Newcastle United: He Who Dares Wins

By: Lee of Do Soccer 24/7
For Soccer City FC

It's going to take a humongous effort by all involved with Newcastle United football club just for them to maintain their Barclays Premier League status. At the start of the season things couldn't have looked better - a seemingly capable manager in Sam Allardyce, a billionaire owner with pockets so deep he paid off the clubs debts, and a set of supporters so hungry for success, they'd make the dollar menu at McDonald's look appetizing.

Lets take a look at where things have gone wrong:

Newcastle were bought out just days after new manager Sam Allardyce was appointed by the old regime of Freddie Shepherd. Not being the new owners appointment, Big Sam was always under that extra amount of pressure to make an impact - something he failed (miserably) to do. Big Sam had a small club mentality, meaning that the methods he used to be successful at Bolton, would no longer work at Newcastle. The mindset at Newcastle is something to be experienced. Some players *cough* Jermain Jenas *cough* referred to it as living in a goldfish bowl. The scrutiny you come under from the media and the fans is intense - which is the way it should be in a one football club city. Big Sam was adamant that he could live up to the billing. The supporters, and more importantly, the results, begged to differ.

Overpaid underperforming players have always been Newcastle's downfall in the transfer market history. Stephane Guivarc'h, Marcelinho, Hugo Viana, Alert Luque, Carl Cort, Patrick Kluivert are the most prominent. Apparently those times were behind us, but when Allardyce brought in Jose Enrique and Claudio Cacapa, questions were once more asked of the motives behind such transfer policy. Cacapa had a fantastic pedigree in France and Enrique was supposedly targeted by the biggest clubs in Europe. Enrique has barely played a game while Cacapa has looked well out of his depth after some decent early appearances. The additions of Alan Smith, Habib Beye, Geremi, Mark Viduka, David Rozenhal and Joey Barton were all typical Big Sam purchases - a lot of effort and hard work but no flair. It could be said that headless chickens running around on the St James' Park pitch could have put in the same amount of effort (if not more), and they'd be right, only headless chickens would run faster.

Newcastle fans have not asked for much - if eleven players give us 100% effort and commitment we're happy. It's when players who clearly do not give two flying ones about the club put in performances that are not satisfactory for a pub team. It's clearly evident that a new approach is needed. Alex Ferguson and Arsene Wenger's policy of buying young players and bringing them through is duly noted. As supporters, we should hope that this kind of policy will pay dividends, now and into the future.

Where Now?

The Manager

I'm going to put my neck on the line and say I'm not one of Kevin Keegan's greatest admirers. I think he was a terrific player, one of the best, but when the announcement broke that he would be Newcastle's manager for the second time, my heart sank. He's a great man motivator, and perhaps that's what Newcastle need the most right now, but as far as coaching methods go I think he's behind the times, tactically and technically. I just don't think he has the ability to make good players great and poor players better. He's the type of guy that is great at spending money, but there's only so much of that to go around. It didn't work the first time in his first managerial stint at Newcastle and I just don't see it working a second time.

The Supporters

The lifeblood of every soccer team, the St. James' Park faithful are a different breed. Newcastle is a one city soccer club, going to watch soccer on a weekend is a tradition passed down from father to son for generations. This is probably a bit of a cliche, but unless you've lived in the area or been to a game in Newcastle, it's hard to understand. The supporters can sometimes be the twelfth man, and in Newcastle's case, they need them now more than ever.

*Note - This article was originally posted on March 4th, 2008 at Soccer City FC's Corner Kicks which is now being merged with Soccer City FC.