He said judge him after 10 games…

Out of his depth or hamstrung by restrictions?
Out of his depth or hamstrung by restrictions?
At the beginning of the season Steve McClaren told the fans to judge him after 10 games. Following a poor start to the season he has revised that plea for judgement until the end of the season. Some would like to hold Steve to his initial words, so lets open the debate to the readers.

Newcastle United currently languish in 19th position in the English Premier League having won only 1 game from 10 and amassed a total of only 6 points from a possible 30. In terms of results, not much has changed since the awful run at the beginning of 2015. In fact, this whole year is pretty much a write off. To compound matters, we have just lost 3-0 at fierce rivals Sunderland, allowed them to leapfrog us in the league and handed them a record 6th straight league victory over us. All of this coming off the back of a 6-2 victory over Norwich City last week. Any confidence gained from that victory has now slipped way and we are back at square one it would seem.

A quick look around at the competition and it is clear that with a massive financial windfall coming to the Premiership next season, clubs are acting fast at the first hint of trouble. Tim Sherwood, **** Advocaat and Brendan Rogers have all gone for one reason or another. The preceding 2 names of course were managers of the other 2 teams stuck in the relegation zone – with Newcastle United. So does McClaren deserve to have judgement held until the end of season, or will it be too late by then?

When McClaren signed on at the Toon, there were 5 things that he said that stood out to me. One) It will take 3 windows to get the squad to the level he needs to make it successful. Two) Judge him after 10 games. Three) The signing of Coloccini’s contract extension was the single most important signing this summer. Four) It is important that the club signs players of the right ‘character’. Five) From now on Cup Competitions will be taken seriously.

Now it could be argued that asking to be judged after 10 games at the same time as saying that it will take 3 windows (a year-and-a-half) to get the squad to the level he requires – is a bit of a contradiction. However one way to look at it is to not expect the finished article after 10 games, but to look for improvements. Now that is where things become difficult to quantify. There is no getting away from the cold hard fact that after said 10 games, the club is stuck in the relegation zone. However, there is no doubt that the standard of football has improved since the 2nd half of last season. We are retaining possession and moving away from the drab long ball and negative football that plagued us last season. The trouble is we have only scored 12 times and conceded 22. It’s no good keeping the ball if you don’t score and allow the opposition to hit the back of your net on such a consistent basis. We have failed to score in half of our games this season and only kept one clean sheet. So despite the prettier football, are we actually any more effective than last term? Are the building blocks beginning to appear or is it just a mirage?

This is where points 3 and 4 comes into play. After years of under spending, the club dished out £50 million in signings this summer. A lot of fans looked at those signings and said it’s a good start, but does not address the long standing massive problem of our defense lacking both quality and depth. We signed one very good central defender in Mbemba, but failed to offload Mike Williamson, Steven Taylor or Fabricio Coloccini and we also failed to get competition in for Daryl Janmaat. Williamson has not been top flight class for a long time. Taylor has been long term sick and was always going to become crocked again. Coloccini has had his day. This summer was the perfect opportunity to sell Coloccini to a willing buyer such as Crystal Palace and replace him with some proven talent in their prime. Somebody to take control of the line and lead it effectively. Question marks have long been held over Colo’s effectiveness as a leader of men and more recently of his ability. So why was his contract extended? It smacks of the board taking the cheap option yet again, but then McClaren did personally endorse the signing. So did he say those things because he had no choice and had to gather belief among the squad, or did he genuinely believe it was the right move? If he had no choice regarding Colo’s appointment, then why make him an undroppable Captain?

Now Mitrovic, Wijnaldum and Mbemba are all of apparent high caliber and will be successes at this club. They seem like good professionals with bags of quality and determination to be a success at this club. They seem to have the right ‘character’. However, are they McClarens signings or Carr’s long term targets? John Carver has since suggested they are nothing to do with McClaren and points out Florian Thauvin as a long term target. To some, Thauvin is not a player of the right ‘character’. His decision making is suspect, his heart questionable and he seems more interested in his appearance than his input on the pitch. It is of course early days and some players need time to adjust to the rigors of the Premier League, but at near £15m – how could Carr not see the obvious risks in this signing given his incredibly poor for for Marseille last season? What has the club learnt from the car crash that was Remy Cabella? It would be interesting to know just how much influence Steve McClaren had on these signings, especially Thauvin and Coloccini. If he sanctioned these signings above having a clear out and getting in some proven fresh blood, then he has a lot to account for. If he had no choice, then what can we realistically expect him to do with this squad at this stage?

McClaren has done a lot of talking and the impression some get is that from his apparent position on the board, he is calling the shots in equal measure to the likes of Carr and Charnley. If only we knew the truth. For the best part of 9 years now the fans have had to put up with poor transfer window after poor transfer window. Even after spending £50 million the obvious shortfall in defense was not addressed despite conceding the 2nd most in the entire league last season. How could any board worth their salt look at that and think the signing of a couple of 20-year-olds and the retaining of the the main influence (Coloccini) was ever going to solve such a huge problem?

Steve McClaren told us that Cups would be taken seriously. We then promptly got dumped out of the League Cup by a Sheffield Wednesday 2nd string side. There is no getting away from that one. Total fail on McClaren’s part.

If we were to judge McClaren on results alone, then the table does not lie and there is a strong argument for pulling the plug. However there are mitigating circumstances in that the playing style at least appears to be improving whilst the lack of transfer action in the required positions is indicative of the board’s long term failed strategy of buying potential and not addressing the ares actually required. The average age of our squad shows that we lack PL experience. Furthermore, only a handful of the squad can actually be regarded as effective at this level. Steve McClaren was perhaps being a tad ambitious claiming that 3 windows would be enough to turn this squad into contenders. However, if the club does not get it’s act together quickly then we may not have the luxury of tinkering with the playing staff as a PL team from next summer onward.

With a defense as calamitous as ours, would a new manager really be able to tighten the ship long enough to keep the club from slipping too far away until reinforcements can be shipped in after Christmas? Does McClaren have what it take to get enough results until then? It’s not an easy question. In terms of available managers out there there is true world class in the shape of Carlo Ancelloti, but can you see Mike Ashley being ambitious enough to reel somebody like him in? We know that the club will not pay compensation for a manager – so it has to be somebody from the dole queue. We have also never gone with foreigner at the helm under Ashley’s stewardship, so that probably rules the likes of Roberto Donadoni, Lucien Favre, Berndt Scuster or Victor Fernandez out. Meanwhile the likes of Tim Sherwood and Brendan Rogers have big question marks over them given their recent abject failures at Aston Villa and Liverpool respectively.

If it’s a manager we require to stem to bleeding at the back, then who is available and British that can actually do the job whilst ensuring we also score occasionally at the other end? Would unsettling a completely new coaching set up and training regime really be best for the players at this stage of the season? Would a new manager ultimately make any difference in the long run given that managers of the Toon apparently get no say on incomings or outgoings? Is it really a new manager that is required, or a complete change in the way the club is run? Under Mike Ashley we have only finished 10th or above twice. Clearly his current model is not a successful one. McClaren has made a rod for his own back if you look at some of the things he said during the summer, but any meaningful change to our run of results was never going to happen overnight. The question is, has he shown enough to justify holding onto his position?

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About Shamrock

Like everyone here, support Newcastle United. Not the easiest side to feel good about at times, but it's our side!

112 thoughts on “He said judge him after 10 games…

  1. Good read Shamrock although you missed the obvious pun of Cabella being a Carr Crash. Anyway, I am not sure that Ashley would be adverse to a foreign manager and I named a few in the previous thread.

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  2. Good read, Sham.

    For me he isn’t and never was qualified for a job in the PL – especially not one as big as this. The results are just confirming this. I want him out because I never wanted him in the first place, but results aren’t improving either and the discipline in the squad is terrible and that shows a distinct lack of respect from the players to the coach.

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  3. The sad thing is, I actually like the way we are starting to play. I think we were unlucky yesterday, although should have taken a chance. Lets see what happens in the next two games. If the performance is good again then what purpose will sack the coaches serve?

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  4. It’s about results, DJG, not performances. The reality is that we really should be beating Stoke at home and Bournemouth away regardless of who is manager so I am not sure what we will learn in the next two games.

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  5. Sunderland are by far the worst team we have played and we get beat 3-0. Sure there was a large element of luck, good and bad, but the fact remains we got beat 3-0. It was the usual as well, of us chasing the game and getting hit on the counter. Yes, we had 10 men, but how many times have we seen this backfire? Part of me likes the fact that we go for it, but then again it never seems to work for us, whoever is the manager.

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  6. I voted he had to go – but I don’t think those two statements are mutually exclusive, they both work for me.

    We’re playing slightly better football than the last couple of years, with encouraging signs in some games, but as I’ve said previously, how much this is to do with Macca compared with the undoubted footballing quality of some of those we’ve brought in – and some of those we’ve benched (Willo/Cisse). But at the end of the day you need to win games, my issue with our football over the past few years took a back seat because staying up was always paramount – and we were doing it on a budget far lower than our rivals and were even managing to survive by selling our best players season on season. The football was what it was and I accepted it.

    With 50 mil thrown in with supposedly a good coach, or at least better than our last four or five, then my expectations rise – I expect better than what I have seen this season. Playing pretty is all well and good but you absolutely need to survive – otherwise we go to financial oblivion, sell anyone with any talent and we’ll be watching terrible football week in week out in the Championship or lower divisions. If that is going to be our fate then just bring in Bielsa and I’ll enjoy the ride, rather than this half attempt at passing football whilst also failing to breakdown the worst Sunderland side I’ve actually ever witnessed play the game.

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  7. Troysta: we were both wrong about yesterday, but I won’t mock your words on that as I thought the same as you. Instead, I wonder how your Euro 2016 prediction will go? Fkin nowhere if that lump Rooney plays. Was worst player on the pitch again yesterday. Yes, I know about his England goal record (blah, blah, blah) but have you watched him at Tournaments when he actually faces decent teams? I would also be interested in seeing his goal record against the PL top 6 in say the last 5 years when I believe he has been going backwards, on the wayne, to use an obvious and much used phrase. Saying he has the first touch of an elephant is an insult to elephants. My God, even Cisse has a better first touch. I think you will have better luck predicting the Eurovision Song Contest if Wayne plays. Come to think of it, the current version of Wayne would have better luck at the Song Contest than the Football Tournament.

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  8. I’ve still got faith it’ll come right for two reasons. I’m actually enjoying the games these days which I haven’t done for 3 years, particularly the last 4 games. There’s definite improvements there.
    Secondly I think we’re better than at least 5 teams and eventually that will show. Personally I think a very low points total will keep us up. 32 maybe.

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  9. Great read Shamrock and I agree on most all of it.
    It’s a difficult one isn’t it. On the one hand I do see a big improvement in our passing and attacking but on the other we need to see much better results than we are. Like you I would like to know just how much towing the party line Steve is doing. We are hearing snippets here and there from Pards now, which suggest he did as he was told rather than what he wished to do. Can’t see any coach worth their salt working under such constraints tbh, so anyone thinking we’ll get better is mistaken I fear. Until the club is in fresh hands we can forget any level of ambition, it’s almost like we are sleepwalking to oblivion, very sad.

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  10. I am not sure why we “really should be beating Stoke and Bournemouth”.

    Why do we expect a win by default? The club has achieved nothing in about 60 years, despite spending a comparative fortune (by our standards) this past summer, it still hasn’t made up for the lack of spending the previous 5 years so we were chasing and not even standing still. We’re still an embarrassing team of 94 midfielders, the most injury prone keepers in football history, 1 left back, what feels like 1 striker we would actually play in a game over the age of 23 and wingers we do not play ever.

    We have Mitrovic signed and are expecting him to hit 20 goals a season regardless yet Perez is a “youngster” we should give time. Perez is 14 months OLDER than Mitrovic. We have no concept or understanding of people and what they are.

    We just view numbers and nothing else. Purchase price, weekly wage, sale price, attendance numbers. These means we buy with a view to sell, we sell with no regard to the team and we think because more braindead mugs turn up each week, that somehow entitles us to wins over teams who are better.

    It isn’t just the ownership and management that need a floor to ceiling re-do, it is fans. Graham Carr is a joke too, signing players on who gives him an erection more than what fit they have to the team. What the hell does Thauvin offer that Cabella didn’t? Presumably a lower Viagra bill for Mr Carr.

    The whole thing is rotten and the likes of Perez, Mitrovic and Wijnaldum will not stay and they’ll do one like Cabaye and Ba did. The entire set up is mangled. McClaren is a symptom of the problem, not the cause and it is pointless getting rid of him as no one we will be able to get is any better.

    Any mention of the likes of Remi Garde or Ancelotti or Klopp like we had the in the past is delusional. We are a small club and would immediately look at second and third division managers before those exactly as we have done since Keegan left. Hughton, Kinnear, Pardew, Carver and McClaren – ALL either assistants or lower league managers. Hughton only lost 2 or 3 games and was fired while his successors lose 7 and 8 in a row and break literally every negative record in the club’s history and nothing is done (proving Hughton was dumped for being black and not being a yes man). At least for Pardew he had that weird knack of going on odd runs of several wins in a row to justify keeping him, no one since has done that.

    The entire thing is a joke run to a level barely above minimum acceptability before investigations for match fixing are started. That isn’t even talking about the piece of **** efforts called our “cup runs”.

    The club is dead.

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  11. Just to clarify one of my points, we have signed nothing but assistants or lower league managers as at the time of their signing. Pardew was a fired third division manager and McClaren a fired second division manager. It isn’t an indication of what they are now, Pardew has shown he can do somewhat well with a squad designed around how he wants to play.

    We literally have not signed a top level manager since Sam Allardyce. Even Keegan had been out of football for a decade when he came back.

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  12. <<<<<<<<<<<< is no fan of collo but i dont blame him for us loseing the derby meself i blame the ref,you cant send peeps off for a shoulder charge simple,its not a foul when to players are competeing from the same space shoulder to shoulder,and fletcher must be a right weak **** to get out muscled by collo, should be embassed for himself

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  13. if we still in the bottom 3 when we get half way though thats the time for the axe to fall in my opinion 😉

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  14. A very good article Shamrock. I agree most of what you say but we should take into consideration that it was a hell of a fixture list to start the season. An easier run in might have inspired more confidence.
    I am unable to vote for either of your choices. First, I am willing to give Steve a little more time. The football is far better than the dross I have watched over the last two years or so and I think, and hope results will improve. If not, Steve will have to go before the January transfer window to give the new man time to assess the squad and look at what is needed. I would prefer a foreign manager. Moyes doesn’t excite nor do Rogers nor Sherwood.
    As for the board set up I really do not know how much influence the coach has on who we get. It may be a lot it may be very little. We just don’t know. I personally am not in favour of giving the manager/coach total control. It doesn’t happen with most teams on the continent and there have been many examples here where managers having total control has not worked and where there has been financial mismanagement – bungs. However, I don’t think the board system we have is wrong but the personnel may be.

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  15. Good read shams, well said FJ

    SM should never be at Newcastle, but he is and we’re playing a bit better.
    Nobody worthy will work under Ashley so I say stick.

    Don’t see any other option. ??
    Ashley is a cancer here and there is no cure until he leaves

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  16. Eric
    Yes, I still think we will win the Euros or at least get to the final. 😆
    As far as SM goes. Let’s see how we do at Stoke.

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  17. http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/34632766

    Good comment by Big Sam there. I agree.

    Cheers for the comments everyone. Stu makes a very good point about the lack of discipline and others have pointed out the difficult fixture list. It could also be argued that although difficult, we are now 10 games in and cannot use the fixtures as an excuse any longer. Results are all that matter and regardless of improved playing style – McClaren needs to get points by hook or crook.

    I do believe there are very few managers out there that would do much better under the circumstances though. The board messed up badly not having a clear out and not addressing defense and for that reason combined with improvements in playing style, despite our current position – I believe Mclaren should be afforded more time. Unless we slip too far out of reach of the rest of the pack, he should be given the January window to sort defense out and then see what he can actually do without one hand ties behind his back.

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  18. SHAMROCK
    <<<<<<<<<<< dos not think we will sign players in jan meself paying though the nose then 😉

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  19. It’s difficult to be supportive of a manager who has a 10% winning percentage after a quarter of the season. This isn’t going to work with the defense he has at his disposal. He’s in deep now with nowhere to hide. Ashley has made it impossible to field a decent side with his insane transfer policy made up of 90% young, inexperienced players only 1 of whom is a CB. We need 3 good CB’s at least in the squad and we have one, Mbemba. There is no excuse for that happening at this stage of Ashley’s ownership.

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  20. Cheers G2. TAE – If we don’t spend on defense in January then we re done in the PL. Simple as that.

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  21. There should be a lot of red faces at the club over the Thauvin deal and the Colo contract extension. Complete blunders. The defense is inexcusable. Ashley has had years to put it right and has completely ignored the problems, as have his lackeys.

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  22. Let’s also look at Lee Charnley. A complete failure in his role. The club is in 19th place for many reasons but he is clearly one of them.

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  23. SHAMROCK
    i hear what ya saying,just cant see it meself bud,i cant see us being in the bottom 3 after 18 games meself,we bossed that game yesterday til the refs **** decision

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  24. Even if we do address the defense in January Shamrock mate it may be too late. If we go into the new year with something around 15-18 points we won’t be able to climb out of it. Only Sunderland and Villa are as poor as we are. That looks like the bottom 3 to me. Us, Sunderland, and Villa sadly, with Bournemouth 17th. Our only real hope is that Bournemouth truly collapse going forward.

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  25. I think McClaren has shown enough in our style of play to save us nd even push 10th – 13th if we reach half way with 15-18 and sort out defense in January. Bournemouth will go down unfortunately. They are my local team and I’d love them to survive, but they do not have the technical skill or power to see this season through.

    It will be interesting to see how this season pans out. Thus January we find out if MA really meant what he said. If by then we are out of the relegation zone and MA gambles on not spending again – well he’ll have shown his colors and should fook off.

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  26. Yeah good article shamrock, thanks for putting it up and giving us a proper place for us to have a whinge/debate!

    At the end of the day I don’t think anyone is convinced we’ll get a great appointment in – but to be honest I’m surprised that anyone ever thought we would if we sacked Pards, but that didn’t stop the majority wanting it. Has having Carver taught us a lesson? Maybe Schteve should get time, but the further we fall behind, the worse our options get and the less time the new man has to get things right. If he doesn’t even get atransfer window then you can’t expect too much of him, whoever he is….

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  27. That’s the thing though Newkie. Even if we did pull the plug, would a new manager actually get a transfer window – or would it be the board picking players and expecting the manager to use them? If it continues to be left to the board then I have absolutely no confidence in their ability to sort defense out in January…

    With Thauvin all the board appears to have done is replace one dud with another at twice the price! D’oh! A £15m dud at the same time as not addressing defense is a massive clanger and whoever made that decision should fall on his sword.

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  28. So we just have to live with the coach then, however bad it gets because nobody is better than McClaren? I understood why people thought like that with Pardew but if we can’t get anyone better than McClaren then we are in the ****.

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  29. Sham – I think it’s fair to say the manager has some say in things, I certainly wouldn’t suggest a majority or perhaps even an equal say, but no say at all just doesn’t ring true to me. I can’t for one instance believe the board would force Shteve to pick Colo as his captain, especially when he made noises about thinking about replacing him. To undermine him publically and then back a player who has wanted out for two and a half years is just unforgiveable for me. A new manager in and all the positivity of the summer gave us a chance to progress.

    Ashley stuck to his word and gave us money – he’s also not afraid of changing his managing director or whatever you want to call it – even when they’ve been best mates like Kinnear or Llambias. The fact he has not removed Charnley (who I think is a joke by the way) suggests he is unconvinced by the performances of his managers, or at least with Carver and Schteve…

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  30. We have several players who are said to lack match practice. Why aren’t they playing in the U21s (reserves)? I can think of de Jong, Haidara and Tiote as well as probably Thauvin. I understand that they might get injured in these relatively meaningless games but how are they supposed to get “match practice” on the bench? Won’t de Jong be even more rusty not having kicked a ball in anger for a month?

    They even occasionally arrange behind closed doors friendlies to look at players/get them fit. How is that different to U21s?

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  31. Newkie: wouldn’t Charnley have to throw Carr under the bus to save his own job if he sacked McClaren (Schteve was supposedly Carr’s man). If 3 of the 4 summer signings work out well, and that looks likely, that might be difficult.

    It might come down to whose idea it was to extend Coloccini’s contract if we are still where we are at Christmas.

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  32. Shearer commented after the game: “I didn’t think it was a 3-0 game. They didn’t deserve that. Of course Sam Allardyce won’t care a jot about whether it was deserved or about the performance.”

    “Won’t care a jot”. Big Al should grow some of them extra long side-burns and be transported back to the Dickensian version of Match of the Day.

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  33. Newkie/Stu – both good points. If we could do better than McClaren then my question is why did we go after him in the first place over and above several higher profile managers? After all, he’d just been sacked by a Championship team – he was hardly an ambitious or inspiring choice for a PL team looking to ‘bolt the cart to the horse’. Remember only 4% of fans in our pole backed McClaren for the job. It looked more like closing the stable door after the horse has bolted. That’s definitely how I see our summer recruitment campaign by not addressing the defense anyway.

    Again it points to the board saying one thing and doing another. Took the cheap option (McClaren) instead of paying out for an inspiring choice – compensation or not. Given that we know the board will continue to look for a cheap managerial option should they sack McClaren – I have to ask would any manager in a similar mold really do any better than McC? I do believe the standard of football has improved and do believe he will get enough results to keep us safe, but we cannot expect any more than that without proper investment in the squad. That means taking a hit on some of our current players and selling at a loss, even a significant loss. If you keep the rot at the club, then new players will become infected!

    The only way I’d support sacking McClaren is if we signed a proper world class manager or at least somebody who is hot property and carries a growing, solid reputation. That kind of manager is not available for free – and I have absolutely no faith in the board to pull that off. Every single one of MA’S managerial appointments has come for free from the lower leagues or long term unemployed list.

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  34. Shamrock: sorry I went a bit off topic. We might see how Garde does if Villa hire him. That will be interesting. On the previous thread I mentioned a couple of managers who have become available after McClaren was hired – Bielsa and Favre. Also, I think Jurgen Klinsmann could be tempted as he must now realise the US National Team is going nowhere and he is flogging a dead horse there. It would take a lot to tempt him though and I know Troysta will laugh at the mere suggestion.

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  35. Eric, can you actually see MA hiring a foreign reputable coach? 9 years later and he has only signed cheap Brits. Good point about players lacking match practice and I agree.

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  36. Shamrock: I know I am dreaming with the 3 I mentioned under the present set-up. They would demand more control than Charnley would be willing to give up. I mean, if they are in charge of football, coaching and transfers then what is he doing? You may ask that anyway 🙂

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  37. I agree with NEWKIE,we are playing better?? how come we didn’t score in 44 mil against a very poor side imo SM will still be here to see out the Jan sales,as much as hate to say it jabba will not spend the money to hire a decent manager/coach as he iI’ll also require more say on comings and goings,so while we have jabba we have second best will have to live with it

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  38. In there lies the problem, Sham. Cheap, cheap and more cheap. We continue to reap what Ashley sows and that will never change.

    Although I still can’t accept how McClaren has got an even worse record than last season and we have spent £50m and not sold anybody. Pardew/Carver had Williamson, Goufrran and Riviere, McClaren has Mitrovic, Mbemba and Gini. How is that possible?

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  39. I suppose with the reserves and first teamers they would say it is the quality of the pitches that decides it/is the excuse. It shouldn’t be though as they play on then training pitches every day.

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  40. Sham – probably because he was cheap, and if the rumours are true we’d tapped him up in January when the going was good and they were still first – I don’t think Ashley was seriously happy for Carver long term, unless he had an amazing half season.

    My thoughts were the same as yours but with Pardew, everyone wanted him sacked yet I didn’t see anything better, and even less people wanted ihm appointed (myself included) – I think it was at about 2% at the time…there wasn’t much to like but I was confident we’d survive each time. We have injected huge funds into the squad and not sold anyone decent in a while, so the fact we are even struggling is a bit of a joke. Perhaps with the exception of Thauvin, these players aren’t bad players at all. Most thought Schteve was a solid imprvement on Pardew – it’s not looking great so far, so I’d have to say if Schteve can’t get it right then another middling manager is welcome to have a go and see if he can get us to survive – sometimes things click, sometimes they don’t, and I guess that’s why we clung to Pards as a cheap and somewhat reliable option.

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  41. Stu@43 – Exactly. The squad last year was abysmal. There are improvements across the park. If the football wasn’t better I’d be paying for Schteve’s taxi myself. Right now that’s all he’s got, time is running out fast to get results.

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  42. Everybody is stuck on Colo and probably rightly so. Cattermole has hardly been mentioned. Tiote and Colback get yellows and Cattermole is allowed to do what he wants. That ***** Ref was the biggest Homer since Simpson. Hopefully, Colback’s injury won’t be bad as I reckon he is our best central mid at the moment.

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  43. I was sitting in the Pub and everyone was saying the Ref had to do a make up call on Cattermole because he was making it easy for him and the sending off was questionable at best. He didn’t even get a yellow after 2 talkings to. W@nker.

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  44. Cattermole is a disgrace, should of walked yesterday by rights. Did his best to take out as many of our influential players as possible the cretin.

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  45. Didn’t read the whole article and couldn’t be bothered reading the comments. I’ve already read enough of this blog to have a good idea about what’s being said.

    I think the football is much better than last season. Credit the management team with that. So no sacking of Steve. Improvements are needed. Which is stating the bleeding obvious – improvements are always needed. From what I’ve seen, these improvements will come.

    Some nutter said something about indiscipline the other day. No problem with discipline that I can see. I see big problems with referees. In at least two games poor red cards have robbed us of a chance to win games. I think results will come – referees willing.

    Results haven’t gone well, but what can ou do about that? Can you tell your players to go out and get a good result? All you can do is get the team playing well. The coach has no control over the final score.

    I see nothing particularly wrong with Colo. Sure I’d like a better player. But I’d also like a better player in every position. I’d like a better manager, a better owner. I’d like a better sex life. I’d like a better world. Colo is a good player and I have no problem with him – at least I have far fewer problems than some of you do (so what’s new – the day I start agreeing with you guys is the day I realise I’ve lost my marbles).

    I’ll leave it there. ouldn’t be bothered writing any more.

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  46. BrisV: that’s a fairly passable impersonation of Marvin the Manic Depressive Robot from Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy. Good on yer.

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  47. You know. Manic depressives swing from one mood to another and back again. You managed to do it in one post and sometimes between sentences 🙂

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  48. In summary, BrisV says: couldn’t be bothered to read the article. Can’t be bothered with any of your comments as you are all so predictable (unlike me who is as fresh as morning dew). But I will put you straight anyway 🙂 YCMIU.

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  49. Bris if you do decide to read the article you might find that it was not a McC bashing exercise but a reasoned attempt at deconstructing how we have managed to play 10 games and be in the relegation zone. It’s a n emotive subject at the moment but it seems the majority of fans still support Steve and have seen enough from him to believe he can turn this around. That said, the pressure is most definitely on.

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  50. Eric. Keep the comedy coming mate. You give me a good laugh at times when there is really nothing funny about supporting NUFC at the moment. Gallows humour is about it. 🙂

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  51. I don’t mean any offense to BrisV as he is probably getting it from his fat, bald, obnoxious Mackem neighbour (as someone else said, is there any other kind).

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  52. Bris – I think discipline is an issue mate. 10 games and we’ve had 3 sendings off and I believe Colback is a yellow away from a ban too. That hasn’t helped Mc at all during those games. All 3 sendings off haven’t been down to bad refereeing, they been down to player stupidity – certainly in the case of Janmaat & Colo anyway.

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  53. Eric – thanks for the update mate. But that’s my point, it’s difficult to know your best team & best formation when players aren’t available for selection

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  54. For what it’s worth – but who cares?

    1 Alestars 25
    2 Born Winner FC 21
    3 Macas Pony and Trap 20
    4 Newbriscastle Roar 19
    5 Balotellitub …

    What the hell! ouldn’t be bothered showing the rest.

    Nice to see CCFC make an effort … just in time to play my lot. Typical!

    I couldn’t be bothered showing the bottom bits.

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  55. Is there a lack of respect for the coach from the players? Three sendings off, more yellow cards than the most other clubs and stupid, stupid decisions from players. Has anything really changed?

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  56. Bris – I’m glad at least one person still sees the sunny side up. I used to be like that but I think I’m losing it a bit, along with Solano. You and Aussie keep up the good fight fella

    That being said – disagree with most of what you say 😆
    Agree with Sharpy, discipline is definitely an issue. The refs are ***** and we’ve had more decisions go against us than for us – so what’s new, that’s the way it’s always been. Colo was an absolute tool to make the challenge, even if it wasn’t a straight red – because Elliot was bloody well getting there!

    I’ve no idea why some defenders have absolutely no confidence in their keeper. I don’t question Colo’s ability, he used to be a good defender no doubt about it, I just question his commitment and whether he actually wants to be here. He says he could have moved away but he wanted to stay. Mhm. Somehow I don’t see palace paying upwards of 80k a week or whatever he’s on. Especially when their journeymen were in a better defensive outfit the year before..

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  57. Colo hasn’t even got the decency to apologies to the fan’s for his stupid red card. At least Boomsong would say it’s my fault for letting that goal in. It just goes to show how much he cares about the club and the fan’s.

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  58. TERRY
    why should he if any1 should be makeing apologies it should be the dozy ref for sending some1 off that wernt even a foul in my opinion

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  59. The blatant fouls don’t get called in the box most of the time. Skrtl pulls everybody’s shirt and never gets called on it. Rio did it every game. Terry blocks off every opponent.

    What is a player to do when there is a naive Ref who doesn’t understand it happens in every game? The Ref should not play favourites with a baying crowd? He did though. He played favourites with Cattermole. He is a terrible Ref and should be demoted to U21s.

    You know these Refs get paid WELL to do this? They have to exhibit some level of competence to keep their job, right? Badges, we don’t need no stinking badges !!! From Blazing Saddles and The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, if you don’t know.

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  60. Here Stuart. From The Chronicle today:

    “Newcastle will be relegated if they don’t address their risible away form. By the time they next play on the road – a crucial trip to Bournemouth on November 7 – it will be nearly 12 months since their accomplished 2-0 defeat of West Brom at the Hawthorns on November 9, 2014.

    In that time Newcastle have won once away from home in all competitions. They have collected five points from a possible 48 and been beaten in the League Cup by Spurs and in the FA Cup by Leicester. They have scored a pitiful eight goals in 16 games (three came in one match, against Hull).”

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  61. How do you solve a problem like away form? The worry is that in the last couple of away games we have played very well and still got dicked on aggregate 9-1.

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  62. @ 65

    would you be saying the same if it that had happened to a newcastle player ? i doubt it.

    the fact is – it was a pen all day long.

    more worryingly – we got beat off the worst mackem team i can recall ever seeing & they are now above us in the league!

    last season i made a fortune on betting that we would get beat – i wish i had continued it this season.

    fck it – i’m lumping on stoke this weekend.

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  63. There are definitely signs there that things could be about to click into gear on the football front but the achilles heel is still the defence.
    There have been some bits and pieces of performances here and there and in an attacking sense there is a 100% improvement.

    I see some people on other forums calling for his head but what is the alternative ?
    There is no way they will sack McClaren and they have backed themselves into a corner with his appointment.
    They will ultimately look stupid now if they decided to dispense with him seeing how long it took them to appoint another coach.
    Do you honestly think Penfold is capable of finding another malleable yes man at this minute in time ?

    It always comes back to one man : “Michael Wallace Ashley” who is numero uno or as Joey Barton put it “Ashley Is The Ayatollah” !
    Nothing happens without his say so regardless of the s**t he chatted in his horse and cart speech.
    That fat ***** has been trying to play football manager for 8 years and you can see the disastrous results of his constant meddling.

    Penfold and the so called “Football Bored” are nothing more than a bunch of thick lackeys who report back to him and are not in charge of anything.
    They are as fake as the notion that Steve McClaren is a fully fledged member of the board.
    He was asking for a Centre-Half to be brought in but “The Anthill Mob” overruled him in favour of giving Captain Calamity a contract extension.
    Well that one came home to roost for them on Sunday with another shocking display from that curly haired f**kin’ clown who is an utter liability !
    After that brilliant decision there are those that think that little fat toad is capable of bringing in a decent manager, Have people taken leave of their senses ?

    It doesn’t matter who you get in at Barrack Road they would have to put up with Ashley and his a**e crawling minions who will be derailing them every step of the way.
    Expect more and more embarrassing and humiliating days to come under the stewardship of “The Son Of Sam” !

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  64. Cattermole at Wigan put both Beye and Barton out for months. Now it’s Colback – and Tiote gets a yellow for two fouls.

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  65. Joe Hawkin’s agree with you 100 percent. Ashley just hires cheap idiots that kiss his **** mate. Lee and Carr are very good at that and not forgetting Pardew and John Carver. Keeping the curly **** just goes to show how f*!king dumb they are but Ashley got his reward sunday as you rightly say.

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