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Stunning goals from Jacob Murphy and Allan Saint-Maximin move Newcastle SIX points clear of third bottom Fulham with a MASSIVE comeback win over Burnley – despite VAR denying us a stone wall penalty in the first half.
One thing we demanded from this game was avoiding the sort of flat, half-hearted and ultimately negative approach that saw us fail to beat West Brom and get hammered at Brighton.
History threatened to repeat itself after a dismal first half included some atrocious defending, an avoidable Burnley goal and far too much wayward passing, however it was a stunning Jacob Murphy strike and sone Allan Saint-Maximin brilliance that saved Bruce’s bacon.
It was backs against the wall late on and an unbearable watch over the final 20 minutes, but we stood strong and hung on for a monumental win, with Dubravka a key figure in dealing with crosses into the box and Sean Longstaff’s tenacity vital in the closing stages.
With Wilson and Saint-Maximin declared fit, Bruce had a big decision to make. Would he bring both back in search of the big win we so desperately needed, or would he stay loyal to the side that caused Spurs all sorts of problems in last week’s much improved display?
He went for the latter, with the only changes being Fernandez and Clark in for the injured Lascelles and poor Emil Krafth, meaning Wilson and Saint-Maximin started on the bench:
Although I was eager to see both Wilson and ASM start – two players who caused the Clarets real trouble in our 3-1 win in the reverse fixtures – we could have no real complaints if the side played with the sort of hunger, intensity and attacking intent we saw last Sunday.
Elsewhere, recent England No.1 Nick Pope was missing for the home side, giving us another reason to get at this tough yet beatable Burnley side.
The game kicked off at a sunny Turf Moor and it was immediately clear that we’d have to defend a host of long balls and crossed into the box, with Dyche keen for his side to get it wide and swing crossed into the box. As for us, we started the game half asleep, sitting too deep, surrendering possession too easily and committing a few too many cheap fouls that gave Burnley ideal opportunity to put pressure on our goal.
15 minutes in it felt far too similar to that flat and lifeless 0-0 draw at West Brom, with us showing a real lack of quality and seeming second best in most areas of the pitch – despite the opposition’s clear limitations.
Frustratingly, that theme continued and Burnley opened the scoring after a Chris Wood cross – after beating Clark and Fernandez all too easily – was tapped in by an unmarked Vydra. Awful defending that topped off a truly turgid start to the game. Where on earth was the momentum from last week?
Half an hour in and there was no reaction to their opener. We were sat too deep, were constantly giving the ball away and opting to play hoofball against the one side in the Premier League who enjoy exactly that! There was zero fluidity to our play, a total lack of cohesion from front to back and the look of a side who’d never played together – not put in one of our performances of the season against Spurs seven days ago!
Murphy was struggling badly, committing too many fouls and struggling on the ball, but he was one of many who just hadn’t showed up as we approached half time with just ONE shot to our name.
That changed for a brief moment when Gayle had the ball in the net, only to be standing a few inches offside from Joelinton’s hook towards goal, however we were then denied a blatant penalty just five minutes before the break.
After a brilliant Peacock-Farrell save denied Gayle’s goal bound effort, Sean Longstaff latched onto the lose ball and was kicked in the head as Tarkowski’s high boot cleared. Anywhere else on the pitch it was a foul, but VAR somehow decided there was nothing doing.
An absolute farce.
After some more sloppy defending saw us concede a cheap free kick and corner, Dubravka pulled off a superb save to stop Dummett slicing the ball into his own net. We just about survived a late surge from Burnley to keep it at 1-0 and should have been given a stone wall penalty, but it was a shocking first half display that stunk of previous failings at West Brom, Brighton and Sheffield United.
Changes were needed, with Bruce’s decision to go without Wilson and Saint-Maximin in serious danger of backfiring.
The players came back out for the second half and there was no sign of those changes. A frustrating call from Bruce given the 11 on the field had shown nothing so far in such a huge game before our fixtures turn ugly.
The second 45 started how the first ended, with us gifting Burnley an early corner that resulted in intense pressure on Dubravka and a brilliant effort from Lowton that the Slovakian tipped over.
Our centre-backs were being bullied by Wood, our wing-backs were ineffective, our midfield outworked and our forwards outnumbered and Bruce finally saw sense to bring on Wilson and Saint-Maximin with 56 minutes on the clock.
Two minutes later and they had an instant impact! Saint-Maximin twisted and turned down the right and cut the ball back for Murphy. He had a lot to do, but fired a curled right foot finish past Peacock-Farrell and into the far corner. He’d had a shocker up until now, however he more than made up for it with a stunning strike. 1-1!
Burnley continued to get the ball wide, throw bodies into the box and whip crosses in, but we stood strong and countered in devastating style.
Shelvey released Saint-Maximin on the half-way line and the Frenchman drove at an exposed Burnley defence. Wilson was an option to his right, but he cut in – sending both Tarkowski and Mee the wrong way – and fired a left-footed strike into the bottom corner!
2-1 Newcastle and the game had been turned on its head just 10 minutes on from the arrival of our unplayable attacking duo. Wilson played a part in both – he held the ball up well for the opener and made a good run for the second – but Saint-Maxmin’s devastating dribbling and flare was the difference.
It’s fair to say we were now entering the biggest 20 minutes of our season. Survive it and we’d move SIX clear of Fulham with one game in hand – a HUGE incentive ahead of the tough run of fixtures we had to follow.
We carried a clear threat on the counter thanks Wilson’s physicality and ASM’s pace – giving something for Burnley to think about when they flung bodies forward – however that didn’t stop the home side shifting the ball wide and throwing balls into the box.
Thankfully, Dubravka was first to several of those and our centre-back trio stood strong after an awful first half display, but it was not done yet as we entered extra time. It could well have been had Almiron’s effort not been blocked on the line after more brilliant work from ASM, mind!
Four minutes of added time and this was it – our chance to take one monumental step towards safety – and we did it.
A huge victory that ends our streak without a win and sends us into next week’s clash with West Ham on a real high.
Howay the lads!
WE have good player but NEED a MANAGER
Keep Bruce and we’ll lose the quality players for numpty’s like Hendrick, Fraser,
Get Shot now!!!
KK(Quote)
The VAR referees are actually professionals paid 6 figures for their trouble. How can they get it wrong so often after multiple viewings? And the offside by a finger nail or armpit rule is just stupid but you could bet the VAR Ref would get it wrong anyway even if it was changed to benefit the attacker.
The lack of consistency is just so frustrating. I am sure they will say it was not a clear and obvious error but then the same Ref gives a foul for the same foul on the same player that was outside the area.
I think the Refs generally do a good job on the field apart from all of the Man U penalties. However, the same people totally screw up on VAR after watching a dozen replays.
If we had not have won this would be the one time I would have backed Bruce and his woe is me talk.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
We have to have a chance against any team with Mark Noble in it. How old is he now, 86?
Plus Rice and Antionio will probably be out.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Dubravka had his best game since his return, BUT, his kicking was apalling. Maybe we need a kicking coach to add to Steve’s army of other coaches?
And they have finally realised that Shelvey is **** at set pieces. I have been saying it for years and a lot more people on here have also said it. It’s like the coaches never watch re-runs of any of our games or even look at the stats. You can count on 1 hand the number of direct free kicks he has got on target in all of his time at NUFC.
Lingard is on fire though.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Lingard has a new dance as well and stopped that stupid hand sign.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Bruce actually said after the match that it was good to get back to back wins. I hate to break it to him but we drew against Spurs. He also laid out the missing our big players excuses for previous games. This is why he is so annoying. Those games are in the past, we do not need to relive your excuses. Like every other team there will be injuries, just deal with it and stop moaning you cabbage.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
We need Breath Test’s before idiots are put in front of the Press
Bruce has a drink problem = he thinks he’s a Manager!!
LOL
KK(Quote)
Nice write up Olly. I don’t the Murphy was quite as bad in the first half as you said however the whole team were very poor in the first half. Murphy certainly made up for it with that goal though.
Things still very tight though as I just don’t see any more wins for us in the next four or five games.
Gilly Toon(Quote)
And I’m still flabbergasted at that pen decision… not even a yellow card, nothing, then gives a foul just minutes later outside the area. There must be way to stop this, we need a video replay… oh yeah… that’s working well!
And these millimetres offside decisions are destroying football. ?????
Gilly Toon(Quote)
I am sure Bruce has memory problems. He forgot the loss to Palace AND that Spurs was a draw. He would probably say it FELT like a win 🙂
The coaches seemed more together today, even after that abysmal first half. No bickering or talking over each other. I think Graeme Jones feels that the masterplan from upstairs to goad Bruce into quitting is not working. I am also sure that Bruce is doing all he can to marginalise Jones.
Bruce saying he would do it “his way” a few games back and saying how the players wanted to play Rafa’s system seems to have changed again. He is now back to 5 at the back.
When Jones first came in it seemed we were trying to play a higher press but there is now very little eveidence of that. We went to using Donkey as an outlet and again he let us down. The sooner he is sent to the glue factory, the better.
The only positive I can see from Jones is that maybe, just maybe, he has been responsible for taking Shelvey off set pieces. The Steves had 18 months to see it but never did so I assume it is Jones’s doing.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Even though Burnley didnt score from a corner they easily could have. Their corners were so much better than ours even with us having Ritchie and Longstaff on them now. I think they were a bit unlucky in that respect but would think that with the army of coaches we have that someone would work on corner delivery. Other teams seem to whip them in whereas we float them in. This is simple stuff.
But, glad for the win. I really dont want us to go down as we dont get Championship games in the US.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
And Burnley had 24 shots so Brucie better not get all smug about a fortuitous win. Again, I will take it but Burnley were still the better team on balance. We just happen to have somebody who can change a game in St Max and I think Wilson will be more up to speed next week.
Even though West Ham are top 4 I think that vastly flatters them and they are there for the taking.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
KK – I agree we need rid of Bruce, but I can’t agree we have quality players mate. We have a squad of mostly below average players, a few average players and 2 or 3 very good players.
Without those very good players we make hard work of getting any kind of result. That first half was some of our worst football all season.
Before you start leaping to their defence and trying to pin it all on Bruce – think how many players we played today that Rafa didn’t touch.
Sharpy17(Quote)
https://mobile.twitter.com/SilkyCyrus_74/status/1381240639455698946
kimtoon(Quote)
VAR are having a mare in the Man Utd game as well.
For them to not even ask the ref to review our penalty just blows my mind. They said it was coz he played the ball first – what a load of rubbish. If Longstaff had have stayed rolling round on the floor like Son just has the ref would have probably give it – but players shouldn’t have to do that, and Longstaff shouldn’t have to be p!sing with blood for them to see that was dangerous play.
VAR and this new offside scrutiny has totally ruined the game.
The ref should have had to come out and explain that decision and why in the second half he then gives a freekick for the exact same think on Longstaff again.
Sharpy17(Quote)
Despite 2 very good goals we have to admit we got lucky today. I dont think Longstaff and Shelvey should be on the pitch together because neither has any pace. I would probably play Sean because he tracks back and it makes us less predictable. Teams know what Shelvey is about, he is a fake sweeper who cannot tackle and likes to be quarterback. Play one or the other but not both.
Arsenal cannot be happy seeing Willock on the bench. At least he has legs.
We have a great opportunity to get ourselves out of the relegation mire against West Ham. You put pressure on them and they fold. They are actually OK on the counter which is why they have so many points, so that’s what you need to watch for. Sean and Jonjo together trying to catch them is just asking for trouble.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
“no matter how good I think I am, we need our best players fit”
Bruce
kimtoon(Quote)
Kim – I’m not sure Ancelloti would agree like. I reckon he’d be one of the first names on the team sheet.
Not that they are getting him like!!.
Sharpy17(Quote)
Look at Liam cooper sending off for Leeds yesterday, played the ball but high follow through, red card.
No consistency .
kimtoon(Quote)
Pool fans are right, the toffees are a bitter bunch.
kimtoon(Quote)
Eric – the commentators were banging on about Longstaff and how much ground he covered today.
Mo Farah covers a lot of ground, it doesn’t make him a good footballer!!.
Longstaffs passing was awful today and whilst he covered a lot of ground, he made very few tackles or interceptions.
I agree on Shelvey. He was far too deep today, which meant Burnley had the running of midfield. His passing wasn’t great at all and we needed him in midfield. I actually think Fede is a better passer of the ball anyway.
Lastly Joelinton ??♂️. He was good last week & I so want him to have a run of games where he plays well – not necessarily scoring goals, I don’t expect miracles – just a run of good performances. But he was back to his awful self today. I have honestly never seen anyone with his height and build be so physically weak!!.
Chris Woods is a similar build and he was a real handful for our 3 CBs today. Big, strong, fought for every ball and held it up well for his teammates – everything Joelinton didn’t do today.
Sharpy17(Quote)
ASM was brilliant today when he came on but my MOTM is Dubs, some fine saves and kept us in the game .
kimtoon(Quote)
Joe was utter pants today, sad after a promising performance last week. Longstaff was mostly poor but looked way better later on in the game.
Did Dummett get an injury ? he needed treatment when he came off.
kimtoon(Quote)
Kim – Dubravka made some good saves, but his distribution was absolutely awful today. His kicking, especially out to the left went out of play more often than not.
Sharpy17(Quote)
I also think Bruce got it wrong playing Miggy today. He’s a cracking little player and works his socks off. But Burnley were just too physical for him today. I think he’d have been better playing Willock instead from the start.
Sharpy17(Quote)
He wasn’t played in his best position though mate imo. Agree on Dubs kicking though, but he cleared pretty much everything today.
kimtoon(Quote)
The only thing that was good about Dubravka’s distribution today was that he didnt give the ball directly to Burnley – because most of the time he hoofed it for a throw in.
Bruce brought up that “accumulation of points” **** in his interview. We get how a league works Steve. Most of us have followed football for decades.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
I wouldnt give up on the Arsenal game even though we have a terrible record against them. But this is miles away from the Arsenal of Thiery Henry and Dennis Bergcamp. Their best player is a teenager – Saka.
Aubamayang got that massive contract and blows hot and cold now. Same thing happened with Ozil.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Kim – fair point, but I just thought every time he tried to challenge for the ball he was held off far too easily. I really like him as a player, but against the more physical teams he struggles to compete.
In the main Dubs was excellent, it was just so obvious his kicking was off today. At one point I actually thought he was aiming for Bruce ?.
Sharpy17(Quote)
I can’t say I’m thrilled with the new contracts to Murphy & Gayle either.
I think both are good championship players, but neither are going to push us on in the PL.
Murphy maybe isn’t a bad squad player, but aside from his finish today he really wasn’t good.
Gayle – and Carroll & Joelinton to be fair to Gayle – but the drop off in quality from Wilson is just far too great and those 3 need replacing imo. I don’t imagine they will replace Joelinton (mainly because to replace him we’d have to sell him & nobody is buying him!), but I think we need rid of Carroll & Gayle.
We play ASM and Fraser as forwards, so shifting Carroll and Gayle might only need 1 new forward in. But I expect with Gayle staying we will bring no new forward in.
Sharpy17(Quote)
Couldn’t blame him tho 😆
kimtoon(Quote)
Forget MOTM, he’d have got player of the season if he had took him out ?
Sharpy17(Quote)
Bruce’s press conferences have become almost as bizarre as Ugly John Carvers. Nothing will ever beat that rant by Kinnear though.
But when you look at Bruce he is either attacking somebody – players, fans, the press – or making mistakes about where we stand. Even with a lucky win like today he says stupid stuff. I am still trying to get my head around him saying “it’s about points accumulation” and then repeating the phrase again like it’s clever or something.
What I have disliked the most about Bruce is the terrible football but his press conferences are catching up. He’ll probably be all smug now even though we probably could have let in 3 before half time with his tactics. I think they call that “doing an Allardyce”.
Had any of them ever watched Burnley? They play totally differently to Spurs and yet our “coaches” went out with the same game plan. Even for the first 15 minutes of the 2nd half we were being battered. The plan was then give it to St Max and hope can can produce some individual magic.
Still, I have to be happy despite Bruce because I think we will stay up now.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
https://mobile.twitter.com/NFTVmedia/status/1381301229532368896
brilliant
kimtoon(Quote)
Kim – if we can be safe with the Sheff Utd & Fulham game to go, I’d blood him in those games. The lad looks decent but it’s a big step up to be fair.
Sharpy17(Quote)
Jose is saying really weird stuff to Ole. I think he might have lost the plot again like he did at Man U. Ole was criticing Son for the play acting and said if his son had acted like that he wouldnt get any dinner. Jose leapt to Son’s defense in a long rant about how disrespectful Ole was. Very strange as you never really see Managers criticize each other. Last one I can really remember was Rafa’s “facts” rant at Ferguson.
I dont know what has happened to Jose. He was always a bit ascerbic but usually also in a charming and joking way. Now he just seems bitter.
Maybe it happens as they get older and stay in football too long? Exhibit B, Steve Bruce who I also think has lost the plot a bit.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Eric – this is Jose’s thing man. He likes to build a ‘the worlds against us’ mentality.
To be fair to Ole, Son stayed floored for over 3 mins while the ref & VAR reviewed the incident. It was quite pathetic really.
That said, if Longstaff had stayed down longer & not jumped up appealing for the foul, perhaps the ref & VAR might not have found it so easy to dismiss our clear and obvious penalty.
I’m certainly not blaming Longstaff for the penalty not being awarded – not for a second. I’m purely suggesting that the decisions seem to still be heavily influenced by player reaction rather than the foul itself.
Sharpy17(Quote)
Sharpy17
April 12, 2021 at 09:02
Eric – this is Jose’s thing man. He likes to build a ‘the worlds against us’ mentality.
Lol, He needs to be managing us, he’d have a point then. 😉
kimtoon(Quote)
We need Everton to beat Brighton by 16-0 tonight. We will go up a place to the giddy heights of 16th ???????. Happy Monday guys!
Gilly Toon(Quote)
As big a win as it was we’re still not safe with some awful fixtures to come. However I still think we’ll do it. That’ll give Bruce another season of rubbish. What can we do about that?
Apart from two excellent goals we were awful yesterday. Murphy and Fed constantly gave the ball away. Joe was donkey again and didn’t have a meaningful touch all game. Wonder if he knows there’s free grazing on the Town Moor?
Shelvey just isn’t fit for a real midfield role. I could go on . . .
georgio(Quote)
geogio: the 2 goals papered over the cracks of another awful performance, especially in the 1st half. Ryder is writing today that Bruce and Jones have kissed and made up. Well, I reckon that Jones just accepted that he was not going to be caretaker as Ashley had backed Bruce. Wor Lee assumes that they have also accepted that Jones will take training and Bruce pick the team and be the voice on the sideline.
It begs the question of what do the other Steves do? Has Bruce accepted their inadequacies and put his trust in Jones. As I have said a few times, Jones is a nobody and a typical Charnley and Co selection in the manner of Kinnear, Carver and McClaren. We pressed for about the 1st 2 games after jones arrived and then reverted to Bruce ball.
Apart from a few bits of skill yesterday, we played Bruce-ball. That 1st half was as bad as anything this season. And if Bruce wants credit for the subs then he is a bigger fraud than I thought. We all knew they were coming on at latest 70 mins. It was only because we were playing so badly that they were brought on earlier.
So what has Jones done? Stirred the pot. Caused tension. But ultimately it looks like they had to act like adults for the sake of the club and team. If it was Jones’ idea to get Shelvey off corners then it was a good idea for that alone.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Clattenburg is clearly talking out of his behind when he cannot tell when a player is in front of another or behind. Has he not looked at the pictures? As for the VAR ref saying Kartowski got to the ball first what the hell has that to do with it? A foul is a foul is a foul. If you go for a ball with the stoods up is that not a foul if you get the ball first? Dangerous play is dangerous play. We didn’ t deserve to be level but that was a penalty and obviously the refs are just sticking together. We need more honesty in the game.
Groucho(Quote)
I still think we can get something against West Ham. They are in a totally false league position. I watched their Leicester game and they hit them on the break as Brendan over-pressed. It was one of those games where everything came off for WHam in the 1st half and Leicester were left chasing the game. That doesnt happen too often.
Rice and Antionio were inured and I hope they remain that way. As I have said before, any team with a 36 year old Mark Noble starting cannot be that good. Hopefully that will balance out us playing Shelvey as we know Bruce will.
I dont think that Jonjo had as bad a game as some yesterday. He was doing some of the simple stuff well and there was no outlet for him with Donkey offering nothing. But we know what he is. He is slow, rather than lazy in my opinion. We are not playing as much pass-it-to-quarterback-Jonjo but it is still there. And for God;s sake why have your worst tackler screen the 3 centre halfs?
AND… are him and Sean too much the same to play together? The answer is to drop Shelvey and play Willock but that will never happen. Willock will probably be the odd man out again on Saturday.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Wilson is obviously not match fit but I think he will start. My prediction is that we will get 65 mins out of him and he will be replaced by Joelinton. That forces us to change the team shape because obviously Gayle is more like for like. But, after seeing almost 2 seasons of Bruce I think I know what he will do.
Oh, and the only team changes will be St Max for Joe and Wilson for Gayle. The result at Burnley totally flattered us but Bruce will think it was job done and we did well. They could have had 5 the number of corners they had. I think it was 13. There were times when they had corner after corner when you thought it was inevitable that a goal was coming. We were very lucky and they got Dubravka-ed.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
I think Gayle has been unfortunate not to score in the last two games. To mark him lower than Wilson in the Burnley game was just ridiculous. Perhaps people understandably were relieved to see Wilson back again but he really did nothing at Burnley and is probably not yet match fit. Good to see him back though and the run out won’t have done him any harm. All our forwards suffer from the poor service and support from midfield. As someone said the way Bruce plays Alan Shearer would have found scoring opportunities few and far between.
Groucho(Quote)
Olly: Merson proves every week that he never watches any of our games. You cannot argue that 3 goals in 61 games for the Donkey is not good. Bruce tried and failed miserably to turn him into a target man. I have hardly ever watched Soccer Saturday but it seems when I did see it that Merson was the clown and a figure of fun. He comes out with some bizarre statements on NUFC and has always been a defender of Bruce.
Dermot Gallagher said it was a penalty. When I watched the Ref go over to the screen they showed the incident in ultra quick succession. He had made his mind up before he even viewed it. Gallagher said the reason the Ref didnt give a Pen was because he wasnt sure there was contact. If they had slowed the screen views down a bit or he had taken more time he would see there was.
This just makes it even worse because the Ref didnt spot it in real time and I really think he didnt want to overrule himself because he had made up his mind. Totally unprofessional.
And, when VAR ask the Ref to view it that usually means they think it was the wrong decision. P!ss poor all round.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
I googled West Ham injuries. Rice and Antonio are expected to be out until May so definately wont feature against us. They are probably their 2 best players. Also Cresswell went off injured at the weekend.
They are in a false league position and missing their best players so we can have no excuses on Saturday. They are there for the taking and that would make us safe.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Still on the penalty. Clattenberg was tying himself in knots trying to defend the decision. He has been on TV in the US a few times and he is a bit of a t!t. Some facts:
He thinks he is one of the players. He Reffed the Champions League and Europa League finals and tatooed their logos on his wrists. I am sure there is nothing he likes more than to wear a t-shirt and have fans ask him about it!
He had a hair transplant. Who does he think he is Wayne Rooney.
When Spurs were going for the title a few years ago there was a bloodbath game against Chelsea. It became known as the Battle at the Bridge. He totally lost control of the game and when asked about it he said he didnt give out cards because he didnt want to interfere/make it about him. Totally lame excuse for an incredibly bad performance by HIM. He caused the chaos by letting it get out of hand. Isnt he supposed to judge fouls on their merits and not go in with preconceived ideas. I am all for letting the game flow but I watched that game and remember clearly they were trying to maim each other and he did nothing.
I dont trust a word Clattenberg says.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
After my Clattenberg rant I will get back to West Ham. Rice, Antonio and Cresswell are their 3 best players. What excuses will Bruce have if we dont beat them after making so many excuses saying we were **** because we missed our 3 best players – St Max, Wilson and probably Hayden. It is Hayden by default because we do not have a midfield. That’s why we went out and got Willock and I bet Bruce doesnt play him on Saturday.
We are at home. Even with no fans we will never have a better chance of beating West Ham. We also beat them earlier in the season. Still, I bet Bruce big-ups them to set up his excuses for if we dont win.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Eric – those 3 are very good players, but WHU have other very good players too. Coufal at RB, Soucek in midfield, Bowen up front to name just another 3. Their CBs are solid & Fornals has been playing really well
too.
Moyes has taken some stick since Man Utd, but actually his record stands up with Van Gaal, Jose & Ole.
What he done with Everton was excellent & he’s doing it again with WHU – maybe he’s not good enough for a top 6 side, but not many managers are. That doesn’t make him a bad manager & id have taken him at NUFC – certainly over the likes of Pardew, McClaren and Bruce.
Sharpy17(Quote)
We might get a result against Arsenal coz they are very inconsistent, also Leicester haven’t been great recently. City might have won the league by the time we play them, so might rest players – but it will still be a big ask. But WHU I don’t see us getting anything from. Moyes will have them all guns glazing – 1. To push for CL & 2. revenge for us beating them at the start of the season.
Sharpy17(Quote)
Without their 3 best players West Ham are mid-table. With our 2 best players back we are also midtable. Well, if we didnt have Bruce.
Sharpy: you are missing some of Moyes’ record. Sociedad. The Mackems. West Ham first time around he did OK but resigned. Their fans didnt like him first go round.
Hard to judge him at Man U as he was given no budget and he was sacked after 2/3 of a season. I think he only bought Felaini. Everybody knew the team Fergie left was full of cloggers that Sir Alex somehow willed to a title. Even the Man U fans knew it but still gave him stick.
He did OK at Everton but I think he only got them into Europe once and won nothing.
West Ham are in a false position. There is no way they will be top four and I highly doubt they will qualify for Europe. We have a good chance against them.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
I predict West Ham will finish 6th which I think is out of Europe. Liverpool and Chelsea will catch them and I think Leicester will somehow survive for 5th. They have a bye coz they play us and they are our bogey team 🙂
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Eric – WHU have only lost 4 times in 2021 so far – that was Man City, Lpool & Man Utd twice. They might be a mid-table team but their form is one of a top 4 side – that’s not to say they will finish top 4. But they are playing some really good football – so good that the players are losing concentration – losing a 3 goal lead against Arsenal to draw 3-3 and yesterday letting Leicester back in, though hung on to win it.
I think when you look at where Everton were finishing and on a consistent basis, with very little cash to spend, he did a brilliant job. I think he’s doing great with WHU, regardless whether they finish 4th or 8th, I think he’s made it a successful season for them.
Yeah Sociadad & Sunderland were bad spells, but Sunderland was rotten and I don’t think any manager could have sorted them out. Sociadad I think nowt lost at that stage of his career. It was a big ask & fair play to him for giving it a go.
Of course we could beat them, but I certainly don’t fancy our chances as much as you do. I think they have better players, who are better coached, have more confidence & greater motivation than our players.
Sharpy17(Quote)
VAR make another massive balls up at WBA v Saints. They’ve even managed to **** the offsides up now ???♂️.
Sharpy17(Quote)
Finishing 6th would be a great achievement for Moyes. If they finish above a Spurs team that has Kane, Son and Bale that would be complete madness.
Bale and Son just broke Shearer and Suttons PL single season record for combined goals and assists and there are still games to play. WTF is Jose doing there?
At least Big Fat Sam has the Baggies trying and actually plaing decent football. Last time they went down Pards had them playing scared every week.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Sharpy: I am still mad about that VAR decision yesterday. There are such fine margins top 4 and bottom 4 that 1 wrong call could cost 50-100 million. That’s what you get if you make the CL or lose if you go down.
I am telling you that Anthony Taylor hardly looked at the screen replays and they were played at such a quick pace it was like watching video game. He had made up his mind before he went over. And the excuse that he wasnt sure there was contact is a joke. It was still dangerous/reckless play – but there was contact!
Sorry to repeat myself but I am just so mad. It was a very easy call to make and when you consider some of the handballs that have been given…
Eric Sykes(Quote)
I know this isn’t really of the moment, but I just found it on YouTube and i think it shows just how Ashley conducts his business.
It’s Andy Woodmans account of the 8 yr contract – interesting where the first offer was made, how the situation played out and the fact that Ashley was so keen to keep Woodman at the club (just pay attention to how good his recollection of our form or any detail was at the time).
https://youtu.be/yww0Xm_TKVg
Sharpy17(Quote)
Amazing story.
kimtoon(Quote)
Kim – you couldn’t write it could you?!.
Pardew got slaughtered as Ashley’s puppet at the time, but this suggests otherwise – he was an after thought. He wasn’t even offer the contract in the first place.
Any other owner would have disciplined a member of staff for being out on the drink at 1am before the game. Ashley gets the shots in and gives him an 8yr deal – fully paid up if he leaves. How did that man ever become a billionaire??.
Just shows though, he doesn’t look for the best person for the job, he employs his mates – good to go on the drink with fellas.
Sharpy17(Quote)
Kim – I listened to that and actually felt a little bit sorry for Pardew in the end, coz that sounds like he was backed into a bit of a corner with the contracts.
Ashley should never have offered a coach the contract before his manager. But he obviously told Pardew that’s what he’d done coz Woodman said Pardew told him about it – at that stage Pardew & the other coaches had been offered the contract.
The fans slaughtered Pardew when Infact it sounds like it was more Woodman who was his puppet.
I won’t believe anything that comes out now, coz you just don’t know what’s true. But you can totally see how the likes of KK and Rafa couldn’t work with Ashley after stories like that like.
Sharpy17(Quote)
If you get a spare 2.5hrs watch the John Beresford ‘under the cosh’ – hes got some cracking stories ?
Sharpy17(Quote)
I watched the Brighton v Everton game and it wasnt that much dirfferent than against us except Brighton couldnt hit a cows **** with a banjo. They created the chances and they all went wide, over the bar or straight at the goalie. The difference with us is that their forwards were able to finish. I think it will continue like this, as that has been the pattern all season so there will be some draws. I think they have 12. There might even be another game like ours where it clicks. If Brucie is relying on Brighton to go down I think he is on a loser.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
A very short article on the police charging a 49 year old man for online racial abuse. He was tracked down by the first dedicated police officer for online abuse in a football unit. it always amazed me that they never tracked down more of these idiots and made examples of them. It must be really easy to track them down from twitter or facebook – just ask the comoanies for their e-mail addresses. I doubt any of them took security measures to protect their identity.
I was banging on about this a couple of weeks ago. Like, how can people be so stupid to racially abuse a player and not think there is an electronic record and “paper” trail.
If the Russians can hack the US Election system the surely the British Police can track down a few neanderthals?
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/apr/13/man-charged-over-online-racial-abuse-of-west-broms-romaine-sawyers
Eric Sykes(Quote)
I dont really understand this pledge drive by NUST to buy a portion of the club. I am not criticising I just dont get it. They want you to pledge money, does that have a solid commitment? The main thing is though is that to get just 1% of the club you need 3.5 million pounds. Not sure if that is feasible after Covid and also not sure what say it gets you? I doubt you would get a seat on the board with only 1%.
I think they were looking at German Club models and Barca but valuations were vastly different when they were set up. Now it is a billionnaires playground.
I am just throwing a few things out there because I havent looked into it too much. Not trying to be too negative but in practical terms of club ownership I dont see how it will achieve anything. Perhaps it is meant as a statement of how fans are committed and maybe as a plea for a supporter on the board? That will still be in the hands of a majority owner though.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Eric – I hope you’d agree I’m usually quite positive on this site and try to be fair. But this NUST fund raising is just simply pie in the sky imo. They’ve taken Rio Ferdinands bait about the fans buying the club, but all it does is play into the hands of the morons having a go at us.
I take no pleasure in saying it, but we won’t raise the £3.5m they are aiming for. But even if we did, you are right, 1% will get you a seat in the far back corner of the AGM. There will be no seat on the board or say in how our club is ran – I don’t imagine 10% would even give us much of a voice.
If £3.5m carried any kind of weight at all, it’s a sum of money that between some former players & NE celebs, they could raise that cash with relate ease. Shearer for example could round up a bunch of ex players & Celeb mates like Ant & Dec – between them they could raise most if not all the cash – and their participation would certainly encourage fans to dig deep.
I think it’s little more than wishful thinking by a fan group who have good intentions, but little appreciation of the extent in which COVID will hit the pockets of our region.
Sharpy17(Quote)
Sharpy, I agree that you are usually positive with your comments. Only Stuart is more positive LOL.
NUFC is a privately held company and the owners can do what they want. Even a 10% stake which would cost 35 mil doesnt guarantee a say whether the owner is Ashley or the Saudi Pif. The only reason I could see there being any board participation from a fans group is for PR purposes. I think I would rule that out with Ashley as he doesnt care.
I dont think buying a small stake in NUFC gets you any further than the current fans forum setup. We all know how that works. They will have it if we are doing well and postpone if we arnt. Charnley has turned up at how many of these? I think there was one a couple of years ago when he said the club would be more open and then he disappeared. Do you think Bruce would dare turn up at a fan forum? He wont even talk to a mostly pliable local press.
NUFC remains the KGB of football clubs, run by Vladimir Ashley and will remain that way whether fans stump up the cash to buy 1% or 10%.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
And Sharpy. Jesse Bloody Lingard better not score against us on Saturday otherwise I am blaming you. Same with Jared Bowen 🙂
Eric Sykes(Quote)
If Bruce did decide to turn up at a fans’ forum you would have to have a door check to confiscate the hundreds of cabbages fans would hide under their coats.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
I dont even think we have a board at the moment. I think it is Charnley as MD and that’s it. At one point I think Bob Moncur and Carr were on a board along with Charnley but Ashley just dissoved it when we got relegated.
The people he relies on are Bishop for PR and I think he owns a part of his company. And Justin Barnes who is a lawyer there to push through any sale.
This is never going to be the German Model of a football club – I think it is a 51/49% ownership structure but I am not sure if the fans own the larger %. The numbers of $s involved now are just too big for mass fan involvment/participation in day to day business or even strategic planning in the PL. Look at the facts. Does any other PL club have any significant % of fan ownership?
Eric Sykes(Quote)
And like you Sharpy, I think there are good intensions behind this NUST initiative but it is just p!ssing in the wind with an owner like Ashley.
I know some could come back to me and say “what are you doing then”. But that misses the point that it will be of no consequence and just raises peoples hopes with no chance of a successful outcome.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Eric – I reckon buying Ashley a pint & kebab would get you further than a 1% stake in the club.
Sharpy17(Quote)
And can you imagine the Saudis listening to a 1% stake holder?! – they ignore some of the most powerful Countries in the world, but they listen to Geordie Dave coz he’s a regular in The Strawberry ?
Sharpy17(Quote)
I thought you might ?
Sharpy17(Quote)
So far as I can make out they want ongoing pledges monthly to raise as much as possible, in case we are relegated and start dropping down the leagues and end up in financial difficulties and the club needed buying at a cheap price or something . The idea being fans would chip in with potential new owner to buy it.
In the event the PIF/Ruebens and Mandy end up buying us then the money raised goes to charity.
All very noble but can’t see anywhere near enough getting raised even if we ended up in the conference !
Ashley would asset strip us before selling if we drop and keep dropping and not such a tempting proposition then.
Tell you what is interesting though, thought i read that of the top 6 richest clubs in the world 3 are owned by fans ? need to double check that as haven’t even looked at the list tbh.
kimtoon(Quote)