The growing optimism that Benitez will remain at Newcastle is a shining glimmer of hope to United fans. More than that, it is a beacon, penetrating through the relegation fog which would have lay thick on the Tyne for months.
Meteorological metaphor aside, the importance of Rafa staying in charge has been made abundantly clear by the Newcastle fans; and Ashley, seems to have taken note.
I must admit that a few weeks ago, I just could not see Benitez remaining in charge should we fall below the relegation watershed. But all the talk following Newcastle’s incredible demolition of Spurs on Sunday is encouraging positive.
Players who I’d assumed would be fleeing the Magpies’ nest quicker than Mark Viduka are even coming out claiming they are open to staying in a bid to get Newcastle back up. Others have been a little more cryptic, expectedly so, in fairness. With relegation confirmed only a week ago, you would normally see players deflect questions of transfer to their agents, neither admitting they want a move away or committing their futures to the club until fully assessing their options. Yet all the noises coming out of St James’ Park seem to be that of togetherness.
That was certainly reflected in the performance on Sunday. This is a squad of players who should never have been relegated. For all the talk of poor recruitment, and yes much of it has been poor. Newcastle were still left with a squad good enough to go the last six Premier league games unbeaten under the guidance of someone who actually knows what they are doing.
As enjoyable as it was to watch Newcastle dismantle Spurs, it was also infuriatingly frustrating. Where has that been all season? Where has Sissoko been? Mitrovic, until his moment of utter madness, was brilliant. The whole side, even when down to ten, in fact, especially when down to ten, were together, organised and hungry. Breaking forwards relentlessly with pace and desire. Where has it been?
Yet strangely enough relegation doesn’t, at the moment, seem like the end. With the prospect of Benitez, and some of the more appealing players still with Newcastle and a humbled Mike Ashley restructuring the model, it could be the beginning. The beginning of something great. With a bit of perspective we should be looking at where Newcastle could be in three years, not where we will be next season. Hopefully next week will bring us the news we all crave and we can look forward to a summer preparing for a promotion drive, with Rafa at the forefront.
A quick personal note from me, SRF, now that the season has finished. Thank you to all you readers and bloggers who have taken the time to read my articles, comment on and discuss them. I have really enjoyed writing for this site since February and hope you have enjoyed reading them.
Remember, we are the fans. We have fans all over the UK, indeed, all over the world. Players, managers, directors and owners will come and go. The club will remain. We are Newcastle, we are United. HTL
Gash – I thought that mate, but Campbell actually played 30 games for Arsenal last season (in all comps) – 4 goals & 6 assists. Not brilliant, but I think he’s better than those stats personally.
Of course if Arsene wants to give us more money with Campbell then we shouldn’t say no. But I don’t see us getting as much as £10m plus personally.
Sharpy17(Quote)
Looking at the papers this morning though and we are linked with Lee Tomlin 😯
Sharpy17(Quote)
I don’t think we will be selling on the cheap. But I also think we will bring in players with a mix of technical quality and Championship qualities.
If we could raise £40/£50m from selling Janmaat, Cisse, Sissoko, Gini and Thuavin that will be good business.
Stuart79(Quote)
I actually think that Rafa will make an effort to keep hold of Sissoko.
Him & Townsend have been his key players so far & he even made Sissoko his captain.
I guess it depends on whether Sissoko wants to stay or not. I think Gini wants away though.
Sharpy17(Quote)
I personally would not be sorry to see him go. He’s no where as good as he thinks he is
Groucho(Quote)
It is very possible that the Rafa deal is actually done and what’s going on now is just the legal teams drawing up a revised contract. The players seem to think so with most of them coming out and saying they’re staying. I don’t think that would be the case if it wasn’t to be Rafa.
His first job should be to tie Aarons to a new deal!
Georgio(Quote)
Stuart – add Tiote to that list. £2m maybe.
Georgio(Quote)
Groucho – perhaps not mate. But a lot of people slate him, yet since Rafa has came in he’s spoken highly of him & made him captain.
I think the chances are he will want higher profile football, but I don’t think he’ll be one Rafa wants to leave or will be happy to see go.
Sharpy17(Quote)
Georgio – Tiote did a pretty big job for Rafa in the last few games. Do you think he might look to keep him this season to try and get back up. He did protect the defence well, and I’m not sure now is the time to be make wholesale changes. Tiote would at least be a cover player.
Sharpy17(Quote)
Georgio/Sharpy – Tiote is a good player and we looked so much more solid when he came in compared to when we were getting utterly battered in the first half of the season IMO. Personally though I think he wants out, and he will be finished by the time we get back up and we should cash in while we can. Tout him and Cisse out to the Chineese, if they will pay 23 mil for Ramires then surely we can get some money off their hands, save wages, and barely miss two over the hill squaddies.
Newkie(Quote)
Newkie – I understand what you are saying and part of me agrees with you. But the money made from cashing in on Tiote now wouldn’t be a patch on that of getting straight back into the PL. I think Tiote in the squad could help us do that personally. However, if you are right and he wants away & keeping him would be a negative influence in the changing room, then get rid.
Sharpy17(Quote)
dont think toon will take 10 mil for sissiko meself i think the fee will be alot more if he is sold hes contracted to 2019 so dont really matter what he thinks
TOONARMYELITE(Quote)
He could definitely help us mate, but to be fair with that thinking we’d keep most of the squad bar Steven Taylor. Even Oba would probably have helped!
I don’t think he would be such an asset that we couldn’t let go without someone else coming in, we are pretty chokka with midfielders as it is, and unless Saviet is totally useless (I’d like to believe he has just needed time to settle and will adapt to the CC) then I don’t think Tiote would be a huge miss, whilst getting rid of 40/50k in wages. If we’re going to be realistic then Tiote/Cisse/Taylor/Colo would be the first lot out the door and a major save in wages.
Newkie(Quote)
I know people get frustrated but Sissoko is defo worth more than 10mil in this market. TAE – agree, we could likely sit him on the bench if he sulks and still get promoted without him until he learns his lesson. Assuming Rafa stays that is…
Newkie(Quote)
Newkie – he might keep Gouffran and play him in there 😯 😆 . You’re probably right mate. Like I say, I could see an argument for keeping him, but selling him certainly makes more sense – providing it’s not to move Anita back in there.
I’d love it to be Shelvey, but he didnt really look at the race in those last 10 games.
Sharpy17(Quote)
Did no one else notice Tiote getting robbed of the ball 3 times in 5 minutes on Sunday, all of them in dangerous positions. It’s been happening more and more as time flies by. He’s had his day at SJP. Him and Cisse are well past their best.
Noticed this too. “It’s worth noting that one possible Benitez staff member has already begun the process of starting his move to the North East.”
Georgio(Quote)
Georgio
I agree about Rafa. I think the deal is done and now it’s just the legal bits. It takes time for that, so it shouldn’t be a concern with the time. The only 3 areas I see that are concerns are:
1. Rafa gets tempted by a ‘better’ offer. But unless Man Utd or Arsenal come calling, I don’t see another club meeting his needs. And I’d have thought Mourinho would be No. 1 choice for both those clubs if they go for a change.
2. Ashley backtracks on a major point. If he does this, there would surely be hell to pay from our players and fans. Surely he can’t be that stupid??
3. Minor issues with contracts scupper things. Major things should be agreed verbally and there will be an agreement in principle on other areas. It would be very disappointing for minor issues to derail things, as Rafa has said he has a good working relationship with other staff at the club.
For me, it can only be another job that comes up and the influence of his family. The rest would be a PR disaster for the club, and surely they can’t walk into that again? Wouldn’t look too good on Rafa either, after the positive noises, unless the club seriously screwed up. Any minor issue looks petty on both sides.
ToonDarnSarf(Quote)
Georgio, any idea who that member of staff could be?
Simon(Quote)
Simon – no mate but probably one of the three coaches who arrived with him.
Georgio(Quote)
I will be very surprised to see Tiote and Cisse stay for long. I reckon it’s a good time for Colo to go back to Argentina too, though no doubt the club will have to pay out a fair amount of money for the last year of his contract. I still think Tayls will have a part to play next year. He knows the club very well, is passionate and we need players like that around the club. Would anyone in the PL take him with his fitness issues? A reduced 1 year contract as a squad player seems possible to me.
As I’ve said, I reckon Sissoko and Janmaat will be off, mostly because of their age. But with no international tournament next year, it’s possible for players to stay without harming their international chances too much. I feel sure that Sissoko, Janmaat, Gini and Krul would want to leave if the Euros or World Cup were next year.
ToonDarnSarf(Quote)
Makes sense, and so much better if moving in permanently, looks positive
Simon(Quote)
TDS: Why would we keep Taylor? He is hardly ever fit and is always liable to make a massive mistake. My little dog Sparky is black and white, is local, has visited SJP and has a good engine, should he play centre half for NUFC?
You seem a bit taken with Tayls. He has played an average of 13 games a season for the past 5 years. Most of his injuries are not even caused by contact, except when Carroll smacked him. He did his achilles trotting back and dislocated his shoulder TWICE falling over. Did you watch his clueless display against Southampton?
Eric Sykes(Quote)
And if Timmy-the-hoof hadn’t already put a patent on hoofing then it would be Taylor-the-hoof.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
I won’t go on a Blackie-esque rant about Taylor because I know it annoys people. I will say that he is 30 years old and hardly ever fit so we really wouldn’t miss him that much if he left. The physios might miss him bringing them coffee and doughnuts every morning.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Some stats from Opta:
Lascelles:
Duels won: 67%
Aerial duels won: 76%
Taylor:
Games played: 10 (subbed off for injury in one of them)
Duels won: 51%
Aerial duels won: 47%
Number of times backpedalling as he watched Shane Long stroll past him and score: 1
Coloccini’s stats are very much on a par with Taylor’s which is probably why we let in more that 60 goals AGAIN. In my opinion it is obvious that they both need to go.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Eric
I think team spirit is hugely important. It’s the reason that players like King, Gerrard, Osman and Terry stick around even after they are clear starters. We talk about needing more players who understand the club, ideally more Geordies, yet we’re quick to discard players when we wouldn’t pick them in our first 11.
ToonDarnSarf(Quote)
I think Taylor can do a job in this division and be maybe a personality to drive other players on. No harm in 2 more year
Simon(Quote)
Eric
Anyone who says that Tayls should be a starter for us in the PL is delusional. Anyone who thinks that he should start ahead of Mbemba and Lascelles in the Championship is just plain strange. But keeping him around as a back up, while adding another centre half to the squad seems sensible to me. Plus, it wouldn’t surprise me if Rafa’s team identify ways that his injuries have been mismanaged.
ToonDarnSarf(Quote)
So the new Villa owner has promised significant funds to get Villa promoted. Up to £50m if required.
Rafa is still waiting for his transfer funds to be confirmed also to be written into his contract.
Stuart79(Quote)
Stuart
The new Villa owner can promise whatever he wants. Doesn’t mean he’s going to actually deliver…
ToonDarnSarf(Quote)
TDS: but Taylor isn’t usually available, even as backup!!!!! He played 10 games this year, because he was injured for the rest of them. His record is 13 games a season for 5 years. How can he be good around the dressing room when he spends all of his time on his sick bed?
Why would we give Taylor a contract for even 10k a week when he is only fit a quarter of the time?
You mention Terry and Gerrard as players that were kept for their dressing room influence. And yet these are the players that even their own supporters thought should have been let go a year earlier because they were now a liability. They were club icons but their own supporters saw the writing on the wall before management did.
Spurs would have been better off getting rid of King as well. He took up a place and hardly ever played.
If you want dressing room harmony have them do meditation and bring in Ricky Gervais to do stand up once a week to lift the mood. Keeping Taylor because he is local and a “good lad” seems crazy to me. And the rumour is that he is a bit arrogant and thick anyway.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Sorry TDS: Taylor is made of glass. His injuries are usually non contact (except with Andy Carroll’s right hand and the ground). As sure as night follows day, you will see “Steven Taylor suffers season ending injury” if we give him a new contract.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Eric
And what do the supporters know about what goes on in the dressing room? What do they know about how important a player is to dressing room morale? That’s a decision that the manager is paid to make.
Some fans are so quick to write off players that are backup.
The 10 games that Taylor played…does that include how many times he was on the bench? Because I’d have started with Colo and Mbemba at the beginning of the season, but I’d have had Tayls on the bench.
ToonDarnSarf(Quote)
Here TDS is Taylor’s injury record. He played 10 games this year and wasn’t on the bench at all. He got injured early September and they said he would be back by December. Of course he wasn’t as he was not fit to be selected until February. The stats below are when he returned to training so he had to have a few weeks more to get up to speed.
http://www.transfermarkt.com/steven-taylor/verletzungen/spieler/17273
Eric Sykes(Quote)
So TDS: you would not be able to have Taylor on the bench because he is unfit a lot more than half of the time.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
I checked the games this season and Taylor was out from September 12 to Ferbruary 6. He returned for a few games and then was injured again (or dropped) before returning to face Spurs.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
No offense but can’t see Taylor being re-signed if Rafa stays. His injury record is horrific and his play this season when he did feature was terrible.
GeordieTwo(Quote)
I am not trying to pick a fight TDS, I am pointing out the obvious, that Taylor is unfit most of the time so he cannot be on the bench and is a waste of a squad spot and money.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Eric
I get it. You don’t like Taylor. We’ll have to agree to disagree. I think that many fans are far too quick to write off influential players that are important to the squad. Even if he played 10 games in a season and was good around the dressing room, what’s wrong with that? We need a squad so some players will only play 10 games a season, and some will play less! Why are some fans so quick to write off backup players anyway? We need a full squad.
Anyway, let’s agree to disagree. I’ll leave it to Rafa to decide of course, but I can see a good reason for him wanting him to stay another year.
ToonDarnSarf(Quote)
No TDS, you don’t get it 🙂 I have nothing against Taylor. I think he is about average for a Championship defender. His injury record means he is a waste of money though and that is unlikely to change, his body is just not fit for the rigors of professional football. As far as his dressing room influence goes, would you pay someone 10k a week to be a cheerleader? Just get a litter of puppies to cheer the players up.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Taylor is not a backup if he is injured all of the time and not available for selection.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
And get some fainting Canadian goats for a laugh in the dressing room as well. One look at Mitro and they would be on the floor. 😯
GeordieTwo(Quote)
Eric
If he’s fit for half of the games in the Championship and he’s a positive influence in the dressing room, then yes, I’d pay him £10k a week for another year. How can you explain why so many players have been kept by managers at clubs beyond the time that they could physically play even half the games? Are they all wrong?
ToonDarnSarf(Quote)
So the written agreement might be ready by next Monday when Charnley and Rafa meet again. I certainly hope that’s the end of it and Rafa can get on with the real job.
GeordieTwo(Quote)
In Rafa we trust. He’ll decide whether Taylor could be useful or not. I think we’re going to see a fairly big clear out. It already started with Obertan and Marveaux. It will continue with some proper player sales and possibly a weekend garage sale for Riviere…..
GeordieTwo(Quote)
TDS: I only said 10k because that was your figure. Taylor will probably want a lot more. In retrospect keeping a player beyond the time when, as you say, they cannot “physically play” is a mistake. A club icon like Shearer or Gerrard might be an exception, might be… But Taylor is not a Shearer or Gerrard.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
G2: I always worry about saying things like “In Rafa we Trust” because I then will expect a t-shirt to go on sale on Ed’s blog like the one that said “In Carr we Trust”. I do trust Rafa, but I am not buying the t-shirt – yet:)
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Proceed with caution Eric? I would say that’s wise at this point with our club and you know who as owner. 😕
GeordieTwo(Quote)
Got to agree on Taylor. Got nowt against the lad, he partnered Colo well in the year we finished 5th but got injured and Willo came in for the remainder. But you cannot keep him on for dressing room influence or back up. He cannot stay injury free and with age will only get worse and take longer to recover too. His influence in the dressing room will likely be negligible too since some of our players won’t take a blind bit of notice of what he says, since he has very little input into the games anyway which if it were a one off injury may make a difference, but like us, they will know he’s made of glass. As has been said, he’d be a bloody expensive cheer leader.
Kimtoon(Quote)
I had thought they had run down Taylor’s contract on purpose. But, then again, I thought they had done the same with Coloccini and they ended up giving him a bloody 2 year extension. How did that work out? I think this is like 4 years in a row we have conceded more than 60 goals.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
It just shows us how badly we needed a proper manager. All this time with the same shoddy defense. Complete bollocks to give Colo a contract extension. Complete bollocks to keep Saylor hanging around. No thinking going on at the club until Rafa arrived.
GeordieTwo(Quote)
Is Saylor actually influential in the dressing room though? Is he well respected and wise? The only dressing room story I have ever heard involved a teammate breaking his glass jaw.
Krul, Colback, Armstrong and Dummett can all be considered local – with Krul and Colback being regular starters and this experienced enough to be influential. What do we need an injured Saylor taking up space for?
Shamrock(Quote)
So, lets say you are a personnel manager and you are looking at Stevie Taylor. You get his CV and it says – works a quarter of the time, but is nice to the other workers when he does show up. And even that is questionable because there are rumors he is a bit thick and actually a bit of a ***. You can have him for ONLY 20k a week / that’s 1 million a year though and he will warm the bench when he is not on the treatment table.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
David Ginola is in hospital. Conflicting reports about a heart attack. Fingers crossed he is ok.
Shamrock(Quote)
Eric
That example is a bit like getting Ben Arfa’s CV and it says “Doesn’t run much, doesn’t really do what you tell him to do, but occasionally, when he can be bothered, he’ll do something to entertain the fans. Most of the time he’ll contribute little at best and screw up your plans at worst. Yours for a bargain £60kpw!”
Squad players guys, why do some people not get that? I’m not saying Taylor SHOULD be kept, but I am saying that I can see circumstances that he WILL be kept. Gotta be a manager’s decision though.
ToonDarnSarf(Quote)
TDS you need a squad player to be fit when required to step into the team. If we get I juries to our starters then Saylor is no good as an option if he is on one of his routine 3 month layoffs. The whole squad should be made up of players capable of playing at any time. The difference between starters and back up being ability, not how prone they are to injury. It’s a recipe for disaster knowingly signing an injury prone player.
Shamrock(Quote)
Ermmm… Ben Arfa is probably the most talented player we have had since Shearer. He was probably a bit of a **** but wouldn’t you be if you had to work for Pardew who wasted your natural talent and wanted to make you into an auxiliary right back?
I think my CV of Taylor was quite accurate 🙂
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Shamrock: I think the fact Taylor is referred to as a sicknote says it all.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
I mean when bloggers say Steven “made of glass” Taylor and Steven “sicknote” Taylor it has to give you a clue as to his usefulness 🙂
Eric Sykes(Quote)
New Villa owner; ”We will have a budget from £20m to £30m to £40m to £50m, it depends when we have the coach around the table.”
Erm…. yeah…. clear as mud. A range between 20 and 50 mil. That’s a huge swing. They have an abysmal squad. They won’t make much from sales. They won’t have a great team with 20 mil of investment. That buys you Jordan Rhodes, Ross McCormack and a double cheeseburger. Never mind a midfield and defense.
Shamrock(Quote)
I think people lose sight of what footballers are actually paid when it is described in terms of how much per week. Taylor will be looking for 20k a week which is 1 million pounds a year. He was probably paid more than that for the last 5 years to be on the treatment table and occasionally on the subs bench. C’mon, 1 million quid is more than a lot of people make in a lifetime and TDS just wants it to go to a backup, a benchwarmer, a sicknote. But if Tayls can tell a few jokes in the dressing room then it must be worth it.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Comparing Ben Arfa to Shearer is a great insult to the latter. If Ben Arfa had worked as hard as Shearer, then he would have been a truly world class player. Shearer worked hard at both ends of the pitch, was driven to win until the final whistle was blown and played through the pain barrier on many occasions. Ben Arfa just turned up when he wanted to and occasionally did something fancy. While it’s good to have a wildcard like that when there are several other goal threats on the pitch and you’re playing well, they’re not much good when you need your players to roll their sleeves up and get stuck in.
Talented with quick feet for sure. Lacking in talent in terms of commitment and being a team player.
You only have to look at Leicester to see where good team spirit gets you. If 12 months ago we’d have signed Morgan or Huth there would have been many fans who were not happy with either signing. If we’d have signed Kante or Mahrez, many fans would probably have been concerned that they were just more flops from France! They’ve got great team spirit and a great work ethic there, but some of their players actually wouldn’t be that good in another team.
ToonDarnSarf(Quote)
Bloody hell hope he’s ok, you all know how much I love David 🙁
Kimtoon(Quote)
Sham, my worry is that this squad couldn’t beat them when they were *****, what chance when the new owner ploughs a few million on new better players.
Kimtoon(Quote)
Eric
I find it obscene that football fans think that football players deserve to get paid £200kpw because they entertain us, while many also complain that our MPs are overpaid at around £75kpa!!! So let’s not get into that argument, because pretty much every first team footballer in the top 2 divisions (at least) is overpaid in my eyes.
I’m only referencing salary in terms of football economics, which is twisted and distant from the economics most of us deal with, so please don’t muddle the two.
I said before, we’ll have to agree to disagree so can we just do that? We’ll just have to wait and see what Rafa (we hope) decides to do with controversial players like Taylor, Colo and Sissoko…
ToonDarnSarf(Quote)
Kim
One off game when our players were too nervous not to lose. The truth is that Villa were dreadful all season, whereas we would have escaped relegation if Big Sam hadn’t executed a masterclass in survival at the end of the season.
Both Villa and Newcastle should be in the PL though. Both big clubs. The Villa team is absolutely shocking though…huge rebuilding project there!
ToonDarnSarf(Quote)
TDS: can we just agree that I am right on Taylor and you are wrong 🙂
Eric Sykes(Quote)
I agree with TDS re Benny. Lots of ability but not made for PL. Not hard working enough and rarely did a lot.
Shamrock(Quote)
David Ginola ✔ @teamginola
Footy match in the midday sun, not very clever. Now having some tests done. Whoever voted for a World Cup in Qatar in the summer
Shamrock(Quote)
Shamrock: I know that a lot of people have that view about ben Arfa. To an extent a bit of a wasted talent but they could have set up the team to allow him to show more. You know my opinion of Pardew, that if you let him he will turn every team into an image of the way he played and that was a big drawback for someone like ben Arfa.
If TDS wants to compare ben Arfa to someone maybe he should pick Obertan or Marveaux or de Jong. Players that did nothing. I know I brought Shearer’s name into it but that was in a totally different context when TDS was saying players should stay beyond their sell-by date.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Eric
Actually, you said “Ben Arfa is probably the most talented player we have had since Shearer” and that’s what I disagreed with. My point was that is depends what you call talent. I don’t believe that Ben Arfa deserves to be mentioned in the same sentence as Shearer when talking about talent.
You think we should have set things up to revolve around Ben Arfa? I think Pardew did that for a while. So what happened when Ben Arfa didn’t turn up? Or he was injured? You can set something up around a top player who is almost an 8 or 9 out of 10, not someone who is a 2 or 3 as often as an 8 or 9.
ToonDarnSarf(Quote)
TDS: This is what I said when I first brought up Shearer “A club icon like Shearer or Gerrard might be an exception, might be… But Taylor is not a Shearer or Gerrard.” I still believe that ben Arfa is the most talented player since Shearer and those talents were wasted by Pardew’s bad management. He wanted ben Arfa to be an auxiliary right back which was never going to work.
Don’t get all high and mighty about Shearer though, acting all hurt.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Why is it bad for me to make a comparison of two of our most talented players whilst specifically saying Shearer was better? TDS is doing one of these little tricks when saying he is hurt with a comparison. It is a false argument. But I will leave it there.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Here TDS. A definition of a straw man argument:
“A straw man is a common form of argument and is an informal fallacy based on giving the impression of refuting an opponent’s argument, while actually refuting an argument that was not advanced by that opponent.”
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Another cracker from TDS! Taylor is influential in the dressing room and should be kept on even though he’s never fit and we’re too quick to right him off!!!! 😀
He’s so influential he got a broken jaw off Andy Carroll and if ten years is too quick to right him off I’m not sure what you’re idea is of long term…
Stuart79(Quote)