I Wish I Was A Geordie - The Blog of Newcastle United in the US

CABAYE CLOSES IN AS BARTON SMOLDERS; GERVINHO NEXT?

Letting Joey Barton have a Twitter account is like letting Bart Simpson have a flamethrower. We saw the result yesterday, as Newcastle United prepared to wield some firepower of its own in the transfer market.

Everyone except the English press is confirming that Lille midfielder Yohan Cabaye has agreed to come to Newcastle. Lille manager Rudi Garcia told French television's Canal+ that Cabaye announced his decision to his teammates prior to Lille's season-ending 3-2 victory over Rennes in Ligue 1 Sunday. Posters on Lille message boards say reports from the French radio network RMC are setting Cabaye's Newcastle wage at a hefty €400,000 per month - which, if true, would work out to more than £80,000 ($130,000) a week. Meanwhile, the French sports daily L'Equipe - as reliable a source as exists in European sports journalism - reported in a brief that star Lille striker Gervinho will meet next week with NUFC officials about a possible move to Tyneside.

The developments didn't do Barton any favors in light of his tweets earlier Sunday. @Joey7Barton went live about his contract impasse on Twitter around noon in England, with four transmissions that strung together read thusly: "I will tell all when the time is right, basically they want a younger, better, cheaper player............cant blame Mike and Derek can you? / ......slight problem is, they dont want to spend any money or pay any wages. Its genius really ha ha / I am an employee so have to be careful here. Everyone knows i'd love to stay, i get on with Pardew fine and are dressing room is 1st class.. / if am not offered a new contract, my hands are tied. I will continue to do everything in my power to bring a trophy to St James next season."

If this is Barton's idea of careful we can be glad he didn't grow up to be a surgeon. There isn't any ink on any contracts yet, so he could still be vindicated, and anyone who's been a fan through the Mike Ashley era is entitled to skepticism. But Newcastle United is drawing a lot of interest from highly sought-after transfer targets for a club that doesn't want to spend any money or pay any wages. Tweets don't go away, so if the £80K salary figure for Cabaye materializes, Barton's training table is going to feature a heavy helping of crow. Later in the day Barton tweeted, "Cabaye = happy days.........keep spending. Teams win trophies not individuals tweeps". It's hard to tell if that was celebration or backpedaling or sarcasm.

Which is the problem with Twitter. All the emoticons in the world can't compensate for actual words emerging from an actual mouth with accompanying inflections and gestures. It's no place for a public figure who's already complicated to understand. Regardless of what side you're on in the Barton-NUFC contract saga, it's hard to think @Joey7Barton is helping Joey Barton, the human.

On the contrary, @Joey7Barton came off yesterday like someone who's feeling heat from a coveted phenom across the channel playing his position and wearing his number. I don't want to believe the real Joey Barton feels heat from anyone. That's not the way he plays, and we can pray that's not the way he is. So please, wor Joey - drop the Twitter and slowly back away. At least until we see whether the club you'll be playing for next year is turning the same new leaf you did this year.

REPORTED CABAYE SIGNING WOULD BE A TIMELY STEAL

If reports coming out of France today are true - and they appear credible - then Newcastle United is set to make a fine early capture at a bargain price in the summer transfer market.

According to various French sources including a daily newspaper site in Lille, Lille central midfielder Yohan Cabaye is poised to sign with Newcastle after United met the €5 million release clause in his contract. There's no confirmation yet, but the reports are from professional media and have the kind of detail not normally associated with mere speculation, such as the grooming of Cabaye's replacement at Lille. Also Cabaye fits all the hints dropped earlier this week by Alan Pardew about the imminent signing of a mystery central midfielder, and there aren't many plausible transfers who do.

We've watched Lille several times this season, and while Gervinho and Moussa Sow are justifiably getting most of the transfer attention at the club so far, Cabaye has been the main eye-catcher in the heart of Lille's midfield behind the star strikers. The 25-year-old is a classy box-to-box player with an eye for goal (31 in seven seasons with Lille), and he's just cracking into the France national team. For €5 million, that sort of player is a steal.

For a Newcastle club that's taken a PR flogging over Joey Barton's contract negotiations in the past couple of days, this signing would be a reassuring signal of ambition for the ever-fretting Toon Army. Cross fingers and watch highlights. 

(Note: Cabaye has been featured in our NUFC summer transfer guide, Building A Better Newcastle - check it out for more on Cabaye and other potential Toon targets.)

PLOT BY BARTON'S AGENT IS WORKING...SO FAR

Willie McKay had a plan.

By going public with Wednesday's breakdown in contract negotiations between the Newcastle United board and midfielder Joey Barton, McKay - Barton's agent - hoped to score an early win in the public relations battle. He wanted to get public sentiment firmly on his client's side.

It's worked.

Newcastle fans -- at least most of those who have sounded off on the issue -- have vented their anger at the apparent decision by United's unpopular hierarchy to pull its contract offer to Barton. The breakdown in negotiations is said to be the result of a difference in opinion between the two sides on the length of the extension for Barton, whose current deal will be up next summer.

Maybe those fans will be proven right. Maybe 100 percent of the blame lies with owner Mike Ashley, chairman Derek Llambias and the rest of Newcastle's decision makers.

But we've only heard one side of the story so far. So I'd like to wait until more facts emerge before rushing to judgment, and I'd ask other Newcastle fans to do the same. The situation reminds me of a divorce, and we're all the kids. We've heard dad blame mom for the failed marriage, but what does mom have to say?

Now, given Ashley and Co.'s track record with supporters, we'll likely have to rely on manager Alan Pardew to deliver the company line. But that's not the point. This is a complicated decision for the club. Barton will be 29 in September. He's coming off a superb season, but his previous three years at the club were filled with injuries, poor form and other issues. Most fans seem to have forgotten that, probably because Barton is a likeable character despite his well-documented and troubled past. So how long should the offer be? And at what salary?

Anyone who acts like a deal should simply be rubber-stamped is being naive. Barton will feel he deserves a good deal after a season in which he was Newcastle's most consistent performer. Ashley and Llambias will be trying to ensure the club isn't tied into an expensive contract with a player who may have already reached his peak. They may also feel that money could be better spent on a few foreign imports this summer.

Steve Wraith of Toon Talk fanzine relayed Barton's sentiments on Thursday during the publication's online radio show. Barton says he doesn't want to leave, he loves the club, he'd like new owners in charge and he wants to bring a trophy to Newcastle.

But just because he and his agent are saying all the right things doesn't make them right. The simple fact is we still need more information before we can make judgments.

DOES OLD JOEY FIT IN A NEW NEWCASTLE?

Yesterday the soccer world learned that Joey Barton - or, to be precise, Joey Barton's agent - is angling for a long-term contract Newcastle United is unwilling to sign, touching off a predictable Internet-wide fret-fest by Barton's many Toon Army supporters after his impressive season. Barton's fans would do well to consider, however, that the impasse may be not so much a matter of the club's opinion about Barton as the club's opinion about itself.

By insisting on a deal that would carry the player well into his 30s, agent Willie McKay is saying, essentially, that Barton should be made a centerpiece of his club. Newcastle United is answering, essentially, that it aspires to be a better club than one that has Barton as a centerpiece.

I understand what McKay is saying. I love what United is saying.

A few days ago, in a story detailing Mike Ashley's apparent willingness to splash some summer cash, the Mail featured a quote from Alan Pardew that has stuck in our minds here at the blog: "We could attract a squad here I know would keep us safe in this division but that’s not what Mike wants and it’s not what I want. We want to try and excel. We have to try and take a few chances with players that will keep us in the division but who might take us on to that next level."

That quote is positively thrilling. It's open to debate whether the next level - Europe - is attainable, given the economics of the sport at this moment. But this club's unequaled supporters deserve a team that strives for the next level, attainable or not.

So you may love wor Joey, and I don't blame you, but put on your objectivity hat, and ask yourself: is Joey Barton the sort of player who keeps the club firmly where it is? Or is he the sort of player who leads the club to new heights?

Newcastle United is building a new club. Barton deserves a role in it. But after only one impressive season, and entering the latter days of his career, Joey Barton cannot, and should not, be the foundation. Let's hope that all parties involved, eventually, come to that realization.

GAMEIRO ANOTHER OWEN? DOUBTFUL

By now we've all heard that Kevin Gameiro allegedly prefers a move to Spain this summer.

And yet Newcastle still appears to be hot for the Lorient striker, which has prompted some United fans to conjure up the cautionary tale of Michael Owen.

Owen, of course, never really embraced his 2005 move to Newcastle. But the previous big-spending United regime was the only one that matched Real Madrid's asking price, so Owen was forced to come to Tyneside.

But here's the thing: The reason Owen's time at Newcastle was a failure had more to do with poor performances and injuries than his lukewarm attitude, regardless of how infuriating it was to United supporters. His reluctance to talk to the local press or show any tangible signs of leadership during a disastrous spell as captain would have been overlooked if he'd been banging in goals left and right.

But Owen was already on the downward part of his career arc when he arrived at St. James' Park; Gameiro's ascent is still in the early stages.

Gameiro could wind up being a flop in the Premier League should Newcastle succeed in signing him (though I personally doubt he'd fail). But if he does, it will almost assuredly be because he can't handle the pace and power of the Premier League -- not because he lacks a passion for the club like Owen did.

SUMMER SEASON STARTS IN ATTACKING STYLE

RMC Sport - an online site operated by the French network Radio Monte Carlo - is reporting that Newcastle United has made a €10 million (£8.7 million or $14.2 million) bid for 24-year-old Lorient striker Kevin Gameiro. RMC is one of the pioneer radio organizations of Europe; it has a history of solid journalism, and their site is excellent (if you can read French, which is notoriously resistent to web translation). So we're putting more than the usual stock in this report, and from what we can make out, it says that while Gameiro prefers Spain and is still linked to failed January bidder Valencia, the Spanish club may not be able to afford him. Tottenham, PSG and Lille are all interested, but Newcastle is first in with a number. With only a year left on Gameiro's contract, Lorient is anxious to sell soon and shop for replacements.

Will Newcastle's bid for Gameiro succeed, against the likes of Tottenham and with the player's brain on Spain? Probably not. But you have to love it anyway.

Valencia's €6 million bid having been denied in January, €10 million is a strong but not irresponsible offer for one contract year of a rising star. It's just enough to force the hand of the clubs Gameiro is targeting in Spain and bigger clubs elsewhere, for a player whose potential is immense but unproven outside a small club in France. Gameiro is a bigger gamble for a club like Spurs that's mostly assembled, versus one that just finished mid-table with no top striker for much of the season. Whatever happens, it's heartening to see Newcastle prepared to play and dictating the summer action just 24 hours after season's end.

And if the bid should succeed - dare we even consider? - Newcastle immediately sews up what looks like the kind of striker it desperately needs: fast, two-footed, versatile, and a finisher. He's small - just 5'7" - but Newcastle already has size up front, and Gameiro's speed could help make that size finally count. As my co-blogger Tom put it, "I can only imagine what he'd do next to the beast that is Shola."

Not much to do now but wait. If you're looking for a way to pass the time, watch this, and dream.

UPDATE: A day behind the French media, the Daily Mail is reporting Newcastle's bid for Gameiro (and confirming the signing of Lens prospect Mehdi Abeid). The Mail also says Tottenham's interest in Gameiro has cooled, though there's no attribution for that.

MY FELLOW NEWCASTLE FANS: GET A GRIP

When I look back at Newcastle United's wild 2010-11 season in the coming days, months and years, I'll think about all the colossal efforts it took to restore the club to a respectable place in the Premier League.

I'll smile when I think about the thrashings of Aston Villa and Sunderland at St. James' Park and the comeback to end all comebacks against Arsenal in the most unbelievable match I've ever seen.

But I don't think I'll spend much time thinking about United's forgettable second-half performance in the season finale, a 3-all draw against West Brom -- a result that was, in all honesty, fairly inconsequencial.

Yes, it would have been nice to finish in the top half of the table. Yes, it would have been great to be able to taunt Sunderland. And yes, that extra £2 million-plus of prize money would have been nice to add to the club's warchest.

But all of that wouldn't have changed my assessment of Newcastle's season. United have planted the roots for a charge up the table in the coming seasons, but to do that owner Mike Ashley needs to give manager Alan Pardew the funds -- and Pardew needs to make worthwhile signings -- to significantly strength an undermanned squad.

That's why it bothered me to see so many Toon fans going over the top in their criticism of Pardew and the team in the aftermath of Sunday's match. Booing at the fulltime whistle? I thought most of you said you'd be happy with 17th in United's first season back up in the big time.

Now, don't get me wrong -- I was livid at the manner in which Newcastle imploded defensively in the second half. Pardew's substitutions might not have helped, but United's collapse had more to do with a sudden lack of composure on the ball and brainless defending than anything the manager did. Jose Enrique played well below par in what will likely be his final game with United, and Fabricio Coloccini and Danny Simpson didn't help matters, either.

But can any of you honestly tell me you'd have a different opinion of the team if Newcastle had won and finished ninth? Would that mean one less signing this summer? Of course not.

Newcastle finished three points back of eighth, and there's very little difference between the teams occupying the spots between seventh and 14th. If Sunderland fans want to puff out their chests and brag about one measly point, let them. Newcastle's job for the summer is unchanged -- make the sort of signings that will allow United to take aim at a top-seven finish next time around.

We can only hope that Sunday's capitulation emphasized the need for further investment from Ashley. But overreact? That's not something we should do.

ALAN PARDEW, INTERNATIONAL MAN OF MYSTERY

Newcastle United manager Alan Pardew has touched off a Toon Army-wide guessing game with comments in the Sunday Sun that his club will be scoring early in the summer transfer market after the season ends today: "...we're close on one player we'd like to get over the line." Who that player is, Pardew wouldn't say, but he let out these tantalizing and/or maddening hints (cue the Jeopardy think song):

- The player is an international. Not sure if this means someone who's been capped internationally or merely played internationally.

- He is based in continental Europe.

- He is primarily a central midfielder.

- He is not playing in a bottom-four club battling relegation.

According to the Sun, a fee has already been agreed upon, and the club is desperate to keep the name under wraps in case it alerts potential rivals. No word from the Sun on why, then, Pardew was giving out hints. Well, no one ever figured out why The Riddler gave out clues, either.

One rumor yesterday, touched off on Twitter by ESPN Soccernet's NUFC correspondent Marc Duffy (@MarcSDuffy), is that the club has signed Lens reserve and French U-18 international Mehdi Abeid. If you've heard of him you're either lying or you're playing way too much fantasy soccer. Duffy is reliable as a source by Twitter standards, but the player seems rather obscure for hints in the Sun, though it would jibe with the logic of not wanting to put rivals on the scent by spilling the name. Better-known players who fit the clues and who have been linked to Newcastle include Blaise Matuidi, Victor Wanyama, Romaric, and Axel Witsel. See our summer transfer guide, Building a Better Newcastle, for more (button at top left).

Meanwhile, there's one last match to be played, and a possible top-half finish to take to market. Off to it.

N'ZOGBIA: OFF-FIELD RISK WORTH ON-FIELD GAIN

We know, courtesy of Thursday's Evening Chronicle, that Charles N'Zogbia would welcome a return to Newcastle.

But would Newcastle fans welcome him back? That was the topic du jour among members of the Toon Army on Thursday, and fans seemed split on the issue.

Now, I'll be up front: I'm a firm believer that bringing back N'Zogbia is a move Newcastle should make. He's a pacy, direct, attacking player who could reinvigorate United in the final third.

Those who are against the move point to N'Zogbia's attitude and the circumstances under which he left the club. They say it'd be too big of a risk to sign N'Zogbia.

I disagree.

On the field, Newcastle would be getting a proven Premier League playmaker who's scored 17 goals over the past two seasons. The rumored price tag has ranged between £6-12 million, although the figure would obviously depend on whether Wigan beat the drop.

Compare that to the cost of getting into a bidding war with teams across Europe for a player such as Gervinho -- a player who isn't yet proven in the Premier League.

As for N'Zogbia's attitude problems, none of us truly know whether he's matured since leaving Newcastle. But didn't the same questions dog Hatem Ben Arfa in the buildup to his move to Tyneside last summer? Remember, that was the second time Ben Arfa had forced through a transfer.

Keeping the two Frenchmen happy would be a challenge for Alan Pardew and his staff as well as United's much-talked-about team spirit, but that's the deal with talent -- better players bring bigger egoes. If it's not N'Zogbia, then someone else will be the one to test the tight-knit dressing room. If that doesn't happen, then Newcastle likely won't have signed the players who Pardew says "get bums off seats."

So, if a move for N'Zogbia is risky, then I say it's a risk worth taking.

UPDATE: ZOG LOOKING LIKE NUFC'S FIRST SUMMER CATCH

Zog update:

Rumors flew online Wednesday that Charles N'Zogbia's agreement for a return to Newcastle was sewed up (along with "two young internationals"), and while the report wasn't attributed, the source was identified as an ex-NUFC scout via one of the leaders of the fan union United for Newcastle, making it somewhat more credible than the typical Twitterumor. Later the Daily Mail reported, with no attribution whatsoever, that Sunderland was leading the chase for Zog, generating this breathless thread on a Sunderland message board including a mention of the post you're now reading, which generated heavy traffic on our site from Sunderland all night long...until last hour, when Newcastle's Evening Chronicle reported that N'Zogbia wants a return to Tyneside, again without direct attribution but with details and direct quotes. From the headline in tonight's print editions (at right) one can surmise the paper is confident of its story.

To sum up: it's not in stone yet, but it's looking more likely by the hour that Charles N'Zogbia will be the summer's first big catch for NUFC.

(And yes, Jonas is out. Look to see plenty on Sunday of the indefatigable Shane Ferguson, whose ankle twist at Chelsea appears healed.)