Game On! Crystal Palace v Newcastle

Game On at Selhurst Park
Game On at Selhurst Park
Newcastle travel to South London today to take on Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park in what is our last match before Christmas.

After drawing last weekend against Southampton, and ideal present from the lads would be for us to get back to winning ways against the Eagles.

However it won’t be easy. A few weeks ago Crystal Palace were in danger of limping out of the Premier League with barely a whimper, but a new manager and new approach under Tony Pulis seems to have given them some renewed hope. Indeed a win today coupled with other results falling for them elsewhere could see them lifted out of the bottom three just in time for Christmas.

United are capable of winning this one but they will need to match the fight and effort a side put together by Tony Pulis will put into a match. If they can do that then eventually our quality should show through but we’ll just have to wait and see what happens I guess.

For more background information about the match including a history of the fixture, injury concerns for each side and some stats and facts then why not take a look at the match preview if you’ve not already done so? Just scroll down the page and look for the link.

The match will not be shown live here in the UK but it has been listed for broadcast by several overseas channels so picking up a stream should be a possibility. Normal rules apply though which means if you do find a stream then share it with others by leaving a link in the ‘comments’ section below.

Team news will be added in fully below as soon as I can get my hands on it. I’ll actually be able to watch the game today as I don’t start work until later which is a bonus for me. Hopefully the players can put on a show for me, and for all of us.

Howay the lads!

Crystal Palace: Julian Speroni, Adrian Mariappa, Danny Gabbidon, Damien Delaney, Dean Moxey, Joel Ward, Mile Jedinak, Jason Puncheon, Barry Bannan, Marouane Chamakh, Cameron Jerome

Subs: Lewis Price, Jonathan Parr, Jose Campana, Yannick Bolasie, Jonathan Williams, Kevin Phillips, Dwight Gayle

Newcastle: Tim Krul, Mathieu Debuchy, Fabricio Coloccini, Mike Williamson, Davide Santon, Vurnon Anita, Cheik Tiote, Yohan Cabaye, Moussa Sissoko, Yoan Gouffran, Loic Remy

Subs: Rob Elliot, Massadio Haidara, Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa, Gabriel Obertan, Hatem Ben Arfa, Shola Ameobi, Papiss Cisse

About toonsy

A lifelong Newcastle fan and current webmaster of this very 'blog who has the sole aim of creating a place by Newcastle United fans, for Newcastle United fans.

279 thoughts on “Game On! Crystal Palace v Newcastle

  1. 30 points before Christmas is a cracking achievement IMO.
    But I have to say that this success makes me wonder if Ashley n Joe will strengthen in the window.
    I still think we need a CF, and as long as there’s a place on the bench for Obertan I think we’ll need a winger as well.
    Time will tell I suppose

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  2. Keep dreaming Axel :mrgreen:
    you just never know.
    Have to admit he is a canny goal scorer tho.
    Shouldn’t take Pardew long to stop him scoring too 😉

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  3. seems like Everton and Celtic are interested too.
    I don’t fancy our chances in a bidding war, so if we cant get him for a bargain price, forget it.

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  4. Axel i think it will be more than likely be Gomis who we go for. There is a few other out of contract strikers that we have been linked with. ( I cant think of their names atm)

    On the subject of out of contract strikers has Ameobi done enough this year to earn an extension on his contract? For me he has. He doesn’t really offer goals and i don’t really expect goals from him but he is Newcastle through and through and i think that rubs off on the other players. He has played a big part in our upturn of form as well.

    It will be a strange day to see Shola at another club other than Newcastle.

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  5. bit concerned about the stoke match on boxing day now.
    They beat Chelsea 3-2 and villa 2-1 today.
    Wont be the easy match some were expecting.

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  6. Kim yeah some do give cisse some real stick yet some of them seem to be happy with Strolla 😯 yeah Strolla might hold up the ball a bit but at the end of the day he is a striker so his job is to score goals ffs Debs has scored more than him

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  7. That was Tiote’s 5th yellow card today, so he will be suspended for the stoke match. 🙁
    Shame because he has been in good form lately

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  8. Where’s Marveaux gone ? Is he injured ? I really rate him but I can’t even remember the last time he started a game. As for signings I think we should take advantage of January. There are bargains to be had just like last year. Should be easier for a new player to settle into a winning club than it was for the Frenchies joining a relegation battle last season.

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  9. Dave , I fear Cisse will have to leave us as it looks like Pards has lost all faith in him now, he’s not going to score goals if he doesn’t start . If Remy’s loss of goals continues how long before Pards dumps him on the bench 😕

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  10. Kim the thing is but if Remy or Goofy got injuried then Pards would need to play Cisse which wouldnt be the best of position to be in, as Im sure Cisse would be expecting to get some gametime now as you say he’ll not find his shooting boots if he isnt playing

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  11. Kim/Dave – are either good enough though?. Shola is out of contract at the end of the season anyway so he’ll likely be gone. Remy is only a loan so may also be gone – leaving only Cisse as our only senior forward. He have Goof as well like but I’m not sure he’s a CF.
    I personally think we need 2 CFs by the start of next season. Ideally 1 or 2 in Jan or 1 Jan and 1 in the summer, but I fear it will be left til the summer and they’ll only get 1.

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  12. @Sharpy

    Gomis always tweets out to the frenchies at our club which could just be because we are the English/French club but he is tweets out about his English lessons as well.

    I think we have him already now if that’s for the summer or January i don’t know.

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  13. Is Gomis the answer though? , I don’t know that much about him really, is he as good as or better than what we have . Finnbogason seems a good player but how would he fair in the PL.

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  14. Sharpy I think Goofy would do a good job as a CF 😉
    I would be amazed if Remy is here next season and even more amazed if Strolla isnt still here

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  15. Kim i would say he is better than what we currently have bar Remy. Finnbogason would be good also but i cant see it at 8 million price tag (though we got Cisse for more than that so you never know).

    I don’t mind who we get really i think we will have yet another fantastic January window.

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  16. Cisse is still the best finisher at the clu. I can’t understand why some fans want to get rid of him.

    Shola came on today because it was a typical pardew substitution. The game was becoming stretched & for a moment it looked like we might have our backs against the wall & that we’d have to hoof it.

    Pardew still likes cisse & cisse will get his chance (hopefully on thursday).

    Also mike ashley will be very unhappy if we have to sell his most expensive signing at a loss – it’s not going to happen.

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  17. KK – its easy to mis judge peoples comments on Cisse.
    Its not that we want to get rid of him, quite the contrary, we want to see him banging in goals again.
    But as long as he is shooting blanks, he is dead weight and no use to Pardew or the team.

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  18. Talking about thursday, i want to see as many changes as possible to keep players fresh over the busy period.

    I also think we have a fair chance of getting something from the arsenal game as it would be their 3rd game in 7 days but our 3rd game in 9 days. It’s at home too so no travelling for the players.

    ———————-Krul—————–
    Debuchy—Williamson—Mbiwa—Hadaira
    ————Bigirimana—Gutiérrez——–
    ——————-Marveaux————–
    Ben Arfa————-Cisse———Sammy

    The problem with this selection is the lack of gametime our midfield have had.

    However Bigirimana & Gutiérrez are hard working & good defensively. I rate Marveaux highly but am not sure about his work rate. Sammy ameobi is good going forward but terrible defensively.

    Cisse

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  19. So Suarez has a new £1m a month contract with Liverpool 😯 , Make racist comments, Bite opposition players, bring shame on a great club and you will be rewarded with A -the captaincy and B, unimaginable wealth. I never thought I would see the day Liverpool set such store by a man like that, yes a good player but an awful human being.

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  20. @bb

    Agreed, if a player isn’t doing their job they’re not much use.

    However, we all know cisse is a finisher. He’s not a defender, playmaker, dribbler or target man. He’s a finisher. He just finishes off moves in the box.

    If we get the ball to him quickly in & around the box, he will scire. Remy will too.

    As for gouffran, 6 goals this season whilst playing as a left winger! If he’d scored today he would have been 1 goal behind remy. Surely we should see gouffran further forward & more centrally. He has enough pace to scare alot of premier league centre backs.

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  21. @kimtoon

    Suarez could turn up to a match wearing an everton top & most fans would still let it go.

    As long as a player is winning you matches, most fans would bend over backwards.

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  22. We still want remy to sign for us despite the snub at the start of the year. If he scores 50 goals before the end of the season, we’d happily turn up to st james wearing a sunderland top if that’s what it’d take to sign him.

    Alternatively, if he doesn’t score again this season, not 1 fan would want us to sign him.

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  23. Just watched the extended Sky Sports highlights of our game.

    Anita was key to all three goals. His passing, especially in the first half, was a joy to behold. He is turning into an almost indispensable player in our midfield. I urge everyone to watch the extended highlights – he is vital in starting almost all of our attacks.

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  24. Suarez gets paid for being the best footballer in the world at this moment in time.

    It’s basics to me. I don’t see how anyone doesn’t get it.

    He’s been penalised for his misdemeanors. Is he not allowed to move on from there?

    Of course he is. 😯

    People get blinkered. Kim, shame on you! 😉

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  25. What a performance by Pards today! 😎

    The bloke had us playing samba football in samba strips! :mrgreen:

    I’m still dying for those who wrote Pards off. 🙄

    It makes a mockery of those who openly screamed like Violet Elizabeth Blott for Pards to be sacked! 🙄

    I’m
    Seriously cringing for them! 😆
    Oh dear. Dear me! 😛

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  26. Troy “broken record” Stavers 😆 ftsotbpsffsm (for the sake of the blog please stop for fuk sake mate) 😛

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  27. KK @ 250

    I would sign him now without a 2nd thought even if Mystic Meg assured me he wouldnt score again this season.

    His career tells us hes not a Shearer: 20+ goals in the league and 30 in all competions virtually every season. But he is still contributing to the team when he isnt scoring, Look at his assists and involvement in other goals by linking up with others and taking away defenders. Hes a pure quality player, Tremendous all round rolls royce striker pretty much what we thought we were getting with Kluivert and Viduka but more versatile and much quicker.

    If we could somehow find a way of getting him, Cisse, Gouffran and Ben Arfa in the team and firing we wouldnt be that far off the champions league spots come may.

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  28. The Kid @253, Yep but if you watch Pards interview after the match he singles out a few players but not Anita!, like you said he was very good yesterday and should get some credit.

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  29. @KIMTOON

    yes, that miffed me a little. Doesnt Pards like Anita that much. I think hes a cracking little player.

    Maybe i’m reading too much into it but I thought it was weird he didnt get a mention

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  30. Mark , yep, seems it’s all about Cabs at the moment, maybe he’s bigging him up ready for the big sale :roll:, a lot of united fans think they will get him.

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  31. I don’t see why we need to sell Cabs. we havent bought excessively in years and have tv money due.

    I’d do a Lpool when Suarez wanted out and refuse to let him go. We’d be better for it, not allowing him to go.

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  32. Mark, I think it’s more a case of the player wanting out tbh, He wants CL footie and silverware and in all fairness if he doesn’t see that level of ambition with us then we can’t really moan. It would be nice if he would stay and try and help us achieve it though, maybe he will look at Ba and realise he won’t necessarily be the big fish he is with us.

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  33. Kim IMO Pards bigged up Colo at times and I think he does it to make them feel like an important part of the team in an effort to convince them to stay .
    There is no way Pards would be happy to lose one of his best players.

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  34. Dave, I just wonder if he has orders from on high as every windows approach we get this **** about how it’s gonna take a very big offer to get one of our players, yet I never hear other managers saying that stuff.

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  35. I have to agree with Kim about Cabaye leaving in january. His a very good player and would like him to stay. I think CL football might be to much to ask for this season.

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  36. Dave ,Agree ,Anita is just the type of player I like, skilful no nonsense just get on with it and keeps his gob shut..so far 😉

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  37. Would be surprised if Cabaye left in Jan, guess it depends who comes in for him though – more likely he’ll be off in the summer after the World Cup.
    Fair play to him he’s pulled his socks up and gotten on with it after his hissy fit back after the Arsenal debacle

    If we get 20 – 25 million then we’ve done well, I’m more worried about Debuchy – he’s been fantastic for the last 10 games or so, this can’t have gone unnoticed by the big boys

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  38. If cabaye leaves then he will leave for a good price. We’d all be happy for the price paid.

    I imagine it would take something in the region of £20m-£25m. After all, how much did fellaini cost?

    Cabaye won’t be stroppy either. 6 months before the worldcup means that he will do what he can to stay in the team.

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  39. @troy

    I still want pardew to be replaced because i think a better manager could get more out of this team.

    If we want to improve as a club then we need to improve every part of it. It’s the same as wanting a better striker to be signed.

    If we sign a better manager, it will have a much bigger impact than signing a £20m+ player

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  40. I think it was newkie & amf that called me a wum because of some of my comments.

    I now feel very satisfied that anita has shown he is our best team player. He should be the first player on the team sheet ahead of colo, cabaye, remy etc.

    Totally unselfish, very busy & he is one of our best ball players. If he was at everton he would be starting every game. He would probably be able to start in the current man utd team.

    Anita = most important player for the team

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