Coverage for the week of the 6th - 12th March 2006

Funny old week!  Started well, ended badly and full of media tittle-tattle, mainly centred on a certain centre forward, his fitness and where he may or may not be plying his trade after the World Cup (which is obviously far more important to those in the national press than some football club in the North-East of England).  It doesn’t take a genius to work out who that is.  I’ll give you a hint though; it isn’t Alan Shearer.

The daily papers followed their Sunday counterparts’ lead with continued praise for a terrific performance in the win over Bolton last weekend.  (Article) (Article) (Article) (Article).  Praise for our beleaguered defence handling a crude late aerial assault (Article), praise for Nobby Solano (Article), The Zog on the Tyne (Article), Scott Parker (Article) and a revitalised Babayaro (Article) from players past and present in some sort of in house love-in.  Beats the in house bickering which will be the legacy of the last administration at NUFC doesn’t it?  Amidst the joy were some words of caution from John Gibson (Article) with Man U, Liverpool and Chelsea looming all too large on the horizon.  Keep the faith?  I’ve heard that line before somewhere.

Speculation continued through the week over the next managerial appointment.  Increasingly, Glenn Roeder’s words seem to betray someone who really is interested in the job after all (Article), citing his managerial record and comparing that to others.  Shola Ameobi, increasingly becoming the apparent self appointed voice of the dressing room was quick to back Roeder as a potential candidate (Article) (Article) (Article).  Both Gavin Peacock (Article) and Bobby Moncur (Article) were also quick to lend their support to any claim Roeder may or may not have to the job.  Gus Hiddink meanwhile was “out of the running” (Article) and backing for Sam Allardyce seems to be on the wane (Article).  FFS still remains patient (Article) which, for someone so prone to knee jerk reaction, can not be a bad thing!

Last week saw the first team squad move back to the training facilities (Article) blamed for everything from dodgy hamstrings to global warming by the previous regime (who were unlucky, apparently (Article), as the interim appointment of a youthful goalkeeping coach (Article) seems to continue to make a mockery of the coaching abilities of said regime).  With Dyer on the comeback trail (episode 12,456) (Article) along with Moorecelino (Article) and Steven Taylor (Article) to name but 3, Roeder was careful to point out, very carefully and almost pointedly, that he won’t be taking any risks with any of our injured players (Article) (Article).  Just as our good friends at The Sun claimed that Owen had had a set back in his rehabilitation.  (Article)  They’re worried about the Wold Cup, of course.  Roeder was quick to deny there had been a set back but the scan was “routine” (Article) (Article).  But I wonder sometimes if there is something bigger afoot here (no pun intended).  But all was well by the end of the week.  (Article)  Nice.

The build up to Sunday’s game at Old Trafford began with plenty of talk about The Lion on his last visit there as one of the few men to turn down Sir Alex Ferguson.  “No regrets” (Article), something that a lot of Man U fans will NEVER understand.  Former team mate John Beresford was keen to see him sign off at Old Trafford in style (Article) whilst Eusebio was possibly after some free tickets to his testimonial when he described him as the “best striker of his generation” (Article) (Article).  By the end of the week he was allegedly being courted for England duty again (Article).  Unbelievable.  Shearer meanwhile says he is simply making the most of the time he has left (Article).

As plenty was being made of the 34 years since our last successful trip to Old Trafford (Article) the squad were quite upbeat, as you’d expect.  Emre becoming yet another player to talk about how Roeder has brought smiles back to the camp (Article) (Article) (spot a recurring theme anyone?), and Given (Article), Ameobi (Article) and Ramage (Article) all keen to talk the talk.  Sadly we were, yet again, unable to walk the walk.  Given a fooballing lesson (Article) (Article) in a frankly unacceptable performance which saw Rooney, praised by all concerned (Article) (Article), grab 2 goals when he should have had a lot, lot more.  One sided? (Article)  Understatement of the season perhaps.  Let’s just hope, as Roeder says, we can look forward and not back and that this thumping doesn’t shatter the confidence we’ve worked so hard to build up over the last 6 games.  (Article)

Sunday’s “big news” if you could call it that involved Michael Owen again.  This is getting tedious.  In an interview with The Sunday Times (Article), Steven Gerrard whinged on about Liverpool’s lack of goals and how they should get Owen back in the summer.  As you’d imagine, lots of others jumped on the story. (Article) (Article) (Article) Matt Lorenzo on Sky Sports News reporting it as if it was fact and all done and dusted on Sunday morning.  Yes that’s failed ITV World Cup ’94 anchorman and journeyman sports reporter (reader outer more like) Matt Lorenzo.  Twat.  Let’s look at the facts then.  What exactly is news here?  Owen wanted to go to Liverpool, we all knew and accepted that.  We, I think it’s fair to say, were just as surprised as anyone that he came to Newcastle United.  Liverpool wanted him on the cheap and found they couldn’t afford him, which we also all knew.  Rather than face the prospect of going into the World Cup bench warming at Madrid, Owen chose to come to SJP.  Liverpool, having spent money on ineffective strikers and unable to blame Gerard Houllier any more are regretting their decision.  So what?  And so much for “where were you in Istanbul?”   Short memories and a lack of class.  Of course there’s the “get out clause” raising its head again.  The existence of this has been denied by both Owen’s agent and our chairman at one stage or another.  If it does exist then we have been misled and if it is as low as £12million it represents an appalling piece of business in my opinion.  If he does want to go then he can, I wouldn’t want anyone here who doesn’t give a damn about the black and white shirt, no matter who they are.   But it must be on our terms, not his, and certainly more than £12million.  If he doesn’t want to go then he has to come out and say so, and more than a paragraph at the end of his Times column like we got the last time this happened at that.  And he needs to tell his “bezzy mate” to stop shit stirring.  Unless of course that is the idea.  Not that I’m suggesting anything by that at all like.

I make no apology then for finding it amusing to see Gerrard’s errant back pass intercepted by Thierry Henry to cost Liverpool the game at Highbury on Sunday evening.  Why mention this I hear you ask.  Well we saw yet another player sent off on the visiting side at Highbury by one Steve Bennett (Article).  It’s not the first time this has happened is it? Remember Jenas back at the start of the season? Hmmm.  Hope he enjoyed the bus ride back home across London, satisfied at another job well done.

Finally it would be remiss of me not to pass comment on the exit of Mick McCarthy from the Village of the Damned and the resulting comedic events of the week thereafter in and around the Stadium of Shite.  Or rather I’ll leave that to Steve Cram. (Article)  Steve, stick to the running and remember to do a head count the next time you pull away from the Quayside eh?  Murray IN!

NM