At the start of the season, I wrote an article where I named five Premier League managers I felt were at risk of losing their job before the end of the season. Three of those managers have now been sacked by their respective clubs, with Mick McCarthy getting the axe at Wolves, Neil Warnock being punted by QPR, and now Alex McLeish fired by Randy Lerner after a single season in charge of Aston Villa. Steve Kean managed Blackburn to relegation, but improbably still holds his job, with Rovers owners Venkys seemingly standing by him.
I did however, get one prediction badly wrong. I thought that Alan Pardew would find himself under pressure, despite having guided Newcastle to 12th place after replacing Chris Hughton in 2010. Newcastle fans had been less than delighted by his appointment, and the departure of first team players like Kevin Nolan, Joey Barton, Jose Enrique and the January sale of Andy Carroll seemed likely to leave Newcastle short of the experience needed to stay away from the relegation zone.
But they enjoyed an unbeaten start to the Premier League season, not losing a game until facing eventual champions Manchester City in November, and summer signing Demba Ba enjoying a prolific start to the season scoring 15 goals before departing for the African Cup of Nations in January. They also had a solid and reliable defence, and another summer signing, Yohan Cabaye was impressing alongside Cheik Tiote in central midfield.
The goals dried up for Ba after he returned to Premier League action in February, and he scored just once for the rest of the season. But his lack of form didn’t result in a Newcastle slump, because January signing Papiss Cisse took up the goal scoring mantle (and the famous Newcastle number 9 shirt), scoring the winning goal against Aston Villa on his debut, and subsequently scoring in 12 goals in his next 13 appearances. French midfielder Hatem Ben Arfa (who cost Newcastle just £2million) also became more influential as the season progressed, and Newcastle were suddenly contenders for a Champions League spot.
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Three defeats in their final four games ultimately saw them finish 5th in the Premier League table, finishing ahead Chelsea and Liverpool, two teams who had been expecting to challenge (at least) for a top 4 spot themselves. It was a stunning season for Pardew and Newcastle, but seasons like that can create complications for a club that cannot match the spending power of the Premier League’s bigger teams.
With so many of Newcastle’s first team regulars having enjoyed brilliant seasons individually, it is inevitable that the big spending Premier League clubs will be sniffing around their best players. Goalkeeper Tim Krul has been linked with Spurs in the past, and Cabaye, Tiote and Ben Arfa have been standouts in midfield. Ba and Cisse scored 29 goals between them, and goalscorers always attract big bids.
So all Geordie eyes will be on Mike Ashley over the summer. When Newcastle were relegated, Ashley became public enemy number one, and although they came straight back up, the fans were less than happy when he got rid of Houghton. But although the club have no spent big money in comparison to others in the Premier League, they have spent wisely, with Krul, Cabaye, Tiote, Ben Arfa, Cisse and Ba all coming to the club for a combined total of around £20million. All of those players could certainly be sold for at least £10million each, and signing those players has shown that Newcastle have a scouting system in place that could find cheap but talented players to replace them.
But this summer, Mike Ashley should reward Pardew by giving him a substantial transfer budget, and ignoring bids for his best players, no matter how high the price. Newcastle finished just four points away from 4th place, and ahead of big spenders like Chelsea and Liverpool. The addition of a few top class players to this Newcastle squad could push them on to even bigger things, and perhaps even towards their first trophy in over 40 years.
Newcastle supporters crave success, and enjoying nothing more than cheering on a winning team. If Mike Ashley makes the right choice this summer, maybe they’ll even start cheering him.
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i’m afraid your probably asking too much of fatash.
Can I just say it’s Chris Hughton, not Chris Houghton.
Lots of people get that wrong for some reason.
Can’t see Ashley changing his approach – it’s a business to him.
I agree totally utd111 its disrespectful , and ironically its often people purportimg to support Chris Hughton who get it wrong , and that includes journalists as well as bloggers!
We are in need of new players, making the strength and depth of the club more substantial. The players I would like to see is Boilisen, Peters, Mbiwa, Debuchy and Clyne. That would make our defence more sold. A point that is needed for us getting the 21 wins we need each season to become a permanent champion contender. There are poistions in Midfield up for grabs with Guthrie leaving. And to be honest it does not feel like goood attackers when Shola is counted as our number three. So there are massive things that need to come. On top of that I do believe we need to have the faith in the youth that is staying to such degree that they should be given carling cup with some experience on the pitch as well as bench. The money spent getting youth is the money well invested. HWTL
Go big or go home? Why on earth would you change a tactic that is working so superbly ? Yes players need to be bought and that is happening , but to suggest that they are only good if they have cost big money is ludicrous . I for one love it that we are above Liverpool who know how well we have managed our player purchases!I want to see us being shrewd dealers and maintaining progress whilst maintaining our financial prudence. Lots of clubs will envy us be assured of that.Using Ashleys personal funds to buy players only increases the clubs indebtedness to him and is a step backwards. You suggest we should ignore bids for our best players .This overlooks the possiility of Ba going and us receiving a minimum amount in return , in which case we need funds.Would I sell Tiote if the money would bring in 4or 5 Carr quality players ? You bet I would . I love Tiote but I love the club more , and I know it would be one step backwards to get 4 or 5 steps forward,Thats Progress , and done thoughtfully not impulsively as we did in the past ,Michael Owen Bah!!
I don’t mean that he should sanction £10million+ bids for players, what I mean is that he should give Pardew a significant transfer budget, without telling him to sell players, and open contract talks with their best players to extend their current deals to keep them.
While it’s true that Newcastle could sell any of the players I mention in the article for big money then re-invest that, there’s no guarantee that their replacements would enjoy the same level of success. Newcastle should be building a squad by adding quality (whether it costs under £10million or over) and keeping their best players.
The reality is that if Newcastle try to go for expensive, established players, they’ll miss out to the bigger Premier League clubs anyway, if they are interested too.
Ashley has worked wonders with the Newcastle books finally getting the club to, as he calls it, “wipe their own nose”
His dilemma now is whether to go big for Europe and spend (increasing the salary bill – reduce the profit) or consolidate for another season or 2, get the cash in the bank and develop in a slower, more organic manner.
Personally I think the latter makes more sense.
By the way – talking about winning their first trophy for more than 40 years – are we to assume that the Championship and Intertoto Cups don’t count?
Another point of interest – Krul was with the club long before Ashley, Cabaye, Tiote, Ben Arfa, Cisse and Ba all came along. He joined in 2005 and was bought by Souness, at a time when Newcastle were spending megabucks on Owen, Luque Boumsong and Emre. Hardly a time when they were “spending wisely”
Krul arrived for nothing, or at least very little. I included him because he’s a key player now and was signed cheaply.
I should have said major trophy, the Intertoto certainly doesn’t count.
He arrived in 2005, so is hardly relevant in an article about Ashley, Pardew and the scouting system which is currently in place (and wasn’t then!)
Surprised you didn’t mention Shola Ameobi – he may have signed in 1997, but he was even cheaper!
It’s all about the facts
It’s relevant because he cost nothing and has been talked about moving for big money. Shola Ameobi hasn’t.
David you are defending the indefensible. The main aggravation your article has provoked is firstly the title “Go big or go home”, and your ill informed assertion that regardless of the size of the bid received for any of our best players, it should be ignored and the squad only added to. If you had been listened to in the past, then Newcastle would still be paying out wages for prize pricks like Joey Barton from our hard earned.
Who would you rather have, Andy Carrol or the attacking and talented team his sale has financed?
True, contracts for our best players should be improved where required and extended as appropriate but not to the point where players and their agents have the club effectively over the barrel. We’ve been there and done that and it doesn’t work. So in complete disagreement with you, I say that if a club like chelsea want Tiote and are willing to pay above 20million, I say sell. The longer term advantage as proven by the Carrol sale negates the short term inconvenience of losing him. The same goes for everyone of our players including Cisse, who I would sell if the price is right.
As for your headline. Well it’s just very childish I’m sorry to say. Newcastle Uniteds formula has been the envy of the league this season and with Ashley’s continued moderation in outlay, combined with our evidently savvy back room and scouting network, there is every hope of further progress being made. A better title for you would have been “Fans want Ashley to Keep up The Good Work”. But your site traffic may have suffered.
Think harder about the reality of our club and it’s situation before you go off on a tangent without thinking things through
It was wonderful.It was thrilling.Far more entertaining than the pedestrian junk flung from the box at us.These are creative and talented people and I applaud them.