army behind him – because being on your own between thos goal posts when the fans are on your back must be extremely daunting and will lead to more mistakes. If we are going to stay up, he will need our full support all game, every game.
Shamrock(Quote)
Here’s a quick quiz (but I will give you the answers):
In the past 30 years how many teams have won La Liga apart from Real Madrid and Barcelona:
A = 3, Deportivo 1 time, Athletico Madrid 2 times, Valencia 2 times.
In the past 30 years only one manager has won La Liga twice who was not managing Real Madrid or Barcelona at the time, who is he?
A: Rafa Benitez
How many La Liga’s has Diego Simeone won?
A: 1
Eric Sykes(Quote)
TAE: we are not fcked yet but hanging by a thread. See my previous post 🙂
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Totally agree mate, what ever our concerns the lad needs protecting and that means really vocal support for the remaining games, even if he makes a mistake. No abuse in or out the ground, and twitter trolls need to stfu for a while.
kimtoon(Quote)
Valencia just sacked Neville.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Kimtoon and Shamrock: I agree as well but it did need to be pointed out that he was ***** at WBA but also played 46 games for Forest so he might not be as bad as he appeared that day – NERVES got to him I think.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
He’s only human after all. It happens to us all whether it be waiting for an exam, making a speech, going to the dentist etc…
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Eric, yes of course, he was poor and it probably was nerves. Is he ready and able to step up? I really hope so for all our sakes.
kimtoon(Quote)
Darlow will be ok I reckon. I’d be more concerned about our defence – they will make more mistakes than Darlow.
You’re spot on, Sham, we need to back him 100% regardless. He will have time to prepare unlike last time so I expect him to be ok or at least do as good a job as any other PL club 3rd choice.
Stuart79(Quote)
It just had to happen though didn’t it? I was half expecting an injury but I didn’t know to whom. I looked at who we had away on international duty and was hoping they would only play a few minutes here and there and we would get lucky and it would just be a knock.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Well one thing for sure Scum will get three points on Sat. Imo,as WBA didn’t try at home to Norwich so cannot see them putting much effort in away from home,so getting three points for us is a must
Icedog(Quote)
http://www.themag.co.uk/2016/03/seydou-doumbia-walks-squad-row-head-coach-newcastle-united/
Strange one!
Icedog(Quote)
Reports saying Pardew spoke untruths at hearing on Jonas, well he had a good teacher in jabba,plus he told a lot of porkys when he was at the toon so what’s new
Icedog(Quote)
Here’s Saturdays schedule:
West Ham and us @ 9, then red bindippers and Spurs @ 11. All of these teams have massive support at the bar I go to but then there is El Clasico @1.30. Last time there was a queue of 200 around the block.
If we by some miracle win, I might stay for the whole lot (6-7 hours) and see if I can make it home?
Eric Sykes(Quote)
You have to feel sorry for the workers at Port Talbott Steel Plant but Jesus Christ how can the Left Wing of this country justify the government just baling the industry out when it’s losing £1m per day!!!
Stuart79(Quote)
no idea Stu. Its simply not doable. China has produced more steel in last 2 years than the UK has done since the industrial revolution started.
The demand in China has fallen so in order to get money back they are flogging it abroad cheaper than the cost of production. We aimply cant compete with that and tbere is sod all we can do about it. Its not the governments fault the steel industry is failing here. Its been a dying trade for a long time now. I used to be a welder but walked away because tje knock on effect of the local steel industry meant nobody was safe in the long term. Just as well I left really. Earning double what I used to now!
Shamrock(Quote)
Eric Sykes
i watched him alot last season after we signed him and loaned him back concede over 70 goals in a lower league trust we proper fu ked now
TOONARMYELITE(Quote)
Stuart: because you might want to subsidize certain industries and communities because when certain skills that are lost will be lost forever like shipbuilding. There may become a time when having some locally/British produced steel might be important. Who knows what relations will be like with China in 20 years? Who knows what will happen with the EU in 5 months?
Sham, the Government bailed out the banks and that was all due to greed. That cost almost the whole economy, or did you forget about that?
I suppose you want Britain to become a land of call centres, tech around OxBridge and The City of London?
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Im not sure whether people realise this but generally if you concede lots of goals it’s usually down to the defence being complete tosh, not just the keeper!
Stuart79(Quote)
Eric – If the banks hadn’t been bailed out then millions of lives would have been decimated, not just 15,000 jobs. Huge difference and not really comparable.
As for subsiding until we might need them – what happens if it takes twenty years until we become competitive again? It’s currently losing £350m per year and to be honest I don’t think that would be the best way to spend the tax payers money.
Stuart79(Quote)
I am not smart enough to figure out what are the consequences of letting a whole industry and community go. I do know that the banks were bailed out though and everybody is seeming to forget that. And I do know that there is a lot of wealth in the UK that could go to supporting certain communities. If it is 1 mil a day, I think it would have took 2 years to pay the severance pay that one banker at RBS was paid for almost ruining the country (I forget his name). Double standards, when the right wing do a bail out it is necessary and the left wing do it it is dole?
Just the same as the bedroom tax? But MPs can claim massive expenses for their flat in London.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Actually Stuart, saving a small number of steel jobs is chicken feed compared to the bank bailout. If you want Laissez Faire then shouldn’t it apply to all?
The right wing morons over here wanted GM to fail and to not put money into it but at the same time bailed out Goldman Sachs and AIG with about 50 times the funds. It is pure hypocrisy. One rule for the bankers and another for the working man.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Fecking bankers, I’m still smartin over that one Eric.
kimtoon(Quote)
I know the world was on the verge of collapse but you cannot end up without an American automobile industry, then you would end up like …. er Britain. With some of the best designers and engineers in the world working for Germans and Koreans.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Honestly, they were saying that the Banks should have hundreds of billions of dollars for the sake of the economy and then at exactly the same time saying let General Motors go bankrupt because market forces should prevail. So they were saying bailout for their friends and disaster for the Unions and regular folk, millions of them that were connected to the car industry. YCMIU.
GM is flourishing now after Obama insisted on providing them with funds to survive. And that is in a market economy. They just needed a Government hand when everything was against them.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
What Stuart fails to see is that a lot of this is short-termism. That there are big cycles in the economy and in commodities especially, and a Government can make a difference in protecting some essential industries and their skills and communities.
I live in Chicago and the whole ethos of the Chicago School of Economics, which was Laissez Faire to the extreme, was discredited but seems to have resurfaced on this blog 🙂
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Eric, I wish our gas and electric wasn’t in the hands of greedy leeches, my last two power bills were eye watering.
kimtoon(Quote)
You see Stuart. Just because you are very smart and run a business and can adapt doesn’t mean everybody can. Some people have ties to their community, elderly parents, sick children. In the abstract it is all well and good to say that labour can be mobile but in real life it takes years and years.
I really believe there should be a safety net and that certain basic industries should be protected because capital moves a lot faster than people and there will always be unintended consequences.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Kimtoon: I am not even a socialist. I just do not believe in plutocracy and a society built on pure selfishness.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
KIM there not even bloody British leeches ffs
Icedog(Quote)
Eric, but you are forgetting that nice Mr Cameron said we’re all in it together 😉
kimtoon(Quote)
I didn’t start this 🙂 Stuart did @20:01.
I was on about El Clasico and whether I could drink for 6-7 hours in a packed bar.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Ice, aye true enough mate, and that makes it even worse.
kimtoon(Quote)
Sounds infinitely more enjoyable than getting depressed about the state of the worlds economy mate.
kimtoon(Quote)
Kimtoon: the world is about what it has always been. Just hope that The Donald (Trump) doesn’t get elected because then we will see fcked up 🙂
I try to ignore most politics now and get my political news from satirical shows.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
As far as class and politics goes: it would have been nice to have been born with a silver spoon in my mouth or a silver tongue. Unfortunately I had neither.
That sounds quite clever for me 🙂
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Eric I understand the strong views on this but I will repeat; China has produced more steel in the last 2 years than the UK has since the industrial revolution began. They sell it ridiculously cheap too. Russia also produces vast amounts. We produce the equiliavent of chicken feed at 3 times the price. It is not a sustainable business in this part of the world any more. It is not a case of swings and roundabouts like you make out unfortunately.
What UK steel does bring to the table is better quality steel. If they want any kind of UK steel industry in the future they will need to streamline operations and specialise/rebrand on that strength in order to justify the inflated cost of production and sale value here. If they cant adapt then the industry will die.
Over the course of history countless trades and industries have become redundant only for a new industry to rise out of the ashes. The key is inovation and forward thinking, not clinging onto past glories and expecting the rest of the population to prop up a trade with no hope of ever competing with the rest of the world. Its a mathamatic impossibility so why throw dead money at it?
Shamrock(Quote)
Shamrock: I am not a luddite whatever you may think. The German steel industry has adapted and actually exports Solingen steel to China to make cheap knives to canabalize their own stuff, It is a very complicated subject.
There could be innovation in a steel industry or shipbuilding industry in the UK, but how can you innovate in that industry when your whole company has packed up and moved to China? You do not have the work force or engineers anymore to innovate when the industry changes again. And you need a certain amount of infrastructure.
Not everybody can be smart. For every Shamrock, there is a Troy and we should look after those poor souls to some extent.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
So where will the better quality steel come from if ours is lost? And for how long will it be cheap to import once ours is gone. They told us privatising fuel would encourage cheaper supplies but they all stick together to rig the prices and fleece us and it doesn’t even stay in this country. How much is it going to cost the government to pay dole long term to all those steel workers, they won’t just walk into another job easily . The social impact of long term unemployment and it’s knock on effect to other traders in that area cannot be discounted either. You can bet many more businesses will suffer if that place closes.
kimtoon(Quote)
As Eric pointed out earlier it’s not always feasible to up sticks to find a new job, there may be dependants you cannot leave for instance. They need to try and sell it and as you say Shamrock streamline it somehow.
kimtoon(Quote)
Eric I might think you are a bit of a lunatic at times but certainly dont see you as a luddite! Anything but.
Like you say with Ze Germans, the answer is to streamline and specialise. We cant compete on the global market in terms of mass general purpose production anymore.
I believe the Government should intervene, but ONLY if a viable sustainable business plan is presented to justify that central investment – otherwise we may as well flush the money down the toilet.
A key benefit to maintaining our own industry though is that getting rid would actually weaken our defense capabilities.
I believe a solution will.be found, but the current format is not workable and jobs will ultimately have to be lost.
Perhaps the government could pledge to support more viable local businesses and support those made redundant from the steel industry during the transitional phase by paying for retraining in another field….
Shamrock(Quote)
I’m no expert when it comes to steel, but I’m sure the Government should and must do something to save another industry that we don’t want to loose. I did hear a report on the radio from somebody who transported steel via boats. Said that the steel from China is really not up to much at all and not likely to last. The British steel maybe more expensive but made to last. Surely for companies who think long term, its best to pay a little more and have something that will last rather than have to pay out again in a shorter period of time. Something should be done to protect British industry before something else is lost altogether
Simon(Quote)
What about the fckin railways. Privatising that became a government fed monopoly. It is OK when it is their chums but when it comes down to regular people they let them down. Like steel. The sums are the same. 2 billion or so to subsidize the steel industry or a gift to “Sir Such and Who” to be Chairman to privatise railways, telephones, gas, water or electric and make a fortune with the shares they were gifted. And for years to come with a monopoly to put prices up. And then go off to the Channel Islands with their fortune of 2 billion that the government basically gave them.
It is all well and good to talk about creative destruction and a phoenix rising from the ashes (literally in the steel industry 🙂 ) but THAT IS NOT HOW THIS GOVERNMENT WORKS. Nor Blairs.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Agree Sham about retraining, but it has to be something that long term that they can realistically get work in. You see the government ads encouraging people to train as teachers but the reality is there 50 or more applying for the same job when you qualify. Also in your first year teaching you are an NQT (Newly qualified teacher) that means you have to have a mentor to babysit you and days out for ongoing training. So the upshot is most schools when interviewing will go for the experienced staff who can just get on with it without needing their hand holding. Hazel ended up managing a vulnerable two’s unit with her two degrees as teaching jobs were so hard to obtain.
kimtoon(Quote)
Sham: the retraining stuff takes years and years and is always a smokescreen for getting rid of jobs NOW. You know it, I know it.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Hey Sham: I have to go out. But I am not a lunatic 🙂
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Who wants a carbody built from cheap **** steel, we live in a throw away society and we are applying it to human beings now too.
kimtoon(Quote)
British Steel has been in decline for 40 years, Eric. What do you know to think it will recover miraculously in the next two years?
Oh and it wasn’t the bankers that got bailed out, it were the banks customers. It was their money (my money, your money and many on here’s money) that got saved with government cash. The banks themselves got very little out of it apart from the 100’s of 1,000’s of their employees got to keep their jobs but more importantly on the bigger scale millions of people got to keep their money that was in their bank accounts rich and poor.
Stuart79(Quote)
Let’s be honest about this, when Middlesbrough needed a shed load of steel to built The Riverside they didn’t buy it from their local plant in Redcar. They bought it from Germany. Why was that? It was because the club couldn’t afford to buy British steel and there isn’t a single person who has done more for Middlesbrough over the last twenty years than Steve Gibson so if he could I’m sure he would have.
Stuart79(Quote)
Stuart: how many Bankers went to jail for their crimes here in the US and in the UK? They were crimes as well. They knew what they were doing and fixed the books, the sub-prime mortgages. I can point you to many books that can explain this to you if you don’t already know. FFS Goldman Sachs even bet against their own securities held by their customers and were not held accountable.
But it is a level playing field isn’t it !!!! And the steel workers live in a market economy but the bankers are allowed to live in a fixed economy, fixed by the politicians.
Stuart. I could explain how John Paulson and other sub-prime banker crooks ripped off the whole world but I am not sure if you would understand.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
I really do have to go out now.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
I should emphasise that UK steel is generally consistently good quality co.parwd to tje general supply from outside sourcea. However there are multiple external sources and some of them are also of good quality but still at lower prices. So if you knkw where to look then UK steel is not a must for general steel consumption.
An example of why it would be beneficial to keep our own industry in some capacity;
Defense. The better the quality the steel, the better equipment. That applies to defense structures, armoured vehiclws, weapons. The lot. If we had to rwly on external sourcea for ateel of that quality during a time of international tenaion then we may struggle to defens ourselves as efficiently.
Shamrock(Quote)