When selecting his latest Premier League team of the week, Garth Crooks aimed an odd dig at Newcastle United following our 3-0 defeat at Aston Villa.
The BBC pundit has declared that we are “not ready for the Champions League” – even if we do beat Spurs, Brighton, Liverpool and Villa to a top-four finish.
He feels our loss on Saturday proves we still aren’t up to it; a bizarre take when you consider how consistent we’ve been for almost 18 months now. We’ve lost four times all season – three of which came against Man City and Liverpool. In fact, Saturday’s loss was the first time since March 2022 that we’ve lost a league game to a side outside the ‘big six.’
Chelsea prove what a careless comment this was from Crooks. They are 11th in the table and haven’t won any of their last six games, yet they play Real Madrid in the quarter-final of the Champions League tonight. If they can do that on recent form, we are more than ‘ready’ to give it ago.
Newcastle have the best defence in the Premier League, the third best goal difference in the division, as many losses this season as Man City (4) and big plans to invest once again this summer, yet one defeat against one the leagues in-form teams (our third away game in 10 days) and we’re no longer deemed ‘ready.’ Come on Garth!
Here’s what he told the BBC in his latest piece:
“This was an impressive performance by Aston Villa. Two things stood out in this fixture: firstly, Aston Villa have been transformed under Unai Emery, and secondly, Newcastle United are not ready for the Champions League even if they do achieve a top-four place. Villa, on the other hand, look like a side who have unravelled all the complicated football and play the simple game.“
My question would be, who is ready then other than the three teams above us?
Cos from where I’m seating we look the best outside the top two
Marc Howe(Quote)
Garth Crooks is like the weather, opinions change every five minutes, what does he really know? I suspect very little.
Joseph(Quote)