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

WHY STURRIDGE ISN'T ON OUR TARGET LIST, OR NEWCASTLE'S

We at IWIWAG have been amused by recent reports that Newcastle United's interest in Daniel Sturridge has cooled, given the lack of evidence it was ever hot. You can find plenty of bloggers, message board commenters and distant media speculators who think Sturridge would make the perfect new Number 9 at St. James' Park. But if you can find a reliable report that anyone working for United has ever agreed, send it our way, because we can't. That's why Sturridge has never been on our ample target list, which we've tried to distinguish from other such lists by making it about who we think the club might sign - as opposed to who we think the club should sign, which strikes us as silly. We should sign Messi. He'd be great.

We have eyes and they work, so we understand why Sturridge causes excitement. He has pace to raise a chill. He's never unclever. He has a machine gun for a left foot. The other foot is getting there. And he's not near his peak.

But we also know this: when something doesn't appear logical from what's visible on the field, look off it. Newcastle's lack of interest almost has to be related to something fans and bloggers and forum posters can't see.

We don't know anything for certain about Sturridge's work habits or attitude. We do know he made a wage demand of £75,000 a week before he left his teens - a demand the richest club in the history of Earth wouldn't meet. This doesn't sound like someone who's easy to have around, though as a college teacher, I can tell you the same goes for many in his age bracket. And yet, if greed alone were enough to put clubs off players, professional sport would hardly exist.

Sturridge has been stuck behind a galaxy at his previous clubs. Still, their easy willingness to sell seems discordant with his prospects, as does the roster of rumored buyers. I don't know what troubles me more: the fact that it might take £15 million to sign a 21-year-old with a dozen quality starts to base it on, or the fact that the bidding has opened with Stoke at a mere six. Where the hell is Liverpool? They have a young striker who looks like a total bust. Oh, I forgot: they're not interested until we are. I'm not saying anything fishy is going on, but when you call Liverpool's scouting department, the receptionist answers "howay."

Something in all this is not right. The fair price would appear to be somewhere between where it is and where it's been quoted as heading. If the auction remains at or near seven figures, there'll be no logical reason for Newcastle United to shun Sturridge the player. Perhaps - especially for a club trying to maintain a top-rate locker room in the face of personnel upheaval - the point of reluctance is what we don't know about Sturridge the person, and what the clubs do. 

WE'LL TAKE NEWCASTLE'S PLAN, NOT SUNDERLAND'S

Newcastle fans are always well aware of what's going on at Sunderland, and vice versa.

So it's been interesting to see two dramatically different transfer strategies unfold at the clubs this summer.

Newcastle is clearly going to spend the majority of its efforts looking for good value in the foreign market, particularly France. It wouldn't be at all shocking if Demba Ba is the only player with previous Premier League experience who's brought in (and he only has 12 PL appearances on his CV). United appears to be molding a skillful group full of athleticism for Alan Pardew to play with.

Sunderland, meanwhile, is taking the less risky route of buying predominantly English-based players. Ipswich's teenage striker Connor Wickham and Birmingham midfielder Craig Gardner are apparently close to joining Birmingham midfielder Sebastian Larsson and Coventry goalkeeper Keiren Westwood in Steve Bruce's squad. Sunderland's other targets? The Manchester United trio of Darron Gibson, Wes Brown and John O'Shea, Liverpool striker David N'Gog and, of course, Wigan's Charles N'Zogbia (who may or may not be wanted by Newcastle - it seems to change every day).

South Korean striker Ji Dong-Won could very well be the only foreign-based player Sunderland signs this summer. It's not that the players Bruce and Niall Quinn have brought in or are pursuing are bad, but they're all the sort who will fit into a traditional English sort of team. Solid, but nothing to really shout about. I like players that are dynamic and outside of N'Zogbia, none of those players mentioned are.

Now, this isn't meant to be a cheap shot at Newcastle's rivals. But I'll gladly take Yohan Cabaye and Sylvain Marveaux over Gardner and Larsson. So put me down for being on board with how United appears to be attacking this summer. The risk may be greater, but so is the potential reward.

BUILDING A BETTER NEWCASTLE 6/27 UPDATE: DARRON GIBSON

Suddenly Newcastle is being linked with Irish midfielders left and right.

Manchester United's Darron Gibson is the latest name to enter the rumor mill, after Stephen Ireland and Keith Treacy. Gibson's name had been mentioned previously, but Monday's report by Lee Ryder in the Evening Chronicle was the most solid link to date. Even so, it was extremely lacking in details or sourcing, with the real meat of the story aimed at discrediting Moussa Sissoko's agent, who claimed over the weekend that Newcastle was negotiating to land the French midfielder.

That's too bad, because Sissoko would be a much more exciting target than Gibson, who Sunderland has been after all summer. It's not that the Irish international is a bad player - anyone who says that is just being over the top - but he's not a significant upgrade over the likes of Danny Guthrie and wouldn't be worth the rumored £5 million price tag. There's a tendency to think fringe players at clubs like Manchester United will shine with more extensive playing time; the other side of that argument is that they won't be surrounded by superstars or coached by a legendary manager anymore.

So while we've updated our transfer guide to include Gibson, we'll be none too heartbroken if he ends up at the Stadium of Light instead.

BUILDING A BETTER NEWCASTLE 6/26 UPDATE: STEPHEN IRELAND AND KEITH TREACY

Even before Alan Pardew had seen Stephen Ireland play a match for Newcastle, he was talking about the midfielder's chances of securing a permanent move to Tyneside.

It was only natural to think that if Ireland came in and showed signs of resuscitating his career, United would make a bid this summer. Of course, the first part never happened. Ireland made two substitute appearances in black and white before an ankle injury sent him back to Aston Villa - which brought a halt to any talk about a summer transfer.

Until Sunday, that is, when a story in the Sunday Sun by Mark Douglas said Newcastle is, in fact, still interested in Ireland and might make a late move in August. That prompted us to update our transfer guide to include the 24-year-old (along with Preston North End's Irish winger Keith Treacy, who we have a hard time envisioning at United).

While Ireland would bring a different skill set to Newcastle's midfield, everything else that comes with him - his lack of form since the 2008-09 season, his diva lifestyle and the price (not so much the transfer fee, but the salary he'd likely demand) - makes him a less attractive target than some of the other players United has been linked with this summer. In January, Ireland was worth taking a chance on given the lack of alternatives. That shouldn't be the case now.

NEWCASTLE UNITED US TOUR 2011: TICKET AND EVENT UPDATE

We're receiving a growing number of hits, searches and inquiries relative to tickets and events for Newcastle United's three-match US tour coming up in late July. Here's the latest.

NEWCASTLE UNITED AT SPORTING KANSAS CITY

Kickoff: Wednesday, July 20, 7:30 p.m. at Livestrong Sporting Park, Kansas City, Kansas.

Tickets: Still available in the Newcastle United away supporters' section (currently being sold in Section 123, corner of East Stand); click here and use TOON as the access code.

Pre-match/Post-match: The new US supporters' club Toon Army America is arranging events the night before and after the game at Johnny's Tavern Power & Light District in downtown Kansas City, Missouri (not Kansas). For more details as the match approaches, go to Toon Army America's site and register. We are working on an I Wish I Was A Geordie tailgate for Newcastle United fans immediately before the match; watch here for details.

Where to stay: This is a tricky one. The stadium is in Kansas City, Kansas, relatively distant ($54 cab ride *each way*) from vibrant downtown Kansas City, which is on the Missouri side. Toon Army America has been working on a hotel partnership but details are still being ironed out. Your blog hosts are splitting the difference by staying in downtown Kansas City on Monday and Tuesday nights, and moving out to Kansas on Wednesday night.

NEWCASTLE UNITED AT ORLANDO CITY LIONS

Kickoff: Saturday, July 23, 7:30 p.m. at the Citrus Bowl, Orlando, Florida.

Tickets: Available in the Newcastle away supporters sections (111 and 112). Toon Army America has arranged a discount ($25 price) for NUFC fans if you order your tickets by phone through Alex at  (407) 536-5146; discount not available online.

Pre-match/Post-match: Events are still in the works from Toon Army America. I Wish I Was A Geordie will not be in Orlando, sad to say; we couldn't make that work between the other two matches.

Where to stay: The Rose and Plaza Hotel, (800) 627-8258, has a special rate for soccer fans: ask for the Orlando City soccer rate.

NEWCASTLE UNITED AT COLUMBUS CREW

Kickoff: Tuesday, July 26, 7:30 p.m. at Crew Stadium, Columbus, Ohio.

Tickets: Discounted tickets ($17) in the Newcastle away supporters sections (114-115, south end) are still available; click here and use tooncolumbus as the access code, or contact our man at the Crew, Nick White, at (614) 447-4153 or [email protected].

Pre-match/Post-match: Nick says a popular place for fans to gather within walking distance of Crew Stadium before and after matches is the Fourth Street Patio. That's where we'll be, and Toon Army America is working on possible events there before and after the game.

Where to stay: The Crew has a special rate at the Hyatt on Capitol Square in downtown Columbus; use MLSFAN as the access code. Crew Stadium itself is north of downtown, near the Ohio State University campus.

Watch here for more details as they become available, and hope to see you on tour!

TIME TO SPLASH THE CASH

The beginning of the summer transfer market is usually torturous. You know what your team needs. You see various players - some good, some not so good - rumored to be on their way. And yet very little happens. Just a lot of posturing from clubs, agents and players.

Which brings us to Newcastle United's fast and furious approach to the first few weeks of this summer's transfer window. Having three quality players signed at this stage of the game is a rarity (and a fourth, Swansea City left back Neil Taylor, is said to be close to joining).

But now comes the hard part. Newcastle has taken advantage of contractual situations to land Yohan Cabaye, Demba Ba and Sylvain Marveaux on the cheap. At some point, though, United will need to dig deeper into its pocketbook and pay out some significant transfer fees.

I'm not of the opinion that Mike Ashley needs to prove something by spending a certain amount of the Andy Carroll money this summer. Impressing and/or convincing supporters isn't what United should worry about; signing good players is. However, good players usually cost good money. And if Newcastle wants to land the likes of Mevlut Erding, Tranquillo Barnetta and Blaise Matuidi - or players of similar quality - Mike Ashley will need to sanction some decent-sized transfer fees.

There are exceptions, which Newcastle has already proven with Cabaye, Ba and Marveaux. But they can't be the biggest highlights of the summer. The middle and the end need to be just as impressive as the start.

11,932 REASONS NOT TO SIGN CHARLES N'ZOGBIA

This didn't make as large a wave in the Twitterocean as I thought it would, perhaps because Charles N'Zogbia wisely erased it from his timeline not long after he posted it. But check out the bar tab Zog ran up Sunday night at the Cameo nightclub in Miami Beach, pictured at right: $11,932.80, including tax and a $1,457.44 tip at 16 percent. THANK YOU! PLEASE COME AGAIN!

To Miami, maybe. But please, not to Newcastle.

I don't care if Zog hangs out at a club owned by The Opium Group, promising "the dark and dirty side of the disco era." (?) I wouldn't have cared if he'd been there on one of their signature "Lapdance Tuesdays." Nor do I care too much that he was able, somehow, to blow 12 large there in one sitting. 

What gigs me is that he would brag about it worldwide on the Internet. A week ago I posted a piece saying unless you're behind the scenes it's hard to spot the mercenary-type player who puts money first. Well, we're behind the scenes now. And this is how.

All that stuff Tom and I have posted about how Zog should be Newcastle's number-one target, and how touched we were by his recent nostalgic tweets about Newcastle, and how we'd prefer him to unknown French quantities like Gervinho...just, forget it. N'Zogbia has apparently not matured from his untamed younger day in black-and-white. And while we don't know if anyone at our favorite soccer club happens to have come across this little postcard from Miami, note that the day after it posted, word came that Newcastle United had lost interest in Zog too, due to "reservations about the player's attitude" and his "mercenary" approach.

"Vegas, NYC, Miami...living la Vida Rapido" proclaims Zog's signature line on Twitter. Well, Chucky Z, we're thinking your vida is about to get a little less rapido. Vegas, NYC, Miami...Sunderland.

SYLVAIN MARVEAUX: NOW THE BAD NEWS

There was celebration across the Land of Toon yesterday over the surprise signing of Rennes and former French U-21 star Sylvain Marveaux, a gifted and versatile forward-leaning midfielder who's been linked in the past with Manchester United and Chelsea and who until last Thursday had been in the process of transferring to Liverpool. When something happened. Reports are the something was a failed medical, which Marveaux aggressively denied to the French sports daily L'Equipe: "It disgusts me a bit to read things like that because I know it could affect the rest of my career. You can give me a medical today and you'll see there's no problem."

We don't know exactly what happened to put Liverpool off Marveaux. But I know this: groin and hamstring pulls are the bastard god and bitch goddess of chronic sports injuries. And I, personally, would be chicken to sign a player who at age 25 had already lost most of a season to each.

"Groin" and "hamstring" are sports colloquialisms for neighboring sets of muscles and tendons in the upper leg. Many if not most athletes, even weekend athletes, will pull them at some point; I pulled a groin playing hockey in my younger day and I can still call to mind the searing pain. I took the injury to my orthopedist, who was the team doctor for the NBA's Milwaukee Bucks. He said there was nothing to do except rest it and hope it didn't happen again soon, because once it becomes chronic it's hard to stop. The same sentiment was echoed later by a major-league baseball trainer when I asked about a player who seemingly couldn't run hard from home to first without popping something. Some guys just have tight or weak muscles there, he said, gravely and off the record.

Marveaux may well have passed his medicals at Liverpool and Newcastle. Provided the injuries are healed, susceptibility to further problems might not show up in a picture or test. But an average groin or hamstring pull heals in six weeks, so we know he's already had at least two that are way worse than average, and relatively close together. It doesn't take an insider to tell this signing is a decided risk.

As with Demba Ba, the potential reward for Newcastle if Marveaux manages to stay healthy is huge, so I'm not unexcited about this acquisition. It's the sort of chance a modestly funded club like Newcastle has to take, and a lavishly funded club like Liverpool doesn't. Let's hope, though, that by the time summer ends, Newcastle United has acquired one or two difference-making players at a retail price and without obvious risk, instead of from the bargain bin.

MARVEAUX COMES OUT OF NOWHERE

All indications for the past six months or so have been that French winger Sylvain Marveaux was set to sign with Liverpool this summer after his contract with Rennes ran up. We didn't even bother including him in our summer transfer guide because it didn't seem like Newcastle had a shot at landing him.

And then, BAM! Marveaux's face popped up on Newcastle's official site on Saturday. It's the latest twist in a manic summer on Tyneside. There were rumors Marveaux failed a medical at Liverpool due to the groin problem that sidelined him for the majority of his final season at Rennes, but the player denied those claims.

Marveaux is a pacy left-sided player who can also play centrally as an attacking midfielder. So, yes, I'm thinking the same thing you are: This most likely ends United's pursuit of Charles N'Zogbia, if it ever had genuinely started. I would have loved to seen the return of the Zog, but I can't blame Newcastle for opting for a player on a free over one with a £12 million price tag.

The 25-year-old Marveaux brings a somewhat troublesome injury history with him (a torn hamstring sabotaged his 2008-09 season and he only managed 10 games last season because of his groin injury). Still, stealing a player from Liverpool's clutches is yet another sign of admirable ambition from United's decision-makers this summer. Risky? Maybe. Aggressive? You bet.

ALL IN ALL, BA WORTH THE RISK

Despite some cautionary quotes from Alan Pardew earlier in the day, Demba Ba did indeed become a Newcastle United player on Friday.

The value of this signing from a Newcastle perspective will largely depend on the status of Ba's troublesome knee in the coming years (although it should be noted that, despite two failed medicals, Ba hasn't missed an alarming amount of games - at least because of the knee - over the years). But, seeing as though the contract is for three years and is reportedly incentive-laden, United seems to have done a fairly decent job of managing the risk.

If the 26-year-old Ba was brought in to be Newcastle's top striker, I'd be slightly less enthused. But the fact that United still appears to be hot on the trail of Mevlut Erding and, according to The Journal, will be pursuing a third forward as well makes me even more eager for the rest of the summer.

In other striker-related news, Mark Douglas reports (in the same story referenced above) that Newcastle is looking to sell Leon Best. Given his performances in the second half of last season, that decision looks incredibly harsh on the 24-year-old.

Keep in mind, though, that Best's value might never be higher -- does anyone honestly think he'll be able to repeat last year's goals-to-games ratio? And if he's going to be replaced by another striker of Ba's caliber, it's hard to argue.