ENRIQUE EXCUSES DON'T CHANGE REALITY

In case anyone was in need of further evidence that Jose Enrique will be departing Newcastle United this summer, Saturday brought this quote from manager Alan Pardew in The Journal:

“We haven’t given up on keeping players at the football club – absolutely not,” said Pardew, who allegedly will be signing Joey Barton to an extension — although the delay in that announcement is somewhat concerning.

“We’re going to try and compete to keep Jose but the reality is that it’s going to be difficult. He has one year on his contract by the time the summer comes and in some ways the ball is in Jose’s court, and he has a lot of control over the situation. I look forward to talking to him once we are safe.”

Now, Enrique's comments earlier in the week may have indeed been taken out of context — a favorite excuse used by pro athletes in any sport, although it does seem a little bit more legitimate in this case since the original interview was in Spanish.

But that's not really the point. Whether Enrique's words were taken out out of context or not, the point is that it's overwhelmingly likely that Enrique will push for a move after this season is up. Newcastle just has to hope it fares as well in those negotiations as it did in the Andy Carroll deal.

So go ahead and add a left back to your summer shopping list, Alan.