NEWCASTLE UNITED 4 - 2 GLASGOW RANGERS
(Shearer, Bellamy, Bernard, Dyer) - (Prso, Ricksen)

Butt made his debut coming on at half time, Kluivert and Milner didn't play but they'll probably be involved tomorrow. Bernard's goal was awesome, skinned one player, skinned a second player and then smashed it into the top corner from 25 yards.



Tomorrow we play Sporting Lisbon who beat Feyenoord on penalties after a 1-1 draw. Rangers play Feyenoord.

Last edited by evil_bastard on Jul-31-2004 at 19:38

NEWCASTLE UNITED 0 - 1 SPORTING LISBON
(Tello)

For Shearer, Brittain, Harper, Bernard, Hughes, Bramble, Dyer and Bowyer this was the second full game in 24 hours and they all looked tired.

Milner made his home debut and looked promising with all of our chances coming down that side. He was willing to take players on, neat dribbling, always battling (unlike Robert) and most importantly he had an end product to his runs. He nearly scored in the first half after cutting inside from the left, beating his man and unleashing a 25 yard drive just past the near post. But both Milner and Brittain were constantly lofting aimless balls into the box which their defenders duly dealth with.

Butt was also introduced in the second half, he made some excellent tackles and interceptions but at times he was trying to play the perfect long balls out to the flanks rather than the simple ball. Nevertheless his passing has looked a definite improvement on Gary Speed and doesn't give the ball away so easily.

Kluivert made his debut coming on for Shearer after 60 minutes and, like Shearer and Ameobi in the first half, he didn't get much service from our tired midfielders. There wasn't much service coming along the ground but our best two chances of the game came from Kluivert, the first he dribbled it to the byline under pressure and chipped the ball across the goal to Ameobi, but his header was saved excellently on the goalline by Ricardo. The second chance was the best chance of the game as Kluivert's header beat Ricardo but was cleared off the goalline by a defender. Kluivert looked very good in the air but his first touch was poor a few times. Both he and Butt have had very little pre-season preparation. Other chances fell to Bowyer, who couldn't lift the ball over the keeper in a one-on-one situation, Ameobi whose 20 yard left foot shot was tipped over by Ricardo, Shearer whose powerful header just went over the bar, Milner with a good free kick and Bernard who had a good long-range effort tipped over the bar.

Not a result to be concerned about. Sporting only had a couple of shots in the whole game and it was a very dull game. Newcastle dominated possession throughout except for a 15 minute period in the second half, we were unlucky not to score but it was played as a friendly by both sides. Lisbon scored their goal after 33 minutes, it was their first shot of the game, Elliott's defending was very poor as he gave Tello so much time to line up his shot, he hit it with pace into the top corner from 20 yards out, a good goal.

Rangers beat Feyenoord on penalties after a 0-0 draw.

Last edited by evil_bastard on Aug-01-2004 at 18:27

Watched most of this tournament cos it was on sky! Newcastle played well in the first game, although it was against a poor Rangers i thought and at least 2 of the goals would never have been in a competitive match, was it Bernards goal where he manage to escape a half attempt at a tackle from a rangers player? brilliant finish though and unstoppable. Today they were understandably tired after having played yesterday. I thought again Bernard had an excellent game though and should have been man of the tournament, i mean why dyer got it im not sure?!! some great passes today. Millner though i found very dissapointing, he was battling like you said but some of his crosses were very poor. not sure if hes a left footed player, but looked out of position and provided little for the forwards. Kluivert looks like hes gonna find form again, but think shearer may lose his if hes substituted each game.. he looked a little dissapointed today at coming off. Will Robson play 3 in attack, they suggested bellamy behind the front 2.. saying that ameobi was best striker in todays game.

Robsons gonna be leaving at end of year too, contract not being renewed.. any replacement thoughts?

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Milner's crossing was poor, he is a right footed player but played most of last season on the left for Leeds. Unlike most players he can dribble and pass with both feet but his left footed crossing needs some work. I thought he looked quite promising, he's clearly technically gifted, good feet, confident and determined. I think he was trying a bit too hard to impress but he's a good option to have when Robert is having one of his off days. Last season we had noone to put Robert under pressure but now with Milner I'm hoping that Robert gets his act together because he is a phenomenal player when he wants to be.

Shearer did nothing today and he looks slower than ever. Playing Shearer twice in two days was madness IMO but apparently Bellamy picked up a knock yesterday and Kluivert hadn't built up enough match fitness for a full game, so Shearer and Ameobi it was. I worry that this is a season too far for Shearer, but it's very difficult to write him off given his past record. I agree on Bernard, he got caught out of position a few times today but that was through pure tiredness I think.

Today's game was nothing like yesterday's though, most the players on both teams were too knackered to give a shit.

Our next game is away to Celtic on Wednesday, I'm hoping that he starts with Bellamy and Kluivert as I think that could be a dangerous partnership.

It's very difficult to drop Bellamy as every time he comes on he stakes his claim, so playing 3 up front is an option, with Butt holding the midfield. He might try it at Celtic but I doubt it, maybe he'll start with two and bring a third striker on for a midfielder late on. Against all but the weaker sides at home I think playing 3 midfielders is a dangerous game to play. Most people feel that Butt and Bowyer in CM with Jenas covering is the way to go, and Dyer out on the right, Robert out on the left with Milner fighting for a place on either flank and Ambrose fighting for the right wing slot. I think we'll see Robert-Butt-Bowyer-Dyer against Middlesborough.

Last edited by evil_bastard on Aug-02-2004 at 00:56

Newcastle's injury list for the Celtic game:

Given
Woodgate
Jenas
O'Brien
Ameobi
Ambrose
Robert

Typical Newcastle pre-season, send your players to play in the heat and humidity of south-east Asia for a week before giving them 4 games in 7 days including 2 games in 24 hours and see how many are still standing for the first game of the season. Meanwhile after being accused of having the scruffiest pitch in the Premier League we decide to spend 500K on a whole new pitch, then play 4 games on it in 24 hours.

Last edited by evil_bastard on Aug-02-2004 at 13:24

quote:

Originally posted by evil_bastard NEWCASTLE UNITED 0 - 1 SPORTING LISBON (Tello)

we beat sporting lisbon 1-0

but then lost 3-0 to QPR

were so going down

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All the weekend rockstars in the toilets
Practicing their lines

This post is better than your post

Newcastle have today signed Charles N'Zogbia from French side Le Havre, the 4th summer signing.

This is the same club that Liverpool bought Pongolle and Le Tallec from. This could turn out to be a good signing, remember we got Bernard as an unheard of youngster on a free transfer and now he's one of the best left-backs in the Premiership. The Ronny Gill seem to rate him very highly:

http://icnewcastle.icnetwork.co.uk/newcastleunited/news

quote:

Toon land French super kid Newcastle United have snapped up one of the best young players in France - and they could hardly contain their delight at the club's training ground today. Charles N'Zogbia, an 18-year-old left-sided midfielder, has joined United from Le Havre and all Sir Bobby Robson will have to do is pay the French club somewhere in the region of £250,000 in compensation. To add to the euphoria at St James' Park, I expect United to tie up the signing of a right-back before they head off to the Riverside and Middlesbrough a week on Saturday. N'Zogbia has been training with United for the past month but they have kept him under wraps because they knew that several other leading clubs in Europe were also interested. However, chief operating officer Russell Cushing finally got N'Zogbia's signature on to a form at 8.30 last night and immediately flashed the news to a delighted Robson and Freddy Shepherd. Cushing was at his desk early today to start the paperwork to get the teenager all tied up so that he will be available for the Premiership as soon as possible. That's how good United feel N'Zogbia is, although Robson and his coaching staff will do all they can to keep the pressure off the youngster. All the talk at the training ground is that N'Zogbia looks a better prospect than Hugo Viana - and he cost United £8.5m. Certainly, the signing is a tremendous coup for Robson, his chief scout Charlie Woods and his scouting team. Le Havre themselves were actually nursing N'Zogbia and were looking to bring him into their first team in the new season. However, he told Le Havre he did not wish to sign a new contract with them and, under the rather strange rules of French football, he cannot join any other club in his own country. This has allowed United to pounce in a move similar to the one which saw Olivier Bernard join them from Lyon four years ago. United did have trouble with Lyon over Bernard's signing but there is no reason to think there will be any problems with N'Zogbia and Le Havre, although it will take several days for his international clearance to come through. In the meantime, Bernard has taken N'Zogbia under his wing and the feeling at St James' is that the pair of them could be lining up in the Premiership together before too long.

I hope he is a success because I'd like to have that name on the back of my shirt

Sky sports:

quote:

MAGPIES LAND FRENCH STARLET Newcastle have pulled off a real transfer coup by capturing French teenage sensation Charles N'Zogbia from Le Havre. Le Havre have fashioned a reputation for producing bright young talent, having brought Liverpool pair Florent Sinama Pongolle and Anthony Le Tallec through the ranks. The 18-year-old N'Zogbia is viewed as the next star of French football, with his incisive wing play having caught the eye of a string of teams. Magpies chief Sir Bobby Robson used his reputation in the game to bring the youngster to Tyneside for a hush-hush trial and he quickly persuaded the veteran tactician of his merits. Newcastle were able to push thorough a deal over the weekend and thrashed out the terms on Tuesday. Newcastle have agreed a compensation package with Le Havre, beating off a string of interested parties in the process. Robson is quick to blood talented youngsters, having thrown the likes of Jermaine Jenas and Darren Ambrose into the fray, and N'Zogbia could be gracing The Premiership in the near future if he continues to progress at his current rate.

BBC:

quote:

Newcastle sign hot prospect Newcastle boss Sir Bobby Robson has beaten a number of top European clubs to the signature of 18-year-old French star Charles N'Zogbia from Le Havre. The left-sided midfielder had been training with the Magpies on Tyneside for the last few weeks. Newcastle will pay compensation to the French second division side for the loss of their player. N'Zogbia is now waiting international clearance to complete the remaining paperwork and tie up the deal.

GLASGOW CELTIC 2 - 1 NEWCASTLE UNITED
(Sylla '72, own goal '89) - (Bellamy '61)

No doubt the press will credit Camara with a debut last-minute winner, but the truth is he shot straight at Harper from 20 yards but a freak deflection off Hughes' heel bounced off the ground and up and over Harper in the last minute of the game, it was really an own goal but we may as well give it to him as he is shit.

Like the Lisbon game Newcastle played like a friendly with 7 players missing the game through injury, Celtic played like it was a cup final and almost injured Bernard and Milner in the first half with some nasty challenges from Hartson and McNamara. Celtic were undoubtedly the better team in the first half with some neat passing but neither side looked particularly good, the difference between the two sides being Newcastle's defence, with reserve left-back Elliott partnering reserve centre-back Bramble in the heart of our defence, due to injuries to Woodgate, O'Brien and Taylor. Bellamy took the lead with a well taken 18 yard shot low into the bottom corner before Sylla equalised with a near-post header from a corner-kick. Newcastle dominated play in the second half but our centre backs always looked ready to leak goals and this was always going to be a problem. Milner did a lovely Zidane-style step over in the penalty area before laying it off to Kluivert whose shot from 4 yards out was immediately blocked by a defender. Kluivert always looked a threat from the air but again didn't see enough of the ball. Robert should have scored in the first half, he had the ball in the penalty area with only the keeper to beat but dropped to the ground holding his ribs and was substituted off. Both sides had plenty of chances, Celtic had more on target but Harper made three excellent saves from one-on-ones.

Bellamy would be my man of the match as he was the most lively player on the pitch and could have scored a couple. Young Matthew Pattison got his first ever runout while Brittain got another 45 minutes under his belt.

Not a performance to worry about, although we had better hope Robert is OK and that all of our injured players come back before the start of the season. The only worry is once again our shocking defence. We had three centre-backs injured which is unlucky but it shows that a couple of injuries leaves our defence looking very thin and with Bramble and Elliott at the heart of the defence teams don't have to play very well to breach it.

Last edited by evil_bastard on Aug-04-2004 at 22:29

yahoo!

Tickets for Newcastle vs Tottenham on 21st August go on sale tomorrow, I am getting me some tickets! wahey

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How can sound exist if there's no one there to hear it?

YAYYYY!! I got 2 tickets in the Milburn Stand with access to Platinum Bar before the game for £50 per person!

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How can sound exist if there's no one there to hear it?

£50! You'll probably be surrounded by prawn sandwich fans who never sing

Hopefully it'll be the same as the game against Spurs last year where Robert's two amazing goals started off a 4-0 win. Robert has a point to prove to Santini who has never considered him for the French squad!