Scottish Mag

What are you having for tea?

I was taking the piss tbf, being Irish myself, it's just the illiterate twat who doesn't like the Irish. Anyone know when tickets will be going on sale for this? I shouldn't think tickets for this would be a problem. Celtic ticket office will prob get as many as they can sell. I'd very much doubt a sell out Depending on what our new owner has planned for us and the potential signings that may be made through the summer I think it may well be a sell out..

Sam Allardyce has criticised the organisers of the Amsterdam Tournament after Newcastle United's involvement in the prestigious pre-season event was cancelled at the last minute. United had been in an advanced stage of negotiation with hosts Ajax and the tournament's organisers International Event Partnership and were expected to line up alongside the Dutch giants, Italian outfit Lazio and Spanish side Atletico corr Madrid in Amsterdam in August. But the Magpies were shocked to learn last month the organisers had found another team to play in the tournament, with Newcastle's Premiership rivals Arsenal understood to have taken their place. The lateness of the decision has badly disrupted Newcastle's pre-season plans as Allardyce - who will implement a completely new approach to pre-season training at United this summer - looks to get his squad in shape for the start of his first season in charge. "We are trying to move our recruitment of players and staff along as quickly as we can, but we are also looking to tie off our pre-season plans as well," said Allardyce, who has distanced himself from reports suggesting he is interested in Manchester United defender Wes Brown. "We want to make sure we've got the right games at the right time. We're very disappointed to lose the Ajax tournament. We've been dealt a rather severe blow and basically we've been dumped on from a great height, but we can't do anything about that now. "It would have been a great tournament to be in for pre-season, but we have to focus on getting the right fixtures in place so that we deliver strength, conditioning and tactical scenarios throughout that. We want to build the players up right from a fitness point of view so that we don't get any injuries. "We'll keep building up their all-round ability and we will monitor each individual from day one. We won't even be training as a group, it will be individual programmes or small groups. Then we will start focusing on the team shape and how we want them to play." United are yet to finalise their pre-season fixtures with only two games - against Celtic and local neighbours Hartlepool United - confirmed following their failure to secure a place in the Amsterdam Tournament. But, while the pre-season games will be the first chance for supporters to see Allardyce's new-look side, he has already warned them results will not be important to him. He explained: "I'm really happy if we lose every single pre-season friendly. I've done that virtually every year at Bolton, certainly last year we hardly scored a goal and didn't win a game, but we ended up with 20 points from the first ten matches in the Premiership. "The fans have not got to get too worked up if we lose every pre-season game. It won't be a worry for me and it won't be a worry for the players. It's just about us doing the right things and getting ready for the most important thing, which is the whistle blowing on August 11 and winning that first Premiership game, not some meaningless pre-season friendlies." Allardyce has already declared his determination to shake things up behind the scenes at St James's Park and he may have caused a bit of a stir on Tyneside by suggesting the club's training ground, which was only built five years ago, is already out of date. He said: "While it's a massive football club, it's achievement has been minimal over the last few years. I'm here to try to change that and we are going to try to get as many things as we can in place for the start of what will be a very important first season for me. I want to make the training ground better. It isn't a place for professional footballers to work on a day-to-day basis. "This is a squash club converted. My vision in the long term is to create an all-encompassing building that would excite everybody who walks through the door every day. "The players will be in a rush to get here and they won't want to go home as quickly as they do now. "That's the long term and then there is the short term which is the most important at the moment."

TRANSFER RUMOURS Everton will complete a £4m deal to sign Sheffield United midfielder Phil Jagielka on Friday. (Various) Arjen Robben wants to stay at Chelsea, even though Blues boss Jose Mourinho is willing to sell him for £14m. (Daily Mirror) Wigan boss Chris Hutchings wants to bring goalkeeper Roy Carroll back to the JJB Stadium. (The Sun) Sevilla are chasing £10m-rated Spurs defender Pascal Chimbonda. (Daily Mirror) Spurs are leading the race to sign midfielder Wesley Sneijder from Ajax. (The Independent) Fulham are ready to make a £3m bid for Southampton defender Chris Baird. (Daily Mirror) Chelsea right-back Geremi could be returning to Middlesbrough. (The Sun) Sheffield United boss Bryan Robson wants Ipswich's Alex Bruce - son of his former Man Utd's team mate Steve. (The Sun) Portsmouth are bracing themselves for a snub after Middlesbrough boss Gareth Southgate slapped a 'not for sale' tag on Yakubu. (Daily Star) West Ham have been told they can sign Liverpool striker Craig Bellamy for £9m. (Daily Mail) Aston Villa boss Martin O'Neill is not going to raid former club Celtic for midfielder Shunsuke Nakamura. (Various) Norwich are ready to swoop for Millwall midfielder Marvin Elliott. (Daily Mirror) Newly-promoted Bristol Rovers are planning a £150,000 raid on neighbours Bristol City for striker Phil Jevons. (Various) OTHER GOSSIP Arsenal striker Thierry Henry says the departure of vice-chairman David Dein has unsettled everybody at the club. (Daily Mirror) David Beckham has insisted he is capable of playing on until the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. (Various) Russia coach Guus Hiddink has insisted that England are favourites to win their Euro 2008 qualifying group. (The Sun) Lord Stevens' inquiry into illicit payments in football has told the Premier League that there have been 'serious breaches' of transfer market regulations. (Guardian) New Scottish FA chief Gordon Smith says he will turn his back on the job if his ideas for reform are blocked. (Daily Record) Tommy Burns has launched an attack on Shaun Maloney, who left Celtic for Aston Villa in January, saying he should never has moved. (Daily Mirror) AND FINALLY Chelsea have had to send the FA Cup back to the Football Association for a silversmith to repair it after a player - thought to be Jon Obi Mikel - dropped it while celebrating the Blues victory over Manchester United in May. (Various)

Any player moving says the right things. I'm over the moon to be here etc. They're hardly going to say, "To be honest he seemed like a fat arsehole, but since I Hannibal Lectered a few of my old team mates/I'm a fat Aussie bastard I'm happy ANY club will take me" Honest to god, I'd read no reports prior to posting the above... http://www.football365.com/story/0,17033,8...2173268,00.html And as I said, it's not the words but the general circumstances I base my (sudden) optimism on. Shouldn't you change your name to Grumpy Face now that Roeder has been replaced by Allardyce? I love the optimism and am glad to see everyone up for a new season. It just amuses me that fans only ever see Newcastle as a complete shambles or potential world beaters. Who is saying we are potential world beaters?

The lack of opportunties created from wide positions and the fact we were 17th in the Opta stats for crosses completed shows it was a bigger problem than you think.

Of course we are, I mean look how good we were last season...

Sam Allardyce is looking to Joey Barton to bring his goals to Newcastle United. Barton was expected at St James' Park today to complete his £5.5m move from Manchester City to United. And, before flying to London to tie up the signing of Mark Viduka, the United boss told me: "With Joey coming in and Scott Parker going out to West Ham, I would say this is a piece of good business for us. "Now we have Michael Owen, Mark Viduka and Oba Martins, who all score goals, and Joey usually chips in with seven or eight a season from midfield, so we will really be expecting to improve our goals tally next season." From a numerical point of view, Barton will be a straight replacement for Parker, who has gone back to London in a £7m deal to join his former Charlton boss Alan Curbishley at Upton Park. Earlier United had lost out on Steve Sidwell after the-then Reading midfielder had twice made hush-hush trips to Tyneside and actually twice sat in Glenn Roeder's office at the training ground. Sidwell shook hands on a move to United but obviously felt that Roeder's departure gave him a get- out and he has joined Chelsea. Meanwhile, the appearance of Sam Allardyce at Wales game with the Czech Republic at Cardiff at the weekend has thrown up a couple of possibilities. The United boss had a close look at Paris St Germain's Czech defender David Rozenhal, but there is a lot of talk in Cardiff that Welsh international midfielder Jason Koumas could also be a target. Former United striker Malcolm Allen, who is now a leading commentator for the BBC in Wales, believes that Koumas is good enough to come to St James' Park from West Brom. But I get the impression that Big Sam is concentrating on improving United's much-maligned defence. Next season's Premiership fixtures will be released a week today, and The Chronicle will be the first newspaper to carry United's games for 2007-8.

Good stuff.

Newcastle boss confirms interest in Trotters star SAM Allardyce has confirmed he is keen to sign centre-back Tal Ben Haim as Newcastle United's manager reflected on a successful flurry of transfer activity at St James's Park. Allardyce has moved rapidly since his return from a family holiday to complete a £5.5m swoop for midfielder Joey Barton, while simultaneously working to tie up a deal for Middlesbrough's out-of-contract striker Mark Viduka. Viduka is expected to be confirmed as a United player when he has a medical next week, but Allardyce has already turned his attention to his next recruit, with Ben Haim likely to be his third signing as Newcastle manager. The Israel international was a big success under Allardyce at Bolton Wanderers and, like Viduka, is available on a Bosman-style free transfer. "Yes I'm interested in Tal Ben Haim, he's a free agent and hopefully available," said Allardyce, who did not rule out the possibility that he will also look to sign centre-forward Nicolas Anelka from his former club before the start of next season. "He has got three or four years of experience in the Premiership and I know him inside out. We had a good working relationship, we grew in the Premiership together and I'm very interested in working with him again." Allardyce has held talks with new Newcastle owner Mike Ashley this week and was pleased with the ambition of the millionaire businessman to invest in the club's infrastructure, as well as the first-team squad. United's manager refused to give any indication of the size of the transfer budget that has been offered to him, but it is thought to be large enough to rival any other in the Premiership this summer. "I've met the new owner and we've talked about things," said Allardyce, who admitted he had been stunned by the number of players he has been linked with since taking over at St James's Park last month. "He wants to invest money for the good of the club and that can only be a good thing for me as a manager. "Details of how much he has given me to spend are obviously private, but I've been working with Bruce Shepherd and Russell Cushing, who have stepped in because Freddie (Shepherd) isn't well and things are progressing well. "We are moving quickly in that area. We have established what I need to change around here and we are looking at the ways to do that. There are things already in motion, using the scouting information here at Newcastle and my own research over the last six or seven years. "If I feel a player will be an asset and we can afford him, we will try to get him." However, while Allardyce is constantly looking forward as he begins the difficult process of reshaping the club, he can still reflect on a highly impressive start to his reign following a successful pursuit of his first two transfer targets. He added: "We have to take it one player at a time. I've had a very successful first week at my desk. I've come back from holiday and I've signed two quality players in Joey Barton and Mark Viduka. "Mark is almost in the bag. It's been difficult because he has been on holiday, but we're nearly there. We hope to sort out a medical for next week and then that will be done. "To get Mark and Joey in one week is not bad going and I'm delighted, particularly with how crazy the transfer market can be. But they are not the only things we've been working on." Reports in France suggest that one of those other projects is a £3.3m offer for Paris-Saint Germain defender David Rozehnal, with the player's agent claiming yesterday Newcastle have made contact ahead of a bid for the 26-year-old Czech international.

One good cross a game if you are lucky...

TRANSFER RUMOURS Liverpool look set to beat Chelsea in the race to land Lyon midfielder Florent Malouda after the French footballer of the year indicated he would move to Anfield in a £10m deal. (Various) Tottenham are poised to do battle with Aston Villa for the signature of Ajax midfielder Wesley Sneijder. (The Sun) Wigan want to sign defender Mario Melchiot, who is a free agent after a year at Rennes, and Liverpool centre-half Sami Hyypia. (Various) Villarreal's former Arsenal winger Robert Pires has urged Gunners striker Thierry Henry to join him in Spain by moving to Barcelona. (Various) Reading are preparing to swoop for West Ham midfielder Hayden Mullins. (Daily Mail) Liverpool will have to take on AC Milan if they are to land Barcelona striker Samuel Eto'o. (The Sun) West Ham are set to pip Chelsea to the signing of Fredrikstad striker Tarik Elyounoussi, 19. (Daily Star) Colchester striker Jamie Cureton may return to Norwich, despite having a transfer request turned down. (Daily Star) Tottenham and Celtic want striker Marlon Harewood, who has been told he can leave West Ham. (Daily Mirror) Chelsea are believed to be preparing a £2.7m move for Hertha Berlin striker Marko Pantelic. (The Times) Fulham will make a renewed bid for Southampton defender Chris Baird after having a £2.5m offer turned down. (The Times) Derby may hijack Ipswich's bid to land Blackburn striker Francis Jeffers because they are prepared to meet the £1.5m asking price. (Daily Mirror) West Brom defender Curtis Davies, who has been linked to Newcastle, Tottenham and Arsenal, is considering his future after the club missed out on promotion to the Premiership. (Daily Mirror) Sunderland have launched a bid to sign Preston striker David Nugent in a part-exchange offer involving Stern John. (Daily Mail) Portsmouth have offered £2m - £100,000 more than Fulham - for QPR winger Lee Cook. (Various) Middlesbrough are targeting Fulham forward Collins John. (Daily Mirror) Goalkeeper Jussi Jaaskelainen, who has been the subject of a failed £2m bid by Sunderland, could leave Bolton after contract talks stalled. (Daily Mirror) Everton are considering a £3.5m swoop for Blackburn striker Jason Roberts. (Daily Mirror) Celtic keeper David Marshall, who had a spell on loan at Norwich last season, wants to return to Carrow Road. (Daily Record) Brentford striker Jo Kuffour is close to joining Bournemouth after rejecting the chance to go to Huddersfield. (Daily Star) OTHER GOSSIP Former England captain David Beckham has said he will help fire his national team to the Euro 2008 finals after continuing his comeback by inspiring them to victory in a qualifier against Estonia. (Various) Scotland boss Alex McLeish, whose side are third in Euro 2008 qualifying Group B, says his squad must maintain the belief that they can still qualify for the finals. (Various) Norwegian shipping billionaire John Fredriksen is understood to be one of the people interested in buying Tottenham. (Daily Mail) Arsenal striker Emmanuel Adebayor has hit back at the critics who believe he misses too many chances. (Daily Mirror) Spain coach Luis Aragones, whose side are second in Euro 2008 qualifying Group F, will step down from his role when his contract expires after the finals of the tournament. (Daily Mirror) Chelsea striker Didier Drogba says the Blues will reclaim the Premiership title next season and he will again be the top scorer in the division. (Daily Mirror) Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson has revealed that he gave winger Cristiano Ronaldo, whose Old Trafford future was in doubt last summer, the same pep talk that persuaded Eric Cantona and David Beckham to stay longer with the Red Devils. (Daily Mirror) Manchester City are giving former Thailand prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra 48 hours to close the takeover of the club or the deal is off. (Daily Mirror) Former Brighton boss and ex-Aberdeen and Celtic striker Mark McGhee is a leading contender for the Motherwell managerial post. (Daily Record) Former Inverness Caledonian Thistle manager Sergei Baltacha has rejected an approach from Hearts owner Vladimir Romanov to become the new manager at the club. (Daily Record) Chelsea's Michael Ballack, who has been criticised during his time at the club, wants to become the irreplaceable midfielder at Stamford Bridge. (Daily Express) The Football League is set to close the loophole that allowed Leeds and Boston to avoid carrying 10-point penalties into next season by going into administration when they were set for relegation. (The Guardian) AND FINALLY Manchester United winger Cristiano Ronaldo says manager Sir Alex Ferguson can still deliver his famous 'hairdryer treatment'. Ronaldo said: "He shakes me up and screams at me now and again. He is like my mother or my father. He sets my limits and my aims." (The Sun) Sheffield United keeper Paddy Kenny has raised £10,000 for a local children's hospice by running 78 miles in three days from Skegness to his South Yorkshire home. (Daily Star)

From the Daily Mail

Joey Barton will ignore late bids by both West Ham and Manchester City to sign a five-year contract for Newcastle United in the next 24 hours. And United will pull off a double whammy by "stealing" Mark Viduka from Middlesbrough on a three-year deal tomorrow. And speaking for the first time on his £5.5m move to St James' Park from Manchester City, which will go through once a couple of technicalities have been sorted out, Barton said today: "I have given my word to Newcastle United and that's where I hope I will be going. "Everybody knows they are a club of great history and tradition - and this is great - but what has also been great for me is that they have pushed the boat out for me, and both Freddy Shepherd and Sam Allardyce have made me feel so wanted." The Chronicle can reveal that after he was at St James' Park for talks yesterday with his agent Willie McKay, Barton went to Shepherd's Tyneside home, where the chairman is recuperating after illness, to thank him personally for showing such faith in him. Barton also met major shareholder Mike Ashley at the club's training ground yesterday. Of course, Barton's problems have been well documented, but in Allardyce United have the man to ensure these are all in the past. Allardyce has already told Barton to do his stuff on the field and leave his off-the-field problems to the manager to sort out. Barton's deal will be worth around £17.5m to the 24-year-old Liverpool-born midfielder over five years, and he will be looking to add to his one England cap in his time at St James'. He added: "I am not proud of some of the things I have done and that I have brought a lot of my problems on myself. But I want to be a winner, not only for myself but for the fans. "I have heard it said that footballers are all about flash cars and expensive watches, but for me it's all about winning medals and it hurts me that I haven't any." One of the things Barton will give United is the bottle that was lacking at places like Fulham, Wigan Athletic, Charlton Athletic and Portsmouth at the end of last season. He will be joined at St James' by Viduka, who returned from holiday today and will sign tomorrow.

Cobblers man. Shrewd business. Once Ashley fully owns the club he can get shot of Freddie if required, so what if he has to buy out a contract? The man's a billionairre. Do you think weakness get's you £2 billion? Brilliant news I reckon. The end of the beginning.

yes it would, two defenders a midfielder and a striker is not a bad start And for a combined total close to which we received for Scott Parker.

Would be a great start to the transfer window.

I'm suddenly feeling very very old 1990 year Spice Girls were around Radgi can be old spice. Even though they're wasn't an old spice I've just been PWNED. They're was Baby Spice (Emma Burton), Sporty Spice (Melanie Chisholm), Ginger Spice (Geri Halliwell), Scary Spice (Melanie Brown), Posh Spice (Victoria Beckham) That's it. Get him tel't son! I'm giggling like a loon at that I only come on here to read Magmas facts these days. Does anyone know if he ever found that cable he was looking for...

Has now signed. Done deal according to SSN 5 year deal.