Bombadil

At least today's results went our way.

Fuck off Spurs.

I honestly think a win against Blackburn would take a lot of the pressure off everyone and we'd be fine then.

Only another yellow card away from a two-game suspension though. We should bribe the ref.

Where's Viduka?

I haven't felt this depressed about football in ages. We really, really need three points from our next game against Blackburn.

Gets stuck in though.

Barton. Smith. Why?

Martins, Emre and Carr (thank God for that) all injured, Viduka "doubtful". When was the last time he was actually 100% fit and available?

Richer than you though. Others have tried to shag their way into the limelight, few with as much success. So are you saying that because she's made a lot of money despite being a waste of oxygen people are supposed to admire her?

Is that for real? Jesus wanked.

I have to say I'm worried. I'm not really expecting anything other than a loss on Saturday, but if we don't beat Blackburn at home in our next game, we will be in serious trouble IMO. As someone else said though, if we somehow manage to get a fighting draw against Man Utd, it will be a big boost for morale.

Seriously though, you'd hope the lazy Aussie can be arsed to declare himself fit for Saturday for a change, it would be good to have him in the team instead of Smith.

There is hope.

Snobs!

Sir Bobby Robson has insisted Newcastle United remain the biggest threat to the Big Four’s dominance of English football despite their present troubles. Robson, who celebrates his 75th birthday on Monday, became Magpies manager when the club was in an even more precarious Premier League position following Ruud Gullit’s departure in August 1999. But within three years United were playing in the Champions League, were seen as potential Premier League champions and finished in the top five three years running. Newcastle’s demise since Robson was foolishly sacked by former chairman Freddie Shepherd after just four games of the 2004-05 campaign has been as embarrassing as it has been spectacular, but Robson is convinced United still have everything in place to challenge the Big Four’s increasingly depressing monopoly. “There are clubs in the Premier League who could do it,” said Robson. “There are clubs who could break the monopoly, but Newcastle are the ones who have the best chance of breaking into it and staying there because of the fanbase, the financial backing and the fact it’s a one-club city which eats, drinks and breathes football. I’d love to see it happen, even now, I’m just a fan really. Newcastle are a bigger club than Everton, they are a bigger club than Aston Villa and even Tottenham. They are big clubs, of course they are, but Newcastle are bigger. I might be biased of course, but I firmly believe that if one team is going to shake things up it is Newcastle United.” And having done it once before when he was in charge, Robson knows Newcastle are also the club the Big Four fear most as they try to maintain their self-perpetuating elite. Given that the Magpies are more concerned with relegation from the Premier League than qualification for the Champions League this season, Robson’s comments may seem strange, but he claims he knows from experience what Newcastle are capable of as a football club. He explained: “We might have done it you know. We came close, do you remember? We never did as well as I thought we could in the League Cup, I don’t know why, and the FA Cup is very tough to win, the Big Four have dominated it. But for a time we were in the Big Four, we scared them, don’t doubt that for a second. I know we scared them because people like Sir Alex Ferguson told me we did, that young team we had – Shearer, Robert, Speed, Solano, Dyer, Bellamy, Jenas and so on – it was a quick team, a pacy team and we played good football as well.” The present United squad, according to Robson, does not compare favourably with the one he carefully constructed, but he is happy with the return of Kevin Keegan, a manager who, like him, has a special affinity for the club. And with a little bit of time and, crucially, the financial backing of new owner Mike Ashley, Robson hopes Newcastle will manage to return to their former glories. He said: “It’s going to take Kevin time. It isn’t going to happen straight away. It took me two seasons to get us into Europe, but I had that little bit of time and we improved gradually, we built the squad up and when players left we brought in better ones to replace them. “That is what Kevin will do. I don’t think we will go down, I can’t see us being relegated this season, so Kevin’s just got to consolidate, look at what he’s got and then go out in the summer and get the best players he can. It’s not going to be easy because all the clubs are going for the same players, but Newcastle have got a chance.”

In a nutshell, the Premier League's plans have now been roundly slated by virtually everyone in football. Good!

I think the first post is spot on. I'd rather we took a risk on foreigners with talent, hunger and commitment than pay over the odds for overrated English cloggers like Smith and Barton, who I thought from the start they were bad signings.

I hate these mid-season breaks.

City had Isaksson, Mpenza, Geovanni, Sun Jihai, Garrido, Michael Johnson, Bojinow and Caicedo playing for their reserves. Shows how much strength in depth they have compared to us.

I'm not a big fan of Milner, but I agree that he was our best player today.

Viduka at least spared our blushes against Derby, while Emre has come on as a sub a few times this season and come up with a good free-kick or corner that led to a goal. Barton and Smith on the other hand are just useless, full stop.

BTW, what the fuck was Carr thinking?

9 of our starting XI today were British/Irish btw.

The amount of goals we've conceded in the first few minutes of the second half is a joke.