After the transfer window excitement of last week, the international break and resulting wait to see Michael Owen, needed by club and country according to John Gibson (Article), in a black and white shirt has gave the week a bit of an anti-climactic feel.  Not to mention the woeful display that we eventually managed to produce against Fulham, but we’ve got plenty of ground to cover before we get to that.
      
The week began with Souness hailing the better quality and depth of his squad.  (Article) (Article)  Provided we keep plenty of them fit.  Hmmm now there’s a thing.  Not something we’ve been terribly good at over the last few years is it?  I’d agree we have players of better character around the club now and that can only be a good thing.  The principal sufferer of Newcastle hamstring excepted of course.

The King of Bling was exercising his jaw though.  (Article) (Article)  Admitting that he should have not taken the gamble of playing when still unsure of his fitness.  Why do I get the feeling I’ve heard this before the last time his hamstring went, or the time before that mebbies?  Or is it his back?  I don’t know.  Seemingly our medical staff, numerous specialists and some eccentric German doctor don’t know either.  Sounds like a case for Quincy to me like.

Meanwhile with plenty away on international duty Souness was waiting and hoping none would return injured again.  (Article)  At the same time Nobby Solano was being linked with a possible international return (Article)  (Article) and a potential showdown with the club again.  As far as I recall the ONLY person who had a problem with Nobby wanting to play for Peru was SBR.  The same man who wanted to manage England part time whilst managing NUFC and the same man who eventually sold Nobby for that very reason.  And, like Nobby, I don’t believe the reason given in SBR’s biography either (Article).  Nobby has made plenty of copy this week.  His suspension for his sending off for Villa against Portsmouth is apparently calculated on games Villa play and as a result he will be available next week against Blackburn.  (Article)  I’m sure I’m not alone in thinking that is yet another crazy way of working anything out that ONLY football officialdom could come up with.  Also there was an explanation of how Nobby persuaded Villa to let him go.  He just cleared out his locker and said goodbye to everyone!  (Article)  Everyone at NUFC is delighted to see you and your cornet (and I don’t mean a 99) back at the club.  None more so than your club captain.  (Article)

The week had plenty more comment on Michael Owen.  His link up with Shearer (Article) (Article), how the fans can lift him (Article), Jonathan Woodgate having his twopenn’orth (Article) (Article), Souness on his “maturity” (Article), Kevin Keegan, who knew a good striker when he saw one (Article) (Article) and Rick Parry trying to cover his blushes as to why Liverpool didn’t sign Owen after all.  (Article)  And all this before he had kicked a ball in anger for us!

Other players who got a mention this week were firstly Shola Ameobi’s now seemingly weekly self-promotion column in The Daily Star (Article).  And if that wasn’t enough Nicky Butt is apparently keen on getting his England place back (Article).  Oooh me sides!

Jermaine Judas meanwhile is now saying that he left St James’ for “footballing reasons.”  (Article) (Article) (Article) So not personal reasons at all then?  The lad, referred to elsewhere as Spurs’ 302nd midfield singing (Article), is obviously just making it up as he goes along.  Good riddance to a young man who, now he is no longer SBR’s golden boy and guaranteed a place in the starting line up, has got too big for his boots and has got what he wanted.  Somehow I get the feeling that you’ll find that getting what you wish for isn’t always a good thing. 

Speaking of matters goldfish bowl, you may have seen THAT Fiat Vans advert in The Sun this week.  Thanks as ever to the good lads who bring us nufc.com for showing then up to be a spineless bunch of twerps.  What’s the betting on someone in their marketing department being a bitter Scouser I wonder?

Of course it wouldn’t be a week in the press without a comment from our chairman.  Applying the pressure back to Souness now he has provided the players he was asked for.  (Article) (Article)  For once I think this is fair enough.  He has provided, now this team MUST deliver.

And so 3 points from Owen’s debut game?  Er, no.  In fact a bloody awful display and a shambolic team performance, with a point salvaged by N’Zogbia.  (Article) (Article) (Article)  Not quite the desired start was it?  I don’t think I can add much more to our own match report (Article) or this post match comment from The Sunday Times.  (Article)   The heat is now most definitely on.  Oh aye and we picked up yet another hamstring injury (Article).  Apparently it’s the training ground (Article).  Of course it is.  Wonder what it will be next week? 

I’ll leave you as ever with a couple of things that have come to my attention through the week.  Firstly, The Guardian’s gallery feature on FFS brought a smile to my lips (Article).  Mark Hughes admitted finally this week that Blackburn have a disciplinary problem.  (Article)  Really?  With Savage, Dickov, Bellamy, Todd and Neill in the squad?  You don’t say.  The picture today comes from the good people at Physioroom.com (Article).  It’s a sports injury website that has a special interest in Premiership injuries and keeps sad stattos like me happy for hours on end.  At least there’s one table you can regularly see us at the top of.  Finally I was sent this survey to look at this week.  (Article)  It’s not the best of its type that I have seen but it’s not the worst either.  Have a go if you like, it might just take your mind off Saturday’s performance for a few minutes anyway.

NM