Tiote-related pants explosions, Obertanian frustrations and a spot of luck

Since it seems everyone's making a thread in which to vent their thoughts on the match, I figured I might join in. It's 2:30 AM here in Queensland and I want some sleep so I'll try to be quick:

-Gutierrez's goal was something for the scrapbook - its not often you see a quality solo goal like that in the Prem and that was exquisite. The way he made Roger Johnson look a right tit and pass it past Hennesey was fantastic; makes me really happy we have him for another four years.

-Obertan shouldn't be a starter - yet. When Arfa/Marv are ready there should be no hesitation in replacing Obertan. This match showed how frustrating he can be, his dribbling can be mesmerizing but those weak and patchy crosses are incredibly irritating. JUST CROSS THE ****ING THING.

-I can no longer hear a commentator yell 'Tiote!' and contain my pants. When he took the long shot in the first half I almost exploded with excitement with Arsenal flashbacks.


-Cabaye is a class act. Again. - there are not enough superlatives to describe him. Looks to be one of, if not the finest purchase of this Premier League season. The board and Carr deserve real credit for picking him up - I wonder where we'd be without him.

-We need to work on our performances when in the lead - after this match and Blackburn it is clear that this side seems to drop off when comfortably in the lead. It's only so long before a side does actually make a comeback against us; we need to finish off teams and keep the pressure on rather than sit back and let them come at us.

-We were EXTREMELY lucky; Wolves had some incredibly dubious calls go against them. The Jamie O'Hara penalty was absolutely crystal clear, Kevin Doyle's goal should have counted and numerous other decisions were dodgy, such as Henry's yellow.

In summary: 3rd in the league, with an effective strike force, quality midfield and sturdy defence. For once its Sunderland in the headlines for delinquent players, rubbish management and club instability.

For once as a Toon fan, I am happy. Sure, we were lucky, but we ****ing won.

 

Good work. agree with all

 

too right ive defended obertoon all season but today he was way to lazy and frustrating we need to work on consolidating leads just like last season where we lost the most amount of points from winning positions

 

maybe obertan thinks his place in the team is safe, so isn't playing his best.

 

Good article. Agree with everything apart from the Obertan bit. I think Marvo/Ben Arfa have to earn there places first, but agree.. Obertan has to improve his crossing but you can't deny his trickery and pace!

 

Obertan does have marvellous pace and flair, I love watching his runs, leaving defenders for dead. But he still doesn't display the rounded out qualities of Marv/Ben Arfa. As much as I'd love for Obertan to be given more playing time, we have 2 target men strikers who need service and the current setup isn't working. Arfa/Marv have that end product which Obertan lacks, that powerful shot or floated cross - but I hope that with time Obertan will improve and that we'll get to enjoy his exciting play alongside some exciting goals/assists!

 

One of the main negatives about Obertan is his tracking back and defensive work. His effort when trying to stop the cross for the goal and all other crosses was terrible. His tracking back in general is terrible!

 

Great article. Not sure about Obertan not deserving a first team place, i'm on the fence a bit re that to be honest, but other than that couldn't agree more.

 

Im pretty sure he wont, he will train with Hatem and Marveux everyday and know how good they are

 

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Hmmmm, no star smiley now.

 

Good article, I'll let you know if I agree with you comments after seeing the game later tonight.

 

how can they if they don't get subbed on until the 92nd minute

 

LOL^

When the ref gave the "freekick" i went outside for a cigarette, when i came in and found it at 2-0 i was thinking get in Tim but was not to be ...

 

Cheers for the feedback - glad to see people like it. After the international break will come the biggest test yet; we'll either see a dramatic reality check or pull through and prove the pundits wrong again. Either way, it's an exciting time to be a Toon fan.

Newcastle's always been an unpredictable club, so it's nice for once to be unpredictably good.

 

Agree other than Obertan because he's been doing very well other than the second half yesterday, however so were a few.

 

I just wish he fixed that end-product. I see so much promise in his attacking play and he can be so exciting going forward but you always have that feeling it will amount to nothing. Once he gets those shots/crosses right he'll be great

 

Totally agree on Obertan, he's so hit and miss. Yesterday he was awful. Gave the ball away so much, didn't work hard to win the ball back. Such a poor attempt at a tackle for their goal (after he was the one who gave the ball away). Just frustrates me so much.

I understand Pardew wants to reward the players playing well by keeping them in the team, but We have Ben Arfa and Marveaux on the bench, and as a result Obertan's place has to be under threat. So if he plays like he did yesterday, you've got to drop him. IT gives someone else a chance, and Obertan will know he has to up his game if he wants to stay in the first team.