Brighton 1-1 Newcastle: Toon denied late win after much improved 2nd half display

The third game of our current interim period between Steve Bruce and a new manager was seemingly being proved to be our last one with Eddie Howe spotted attending the match with Amanda Staveley.

The most urgent and worrying thing about this match is that we started the evening, sitting dead bottom of the league with Norwich beating Brentford in their 3pm kick-off.

We were now the only club in the league to not win a game and we were faced with an up-hill battle to get one against a fantastic Brighton side.

There were a few changes from our Chelsea defeat with Almiron, Murphy and Shelvey coming in but concerns were raised amongst Newcastle fans with the likes of Dubravka, Fernandez, Willock and Schar continuing to miss out.

20 minutes in Clark gave away a penalty with a silly challenge on Trossard. The Brighton man definitely made a meal of it but Clark simply didn’t touch the ball in his tackle. Trossard made it look easy as we knocked the penalty down the middle and granted Brighton a 1-0 lead.

The commentator nails exactly the problem with our team, ten minutes after their goal, saying “I don’t know what Newcastle are doing.” The whole half hour was listless and pointless. There was also absolutely nothing to suggest that this would change at any point.

Half-time couldn’t come quickly enough as we looked exactly like our position in the table suggested. An absolutely dreadful half of football where we showed how bad and how shot of confidence we are. Everything was dreadful and this was an insult to the idea of this being “entertainment”.

An Isaac Hayden equaliser on 65th minute brought back some hope that all was not lost. It was a brilliantly worked free-kick and highly impressive. The ball was given to Saint-Maximin on the wing who bought some time for Ritchie to cross it in, have the ball knocked down by Ciaran Clark and blasted in by Hayden. A rare example of how good this team should be.

In the 90th minute, Wilson was sent through on goal from an excellent ball from Joelinton. Sanchez took Wilson out and was then sent off. The preference in all honesty would have been Wilson to not be fouled because he was definitely going to score.

That decision earned Brighton a point too as we were unable to get a shot on target afterwards. Why didn’t Shelvey shoot?!

All in all, a point was probably fair on the balance of the game but Sanchez’s blatant foul made this a case of three points lost instead of one point gained.

Eddie Howe has a hell of a job on his hands to put us on a more successful path but there is hope that things can be positively changed. If we can simply stop being so passive in matches then there is hope that we can hone the talent within the team.

214 thoughts on “Brighton 1-1 Newcastle: Toon denied late win after much improved 2nd half display

  1. Who is the leader in the dressing room?
    You wouldn’t think we were bottom of the table at the time the match started, who was there to gee them up?
    Clarke yet another poor piece of defending!
    Sleepwalking into relegation and they don’t seem to care, we must have a better defence than the one we currently put out, LHS is a real issue for us we have had no real cover in that area even when Benitez was in charge.

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  2. Who makes the decisions on the field? You have a centre half in goal and we dont take a shot from a direct free kick. I know Shelvey is **** at free kicks, so let Ritchie or Murphy have a go. St Max can also hit a ball well although I would be afriad he would snatch at it.

    The one thing I do know is that if you give Shelvey time to think like for corners and free kicks he screws up.

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  3. The Graeme Jones era has thankfully ended. This season he is responible for 5 points from 11 games and the worst winless streak to start a season in NUFC history.

    Of the games he actually managed not a single NUFC fan in the world would have picked the teams he did or set up like he did. He said after today’s match that it is a process and we started that against Chelsea. You know, that Chelsea game where we lost 3-0 and had 21% possession. What sort of process is that, and if there was really a process then WTF were we doing against Palace? Did he forget that he was actually in charge of that and a Benteke away from a hiding?

    He will look back on his time as Manager and probably reinvent history. We were outplayed against Palace and Chelsea and for 60 mins against Brighton. The best you can say is it was about even for the final half hour today.

    His legacy as Manager will be 2 (UNDESERVED) points from 9. That is 0.66 points per game. You need about 1 point per game to stay up. For the season we are 5 points from 11 games. That is 0.45 PPG.

    Bruce is said to have only been at the training ground 2 or 3 days a week and then he didnt take training. You can safely say that Graeme and the Steves are as responsible for this mess as the Cabbage is.

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  4. Eric+Sykes:
    The Graeme Jones era has thankfully ended. This season he is responible for 5 points from 11 games and the worst winless streak to start a season in NUFC history.

    Of the games he actually managed not a single NUFC fan in the world would have picked the teams he did or set up like he did. He said after today’s match that it is a process and we started that against Chelsea. You know, that Chelsea game where we lost 3-0 and had 21% possession. What sort of process is that, and if there was really a process then WTF were we doing against Palace? Did he forget that he was actually in charge of that and a Benteke away from a hiding?

    He will look back on his time as Manager and probably reinvent history. We were outplayed against Palace and Chelsea and for 60 mins against Brighton. The best you can say is it was about even for the final half hour today.

    His legacy as Manager will be 2 (UNDESERVED) points from 9. That is 0.66 points per game. You need about 1 point per game to stay up. For the season we are 5 points from 11 games. That is0.45 PPG.

    Bruce is said to have only been at the training ground 2 or 3 days a week and then he didnt take training. You can safely say that Graeme and the Steves are as responsible for this mess as the Cabbage is.

    Eric – you know I never jumped on the Jones the saviour bandwagon & always wondered why people were so certain he could successfully take over if they let Bruce go – but I think that’s harsh mate.

    He’s been responsible for the last 3 games – Bruce was responsible for the other 9.

    When Howe & Tindall come in, if Jones stays on with them, it will be Howe responsible because he will call the shots.

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  5. Sharpy: it was the bit after the game where Jones said it was a process that started with the Chelsea game (slaughter) and conveniently forgot he had been in charge for Palace and we didnt even try against Chelsea who were held 1-1 today by Burnley. That’s what got me going again. I know the buck stops with Bruce. I like to exaggerate a bit now and again just to emphasize my point 🙂

    I dont think Jones was the worst Manager in NUFC history either. He wasnt in charge long enough to prove that. There was Richard Dinnis and a few others worse. We have had some bad ones but even some who had partial success were also bad. Dalglish for instance who dismantled a great team and replaced them with his aging cronies. Dalglish was probably worse, because Jones only managed to show his total ineptitude for 3 games.

    I am not saying Dalglish was once not a great manager, just that he did some bonkers things at NUFC.

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  6. Well lets see if Eddie can get a tune out of them, we will soon know if it’s the coaching methods or if some of our players are really just poor.

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  7. I really hope Howe will be a bit more truthful than our last Managers. It was like they were watching different games to me. I know we should accentuate the positive but if Bruce saw 15 minutes of decent play he would act like that was how we played all game forgetting the 30% or so possession we had. Similarly with Jones. An even last 30 minutes against Brighton means we deserved a win!!! He was watching a completely dfferent game against Chelsea than me! Thank god we will see very little of him from now on and not have to listen to his utter tripe delivered in a believable fashion but the words were still utter tripe. Talking about, and apealing to, Geordie passion only gets you so far. What really matters is what happens on the pitch and you are soon found out, and found to be a charlatan.

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  8. KIMTOON:
    Well lets see if Eddie can get a tune out of them, we will soon know if it’s the coaching methods or if some ofour players are really just poor.

    Kim – I think it will be combination of both really.
    I look at teams like Brighton, Brentford, Leeds and Villa – player for player they aren’t much better than us, if at all really.

    My biggest concern is our defence. Individually they are poor – maybe Howe can get them playing better as a unit until January, but that’s where most of the money needs to be spent imo.

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  9. At least the tactics were interesting yesterday. We played with a 5 at the back which was really an 8 for most of the 1st half. But when we had a tiny bit of the ball, Krafth or Murphy moved more into MF and the wing. After 60 minutes we decided to play about 10 yards further up the pitch and suddenly Brighton werent so dangerous. It didnt result in many shots but was better.

    I think this is the first thing Howe has to address. How we play further up the pitch. We dont really know if any of our defenders can actually pass because they are given no time on the ball when they are stationed on our own 18 yard line. We all know the result. A Darlow or Lascelles hoof.

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  10. One recent development that I welcome is real time discussion of the match from the Chronic. Maybe Ryder isnt the best judge but he gives you an analysis and gut feeling of the match as it takes place. Then he does a half time summary. The good thing is that this is all in writing and they cant take it back if we somehow pull off a good result and the Manager tries to pull the wool over our eyes. Neil Harrison also does a half time report. I read his for yesterday and he pretty much said we were dismal, which jived with what I was watching.

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  11. I was close to not watching the 2nd half yesterday because Brighton have recently played us off the park and then we tire on 70 mins. As I was watching I was thinking we had not moved on from Pardew. His plan was always to get to half time at 0-0 or even 0-1 and try to nick it in the 2nd half. That is exactly what we did yesterday and against Chelsea. It almost worked yesterday and failed miserably against Chelsea.

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  12. Phil Neville is failing in Miami. He manages Beckham’s team. I said on here a couple of years ago that he was the worst co-commentator that I had ever heard. All you had to do to be correct was the opposite of what he said. I said he would fail at the Women’s National Team as well. Never has there been somebody so **** get so far on the coat-tails of his brother.

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  13. Sharpy, i tend to agree but Howe isn’t known for being good defensively, however his teams are attack minded so maybe his plan going forward is to just attack, lords knows we have enough pace in ASM, Murphy, Fraser, Migs to get forward with intent. The longer they can keep our fragile defense unoccupied the better.
    Pack the mid try and stifle play and let the opo worry about us for a change. We cannot go on just sitting back and playing counter, it’s not working and is cowardly and only ever acceptable against teams like City, Pool and Chelsea. Every other team we should be pressing where ever possible.
    Fitness and conditioning will be Howes first priority i’d imagine, god knows we are not fit, lots of players gassed by 50 – 60 mins, unacceptable at PL level, these are supposed to be elite athletes .

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  14. Can’t wait to see what Eddie does with Joelinton, now the number 9 has been lifted from his shoulders he looks much happier. He’s not been too bad when he’s come on, I do think there is a player in there, just needs the right coach.

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  15. KIMTOON:
    Sharpy, i tend to agree but Howe isn’t known for being good defensively, however his teams are attack minded so maybe his plan going forward is to just attack, lords knows we have enough pace in ASM, Murphy, Fraser, Migsto get forward with intent. The longer they can keep our fragile defense unoccupied the better.
    Pack the mid try and stifle play and let the opo worry about us for a change. We cannot go on just sitting back and playing counter, it’s not working and is cowardly and only ever acceptable against teams like City, Pool and Chelsea. Every other team we should be pressing where ever possible.
    Fitness and conditioning will be Howes first priority i’d imagine, god knows we are not fit, lots of players gassed by 50 – 60 mins, unacceptable at PL level, these are supposed to be elite athletes .

    Kim – I think that will be exactly it. As we are now – and going back to Rafa really – teams knew we would give up possession, sit back & invite teams onto us. It’s makes it extremely difficult to win games if you only have less than 30% possession of the ball – and a lot of that has been with our defenders because teams know we are no real threat back there with our game plan being counter attack.

    You can immediately improve your defensive frailties by having more of the ball – if the opponents are working to get the ball back, they aren’t attacking your defence.

    As a footballer it must be so disheartening knowing you are going into a game accepting you are giving up 70-75% of possession to the other team. How do you get excited by that???.

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  16. KIMTOON:
    Can’t wait to see what Eddie does with Joelinton, now the number 9 has been lifted from his shoulders he looks much happier. He’s not been too bad when he’s come on, I do think there is a player in there, just needs the right coach.

    It was a perfect pass to put Wilson through. He has looked a bit better this season but I listen to McDonald on Wraith’s show and he really doesnt rate him at all.

    Donkey is an enigma because Naglesman picked him. Maybe Howe can find something there?

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  17. Dean Smith fired. Better get Howe signed up!

    When I was trying to think of caretakers who had actually succeeded I could only think of Smith. Now even he is gone. Hughton at NUFC did OK but not so well since.

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  18. There’s a few I’m interested in seeing how they get on – and I think it will depend on what system/formation he goes with.

    At Bmth he played 4-4-2 or 4-4-1-1. But his players were hard working & disciplined. I wonder how or where ASM fits in, being that he’s been our most creative players with lots of freedom – could he have the discipline to play LW if asked. To stay out wide and double up with the full back when needed?!.

    What will he do at LB?!.

    I think we could see Longstaff improve being asked to perform a different role in that midfield under Howe.

    I remember when we had Dan Gosling who looked bang average for us. Howe took him to Bmth and whilst he wasn’t a regular in the first team, when he did play he looked so much better than when we had him.

    Will it be Murphy or Fraser RW?!.

    Can Howe get Gayle playing and scoring goals?!.

    I think it’s good that Howe will have a decent period before the January window to look at what he’s got.

    I don’t expect miracles. It will take time to turn things round & we’ve got some awful fixtures. But he’s got players in that squad that he could definitely got more from imo.

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  19. Eric+Sykes:
    Dean Smith fired. Better get Howe signed up!

    When I was trying to think of caretakers who had actually succeeded I could only think of Smith. Now even he is gone. Hughton at NUFC did OK but not so well since.

    Eric – I think they are going with Fonseca mate.

    I thought Norwich might go Wilder, but he’s just gone to Boro. Not sure who they’ll go with, but as Farke was sacked despite winning, I think they must have someone in mind.

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  20. Be very interesting to see who villa go for. John Terry, Lampard, or Fonseca? I’ve heard Steve Bruce is an excellent manager and he’s available… I’m sure he can do a job for them, considering how highly thought of he is with all the pundits… that’s if Manure don’t snap him up first. ??

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  21. Gilly Toon:
    Be very interesting to see who villa go for. John Terry, Lampard, or Fonseca? I’ve heard Steve Bruce is an excellent manager and he’s available… I’m sure he can do a job for them, considering how highly thought of he is with all the pundits… that’s if Manure don’t snap him up first.

    Gilly, get on one of the Villa Blogs and do some taunting with Bruce to Villa. I am sure he could take them to mid-table Championship. Oh, he already did that before Dean Smith got them promoted you say 🙂

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  22. Bruce actually has a lot of options now with his old teams:

    Villa, as I just said.

    The Mackems are in a mini-slump.

    Man U. OGS looks tired at the moment. I think the job is getting to him.

    Wigan? 3rd Division.

    Birmingham? 3rd Division

    Hull? 3rd bottom in Championship

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  23. I can’t say my heart goes out to Smith after he jumped on the Brucey love in when he was sacked – but I do think his dismissal is a bit harsh.

    The board had no choice but to sell Grealish in the summer as he had a release clause – and to their credit they did reinvest if not all that money, then certainly most of it.

    But they knew how much of an influence Grealish was in that team & how much they built everything they did around him. They would have known how long it would take not just to bed in new players, but develop a style of play that did not revolve around Grealish.

    The sensible pick would be Terry, who has worked in the club recently and understands the culture & set up. I suspect they will go for Fonseca who will come in and make bigger changes – probably a different formation. It then depends on how they react to that. My hope is that they sink like a stone ?

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  24. I did think after Howe & Tindall were at the match yesterday, their appointment would have been announced at some point today.

    If Staveley is happy to have been seen publicly with them, that would nail on it’s him she’s wanting in. So I really don’t know what they are waiting on now.

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  25. Jones said he has been assured of a job with the new regime and the Chronic quote him as saying “I am not here to put cones out”. No, because the last time he did that he put 5 across the 18 yard line and another 3 five yards ahead of them. The other 2 were placed in isolation on the half way line. The players were completely confused as to what drill they were doing.

    I said earlier we better get a move on with Howe. It was sort of tongue in cheek but it looks like Villa fans at least would like him.

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  26. Oh, and Jones asked Gayle to take out an extra cone in the 91st minute of training and place that on the half way line as well. By then, the rest of the players had all sat down and were waiting for the sesh to end.

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  27. Just listened to a True Faith Podcast on the Brighton game. They were saying this is the worst they have EVER seen a NUFC team play. They had Bruce and Jones as the cuprits. I am not sure if I agree with them though. I think there is a bit of recency bias here because the last 4 games have just been SOOOOO bad. We did OK at the backend of last season and also this year against Watford. And… even though Bruce was making excuses we have had short spells when we have looked good like against West Ham. Not enough to win or even really look good, but he was correct in a way, he just extrapolated to the whole game which was not correct.

    Jones did it yesterday when we were OK for the last 25 minutes and he translated that to us playing well. He even stretched it back to the Chelsea game impying that had laid the groundwork. FOR WHAT – for a terrible first half at Brighton.

    I think we have been shyte and especially in the last 4 games but I am not sure you can say this has been the worst we have ever played.

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  28. How ahead got two weeks with most of the squad now. We should see a new style for the Brentford game. It’s a perfect game in many respects but they’ve just lost 5 on the bounce so could have done with playing them now and not after the break.

    I don’t see Greame Jones here long term. They’ll fit him in somewhere short term but it’s not ideal. At least he knows and has worked with Tindall.

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  29. Stuart79:
    How ahead got two weeks with most of the squad now. We should see a new style for the Brentford game. It’s a perfect game in many respects but they’ve just lost 5 on the bounce so could have done with playing them now and not after the break.

    I don’t see Greame Jones here long term. They’ll fit him in somewhere short term but it’s not ideal. At least he knows and has worked with Tindall.

    Stu – I agree. Wherever Martinez ends up will be where Jones goes I reckon. So be it ??‍♂️.

    Howe should have most of the squad with him over the next 2 weeks.

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  30. I am going to state the obvious and say money is no guarantee of success. We know we need to shore up the defense in January but there is a cautionary tale out there and it is Man U. I watched them against City and but for De Gea heroics they could have shipped 5. Ant yet they spent a fortune on defenders. I am not sure of the exact figures but these are close:

    McGuire 80 mil
    Wan Bassaka 50 mil
    Shaw 30 mil
    Baily 30 mil
    Lindelof 30 mil

    Even though a couple are not British, I think I would stay away from Brit defenders unless there is a contract situation. There is just no value there.

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  31. My hope for DoF is Michael Edwards. I know there are bigger names throughout Europe, but that’s not where we are – and not really the club I want us to be.

    Edwards started at Lpool as Head of performance & analysis before moving to Sports Director and has been there for 10yrs.

    So he knows the English league and the footballing world at the highest current levels. He’s brought in some of the biggest players from the biggest clubs around Europe – whilst at the same time dealing with clubs like Hull to sign players like Robertson.

    Of the candidates, he seems the right fit & having done a number of roles at Lpool, seems to be the ‘football’ man we desperately need in the board.

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  32. Of the players on international duty who would be in contention to start?

    Schar
    Miggy
    Lewis
    Dubravka

    Fraser has pulled out of the Scotland squad. That leaves:

    Clark
    Hendrick
    Krafth

    I am not sure any of these will be here after January as somebody has to be sold to make room in the squad for new arrivals. If they are not sold then the only other option is not to give them a squad number and have them play in the reserves.

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  33. Eric – I obviously just posted straight after your last comment there – and I agree with you. That’s why I favour Edwards. What he’s done at Lpool hasn’t been all about splashing the cash – it’s been structured. It’s been about identifying the right players to fit the squad they have wanted to assemble and getting them – whether they be free transfers or £80m CBs.

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  34. Eric+Sykes:
    Sharpy: has Edwards left Liverpool? Why is he available?

    Eric – he’s meant to be leaving at the end of this season, but if he’s not staying them maybe leaves sooner so the new man can get on with their plans.

    I’m not sure why he’s going to be honest. Klopp speaks highly of him, so maybe it’s issues above him ??‍♂️.

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  35. georgio:
    Campos would be a good one for DOF.

    Georgio – too soon for him I think. If we were CL or up amongst the European elite already, then maybe.

    I think Edwards could certainly build us up to that.

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  36. I think the Consortium were telling white lies to Graeme Jones saying he had a future at NUFC. He may have had if he had not been such a disaster, but what else were they expected to tell him – you have the 2/3 games and then you are out? They had to keep him motivated even though it didnt help because he is useless.

    Jones will have very little influence on the first team and will be employed in a minor role and then fade away. Hopefully, the demotion will cause him to leave. He can find another job as he can talk his way out of the 3 game disaster. He has already tried to do that by saying he is not a Manager, which is just an excuse in my book.

    Anyway, he started out trying to pull at Geordie heart strings, just like Bruce did, but this quickly descended into Brucespeak.

    Hopefully, I will never hear his name mentioned again once Howe has a week to bed in.

    I know I am the BIGGEST CULPRIT for mentioning his name on here 🙂 🙂 🙂

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  37. I mentioned who will be away, but the 4 biggest question marks will still be in Newcastle and in training.

    How will Fraser and Howe get along.

    Does Matt Ritchie have a place in the side? He is not a full back but is also too slow to be a winger now.

    Joelinton – he is supposed to be good in training

    Lascelles – he has been pretty **** this year.

    You can add ASM as his performances tailed off under Jones. In his case, it is not whether to play him, but where to play him. Howe has to figure out a way to not have 3 opposition players on him every time he gets the ball. Having a threat from other NUFC players would be a start.

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  38. Telegraph reporting Michael Emanalo is the favourite for DoF role. 10 years at Chelsea so he must be pretty good.

    At this rate he will probably be announced before Howe…

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  39. I don’t see Gerrard going to Villa – I think he stays and tries to win more with Rangers.

    I think Martinez or Fonseca goes in there. My money is on Fonseca as I think Martinez will want to see the WC out with Belgium.

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  40. I know it is funny to say that Man U will be after Bruce now OGS is in trouble, but what about the other jobs that were/are available? His pundit pals have gone awfully quiet about whether he would fit at Norwich, or Cardiff or Boro. He has not offially retired so why wasnt he mentioned?

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  41. Was Danny Murphy on MOTD? He was one of Bruce’s biggest defenders to the bitter end. When Farke was sacked wouldnt the obvious thing for Danny to say be – Steve Bruce is available. He has Managed 1,000 games and kept NUFC in the PL. He would do the same for Norwich and is the perfect man for the job. Or how about Agbonlohor? He hasnt put Bruce forward for any open job.

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  42. You should do a profile of Eddie Howe Olly.

    I think most people know the basics, but does everybody know he took over Bournemouth when he was in his early 30’s and they were bottom of League 2 (4th Division) and with a points deduction? He really only got the job because they thought they were headed to non-league. Somehow he got them to the PL with an 11.000 seater stadium. He had a brief spell at Burnley that I didnt follow. Then there was the relegation. What happened there?

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  43. Finally!!!. Deal done and we have a new manager/head coach.

    Welcome Eddie Howe and team.

    He needs time & will defo need backed in January – but I have a good feeling about this appointment – one I’m not sure I’d have had if they went with Fonseca.

    Give him a chance & get behind him. This is going to be a tough season still.

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  44. A process! That is what Jones said, and he said it started against Chelsea. The man must think we are stupid, he certainly is. You are down 1-0 at Brighton and have a half of football to save your reputation. You would have to be an idiot not to go for it. And he acts like it was planned. A fcn process. No, he was desperate, and the change was simple; play 10 yards further up the pitch. He had absolutely nothing to lose. Seriously, he acts like there was a plan. Liar!!! There was no plan, you incompetant fool. Leave our club.

    Last word on Jones, I promise.

    Welcome Eddie.

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  45. It’s pretty pointless working during the first week of an international break. Give the lads the week off and get yourself away on holiday to Portugal Eddie. Take Jonjo along, he can help with your golf game. Then next week you can have 3 days of “meticulous” training before losing the next game. Oh, that was the last Manager you say and you are not like that.

    Welcome Eddie, I think you will be the anti-Bruce.

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  46. What Howe did at Bournemouth was almost Clough-like. Even Brian had his failures but he took 2 middling clubs to league titles and won the CL twice. People may judge him for the later years when the booze got to him but Cloughie was a force of nature when he was younger.

    Getting a club from bottom of the 4th division to the PL is unheard of.

    C’mon Eddie. Let the good times roll. I am sick of hearing platitudes in press conferences and especially sick of defensive football. Whatever the apologists say, we only had one shot on target against Brighton and I think it was 4 touches in their box. Very similar against Chelsea, Palace and Spurs.

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  47. Finally, we have a decent forward thinking manager in charge of our club! Happy with that. 2 weeks to sort the **** out. I think the out basket will be very full by the time January comes along.

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  48. KIMTOON:
    Welcome Eddie, new era, new ideas, onward and upward hopefully.

    Kimtoon: check out his stats on the post above this.

    He never had any money until his last couple of years at B’mth. Even in the PL he had a better win % than Cabbage with a tiny budget. Some uninformed people point to a few misses in the transfer market and ignore the hits and who he sold for big profits.

    I think we will be fine. Still need at least 3 in Jan. Linguard, a CB and a centre mid would do it.

    Lingard could play off Wilson as a 10 until and if we see if Eddie can fix Miggy who was great as a #10 in MLS. Need backup for Wilson as well. Ivan Toney?

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  49. Eric+Sykes: Kimtoon: check out his stats on the post above this.

    He never had any money until his last couple of years at B’mth. Even in the PL he had a better win % than Cabbage with a tiny budget. Some uninformed people point to a few misses in the transfer market and ignore the hits and who he sold for big profits.

    I think we will be fine. Still need at least 3 in Jan. Linguard, a CB and a centre mid would do it.

    Lingard could play off Wilson as a 10 until and if we see if Eddie can fix Miggy who was great as a #10 in MLS. Need backup for Wilson as well. Ivan Toney?

    Eric – as much as I’d love Lingard in I think if he were to leave Man Utd, it would be for WHU as they are current where we hope to be. I think Lingard is about 28 so wants that higher level of football now rather than help a club get to it over the next 3-4 seasons.

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  50. Sharpy: you were right about Jared Bowen. The Big(ger) boys are thinking about him now. Rumour is Liverpool, although West Ham are currently above them! 🙂

    Still, I think it will be a while before WH win the CL and PL so I think Liverpool are a step up.

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  51. Stu: you are out of quarantine yet? I think I will go to the bar to watch Howe’s 1st game. Havent been yet this year because of 1st Covid and then I was so disgusted with the Bruce/Jones combo. Chicago is almost fully open so even a 3 O’clock kickoff (9am here) with all other teams’ fans in shouldnt be bad. Will be good to see some of the Chicago NUFC fans again.

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  52. Eric+Sykes:
    Stu: you are out of quarantine yet? I think I will go to the bar to watch Howe’s 1st game. Havent been yet this year because of 1st Covid and then I was so disgusted with the Bruce/Jones combo. Chicago is almost fully open so even a 3 O’clock kickoff (9am here) with all other teams’ fans in shouldnt be bad. Will be good to see some of the Chicago NUFC fans again.

    Yes Eric back to normal. Well apart from my taste still not 100%. We should have been in the US now but our flight was booked for 2nd and they didn’t open the borders until today so… Heading to NY for the new year so hopefully be no restrictions.

    On Howe I am impressed with him the more I see and read about him. He’s forward thinking and it will be a quite bizarre experience going into matches trying to win rather than sit back and hope to get lucky. I definitely think we will have a upturn in results.

    If Michael Emanalo comes too then wow we really are turning into a football club!

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  53. Stu, hadn’t realized you had Covid ! Hope you are better now, the loss of taste and smell is a swine, my mates son still has neither back after getting it at the England Italy final !
    Due to get my booster soon .

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  54. Agree with that. Emanelo and Howe. Could be a great combination or should we have stuck with Bruce and Jones?

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  55. Good to see that Howe will be taking training today. It sort of highlights the difference in approach with Bruce. What I would really like is for Ryder to ask him in his first press conference why he wasnt in Portugal for his 1st week. Remember it was Ryder who asked Bruce about his jaunt to Portugal and who got an earful back.

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  56. I’d be happy with either Emanelo of Michael Edwards – but Emanelo is out of work and available now. I’d rather have someone in and working ready for January and having a clear vision for what’s needed in the summer.
    Emanelo is elite in his role as well and whilst Chelsea spent big money – but he also oversaw the academy with James, Mount, Gilmour and Abraham all coming through.

    Stu – I’m also impressed with what I’ve seen on Howe. When you consider hes still only 43, all of his achievements so far have come at a young age.
    I know some people have suggested that he had it easier as the heat was off at a smaller club – but when you consider his age, and the fact he was at a club who backed him twice – both as a player & manager. The time he returned as a player it was the fans themselves that raised the money to buy him – so the pressure was certainly on.

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  57. Looking at the players we could realistically bring in January – I think Trakowski, Tripper and Ramsey.

    I know Trippier & Ramsey are 30 so it wouldn’t be building for the future as such. But they are players we NEED in NOW.

    He may also look at players like Nketiah or Lacazette at Arsenal for CF cover.

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  58. You know that Howe had to get to his office early to clear out all of the empty pizza boxes and Greggs’ wrappers that Bruce left before he could even think about training.

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  59. Sharpy: I wouldnt mind Lacazette at all. If Howe is going to play the high press then Wilson might need a rest now and again or subbed on 75 mins. It wouldnt just be cover for if he gets injured.

    I think the most obvious players we could get are fringe players like Lingard and Loftus Cheek. I know you dont agree on Lingard. I think it will be easier to get players from teams that do not see us as rivals which is why I think it would hard to get McGinn from Villa who some fans seem to think is a possibility.

    Then there are the ones whose contracts are coming up like Tarkowski.

    Not sure about Ramsey. He is on a fortune at Juve. Maybe a loan?

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  60. Eric+Sykes:
    Sharpy: I wouldnt mind Lacazette at all. If Howe is going to play the high press then Wilson might need a rest now and again or subbed on 75 mins. It wouldnt just be cover for if he gets injured.

    I think the most obvious players we could get are fringe players like Lingard and Loftus Cheek. I know you dont agree on Lingard. I think it will be easier to get players from teams that do not see us as rivals which is why I think it would hard to get McGinn from Villa who some fans seem to think is a possibility.

    Then there are the ones whose contracts are coming up like Tarkowski.

    Not sure about Ramsey. He is on a fortune at Juve. Maybe a loan?

    Eric – I think if Lingard leaves Man Utd & WHU show any interest at all, that’s where he’ll end up mate.
    Loftus Cheek is getting more game time at Chelsea now & seems to me the type of player that would be happier a fringe player at a Hollywood club than work at a growing club – similar to Lingard ironically.

    Ramsey could be leaving Juve on a free. He’ll want a big wage but will know he’s not getting as much as that again. I think he’d go for a big sign on fee and a £150-200k wage to play regular football for the last few years of his career. If he comes in with the same mentality he had at Arsenal I think he could be exactly the player we need. Talented but hardworking & can inspire his team to win.
    He’s like a James Milner type player in the squad if his heads still in the right place.

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  61. Ramsey’s way past his best and picks up a lot of niggles (not fully fit). Need someone more dynamic for the midfield.

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  62. georgio:
    Ramsey’s way past his best and picks up a lot of niggles (not fully fit). Need someone more dynamic for the midfield.

    Plays in the same position as Willock as well, who I think will come good.

    Sharpy has been right on Lingard and Bowen so he does come up with decent suggestions.

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