I think the fact that our team has been relatively unchanged all season is a big factor, I think we've started the same back 5 in every PL game
Two key differences imo: 1). We DON'T have Bruce 2). We have an immense scouting network, including Graham Carr Bruce is frankly a bit crap at buying players. If we could spend the money he's spent with our scouting network we'd be ****ing flying. The models are different too. Whereas we're only buying youthful talent to nurture, Bruce goes and buys players like O'Shea and Brown. Good players, but what happens in a few seasons when they retire or run out of steam? He never thinks about the future, or taking time to BUILD a squad which will gel over many years. It's all a short term fix. Another example of that was the large number of loan players. I'm sure a quarter of your starting XI were loan players, which is a massive percentage compared to any other team. It's Graham Carr who has brought in the likes of Cabaye, Tiote, Ben Arfa and so on. We've been patient and really paid attention to cracking deals instead of blowing our cash too soon. I'm sure Cabaye was being watched by us for about 3 years before we bought him. That's patience. Our past success will always help us though. Thanks to CL games we're known across Europe, so when we approach players they've heard of us and often remember watching us play the likes of Barcelona when they we're kids. You never forget that, and it helps a bucketload. Santon even mentioned that he remembered watching us play Inter Milan in the CL when he was a kid. Some of our players may not BEAT the players of the top 5 teams into the starting XI, but they're close, and when they're that close, the extra dedication and team spirit we have can take us above them (for now at least). Krul, Ben Arfa, Coloccini, Cabaye, Tiote and Ba are all 'Top 4-6 quality', even if most of them currently wouldn't slot into the starting XI of any teams up there this season. Players like Steven Taylor and Jonas also aren't far behind this season with the form they've both found. There's more quality there than people realise. As I was saying before, top 4 teams have starting XI players who have only cost £5-10million. Just look at Vincent Kompany for £6million. I don't know why it's so far fetched that we can do that too.
I guess our scouting network is better, these days. All down to Lille that, I am amazed that the release clause was that low! Hell I am definitely not complaining mind, he's brilliant.
good article wouldn't say it was down to good fortune but hard graft and planning this was put up on our board earlier this combined with the updating of our training facility,underground heating etc. (which many laughed at as it was paid for by some of the Carroll money) is reaping the rewards at the moment
Of course this helps but i think Cabaye should have really gone to Arsenal so you have been lucky in respect of him and very lucky in that fact that all the crap in the past 4 years has seemingly done nothing to you..
Was that before or after a heart felt post saying he had enough of this board and was running away like a sissy?
On this, Newcastle have been making great efforts to get 'inside info' on players by 'grooming' scouts and representatives as opposed to players. For example Cabaye WAS being watched by Wenger, for years, but had just signed a new contract and therefore Wenger didn't want to spend money. A man in the know for Newcastle discovered Cabaye had a buy out clause and BOOM - a champions League player for £4.3m! Also, George Caulkin (I think it was him anyway) wrote an article on why Cabaye chose us. Basically Pardew showed him sheet after sheet of info not only showing why we wanted him, but how we planned to play with him in the future. Basically showing him we were a match for his style as well as him being a match for ours! Finally we have been offering exclusive rights to CANAL sports in France. They get player interviews and game highlights in return, we get positive feedback in the French press. Very clever PR all round from Newcastle (something that's been extremely rare in the past decade!)
Wenger doesnt have the French market all to himself, we (thanks in no small part to Graham Carr) are well aware of what's going on in Ligue 1. We were originally quoted 12 million for Cabaye, no one knew about the release clause and Lille were fuming we had found out about it.
Oh it is funny all the Mags on here purring over Pardew and his dedication and hard work. No doubt the same fans slagging and berating his appointment (looks like Mike Ashley was right after all!) Talking of Mike Ashley, who put these scouts and manager and club on a sound financial footing? No praise for Ashley on here? No huge slices of humble pie to be eaten then? Where's the Carol money they cry! I suppose the next slagging for Ashley will be the January window.
While that is true, I am happy we were all proved wrong! Could you honestly blame us for all the doom and gloom considering under the vast majority of MA's tenure we have lurched from one disaster into another!
Of course we didnt want Pardew, he had a questionable record at best and replaced our most popular manager since Sir Bobby, but has made some fantastic signings and got us to third in the league, so do expect us to still not want him? ****ing idiot.
Imagine you'd just been promoted under Peter Reid, then you'd done the team that sent you down 6:0, beat Arsenal away for the first time in donkeys and beaten us 5:1, then your owner inexplicably sacked Reid - would you not be a little miffed? Yeah, it looks like a great decision now. Was he right to do it - it would appear so. Was the way he went about it right? No, still a no! Ashley forgets that a football club is not a bargain basement sportshop and therefore, when treated as such, there is a backlash...I defy any of you to state that you'd have felt any less betrayed by him and his actions!
Oh a little bit of honesty there, well done. Still obviously the truth stung as you went to insults staight away. No mention of the thanks you should be giving Ashley though.......???? Colo's hair - you say you've lurched from one disaster to another with Ashley, however I think most of the blame goes to Sheppard not Ashley, look at the state of your club when Ashley took over, re debt overpayed underachieving players etc. Yes he has made some huge PR blunders and some fair sized footballing mistakes, however he was new to it, he maybe trusted some wrong people to begin. Maybe Newcastle can go from strength to stength if the fans got behind Ashley? I know as football fans ALL of us a quick to point the finger maybe you should all make banners saying stuff like "sorry Mike" and "we love you". "We love cockneys" "Ashley for Prime Minister"......have a gone a bit far with this, maybe a bit of credit to Mike is due....I have a Newcastle mate who has refused to go whilst Ashley is in charge on principle, I've told him he's cutting his nose of to spite his face and in the end he's missing out big time and can't give the man any credit what so ever.........amazing!
I think Ashley has a good set up going up the road and they have a net spend of minus £20 million. I think Newcastle's centre mid (cabaye and tiote) and Colocini stand them apart from us at the moment. We have no players even close to their ability in those positions...
For me it was less about Pardew's credentials and more the way Chris Hughton was treated, I think that's the same for a lot of my fellow Toons. Ashley isn't out of the woods with me, far from it, he's got a long way to go for me to forgive him for the things he has done - and is still doing concerning our now-Sports Direct billboard of a stadium. As far as running a football club though I thought him and Dekka were completely clueless but the evidence recently shows they're really learning. The jury's still out on Ashley and we'll see what he does in the next two transfer windows, that will say more than anything where he wants this club to go, because if he makes the right moves we could go far.
For me, Colocini has been a revelation. Two years ago he was an embarassment. He's good. Wouldn'r surprise me if Man Ure came calling.
