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

ONE DAY TO GO AND STILL NO NO. 9

So it's come to this.

One day (or so) left to go in the summer transfer window, and Newcastle United is still in need of a striker.

This seemed like the doomsday scenario back in May. It feels a little overdramatic to call it that now - to its credit, Newcastle appears to have already done some solid business in the summer market, with Italian left back Davide Santon the latest promising player to sign (Charlton's Rob Elliot also joined to provide cover at goalkeeper) - but it's still concerning. United clearly needs another striker and, based on previous transfer deadline days under Mike Ashley's stewardship, it's not just pessimistic fans that are expecting to be let down.

Newcastle's chances of signing Modibo Maiga were reportedly dependent on his club, Sochaux, being able to secure a replacement. Leeds' Max Gradel was said to be the target, but he looks to be headed to Saint-Etienne instead.

The names of Nolan Roux, Marouane Chamakh, Papiss Demba Cisse, Nicklas Bendtner and Federico Macheda have all been tossed around as backup options, although none of the links have been as credible as those surrounding Maiga. Based on the fact Newcastle has played hardball over transfer fees all summer long, it'd be fairly stunning to see it blow anyone away with an eight-figure offer.

So unless the price tags drop or Ashley and Derek Llambias suddenly change their ways, Macheda on loan is looking like the most likely outcome of a striker search that's covered seven months. Macheda is a talented young player who still possesses plenty of potential. While he's yet to make much of a mark in the Premier League, getting him on loan with an option to buy could turn out to be a clever piece of business.

But I think we can all agree that it never should have come to this.

UPDATE: Sochaux are reportedly closing in on Rennes striker/winger Abdoul Camara. Whether that leads to Maiga moving to Newcastle remains to be seen. United were also said to have had a sizeable offer for Freiburg's Senegalese striker Papiss Demba Cisse late Tuesday, but were planning on following up with another bid. Stay tuned ...

SANTON BURDENED BY KNEE, EXPECTATIONS

If reports are true that young Inter and Italy back Davide Santon is headed for Newcastle - and it's being reported all over including reliable Italian press sources - the Toon would be getting one of the few 20-year-old continentals for whom the Premier League might come as a relief.

In February 2009, the then 18-year-old Santon did a creditable job marking Cristiano Ronaldo in a scoreless Champions League draw against Manchester United, eliciting praise from Ronaldo in post-match interviews. Shortly thereafter, in a death kiss worthy of a Mafia movie, Santon was compared by former Italy national coach Marcello Lippi to the player many consider to be the greatest defender in the country's history, Paolo Maldini. Fans across defense-minded Italy began hailing this mini-Maldini as a coming national savior. In summer of 2009, while young luminaries such as Marco Motta and Domenico Criscito were playing in the U-21 European squad, Santon became a full international for Italy at the Confederations Cup, albeit on the bench.

That fall, in a U-21 match against Luxembourg, Santon tore the lateral meniscus cartilage in his right knee - not a devastating injury, as knee injuries go, but one that can be painful and maddeningly slow to heal. He underwent a successful 45-minute arthroscope, but by the time his road back was complete, he was rusty as could be expected - except by Italy's persnickety fans, who were all too ready to brand anything less than Maldini-level development as disappointment. Unable to get sufficient playing time at Inter to regain match fitness, he was loaned this past January to the fringe Serie A club Cesena, where his performance had its ups and downs, including a much-talked-about 2-0 loss to a powerful Napoli team during which his errors resulted in both goals. Cesena escaped the drop by seven points, finishing 15th.

There's still no place for Santon to play regularly at Inter, and having reportedly clashed last season with manager Rafael Benitez before the banishment to Cesena, the club is ready to cash him out. According to Italy's solid Gazzetta dello Sport, a number of clubs are interested, including Roma, Dynamo Kiev, and Lyon, which as noted here last week allegedly fancies him as a potential replacement as they shop left back Aly Cissokho. But Gazzetta reports Newcastle has the inside track, because the other clubs, given the fitness questions, are interested only in a rent-to-own deal, not a straight buy.

As has become a refrain this summer, Santon would be a risk - it appears Newcastle just isn't willing to shell out the fee required for sought-after players who are unquestionably fit. Another question is Santon's position. Perhaps his best quality is his versatility, born of his oft-remarked calmness and maturity on the pitch; he has been deployed all across the back line and on the wing at midfield. But his most natural position, by his own admission, is right back, where he doesn't have to turn to cross - Inter has wanted him on the right, where he's being blocked by Douglas Maicon. He could be a managing challenge to boot. He's brash and a noted self-promoter - perhaps understandable given so many plaudits so young.

This much is certain, however - he'd be a vast improvement over the current left back on Newcastle's XI, i.e., none. And if his knee holds up as the rust shakes off the rest of him, this young Italian, freed from the harsh microscope of his country, could look awfully stylish on the club of continental sophistication Alan Pardew has begun to reveal in this new season. 

CLASH ON FIELD PALES NEXT TO DRAMA OFF IT

Newcastle United enters Sunday's match versus Fulham at St. James' Park with - dare we say it? - not much to lose. After an unlikely four points sending a mixed-up XI against vengeful Arsenal and transfer-rich Sunderland, United is almost certain to remain in the top half of the league even with a defeat, and could rise as high as the top of the table with a lopsided victory. But the top half would be a mirage without reinforcements before the transfer window shuts midweek. While reports indicate a deal is imminent to sign what would be the club's only XI-worthy left back in the person of PSV's Erik Pieters, we aren't resting easy until Newcastle outlasts what should've been an avoidable last-minute chicken fight with the continental clubs that have what we so desperately lack. We know they need the money; they know we need the player. Tick, tick, tick - is that a clock, or a bomb? We'll soon find out.

The French media continue to report that Lyon left back Aly Cissokho remains a possibility for Newcastle should the Pieters deal fall through. Watching Lyon host Montpellier Saturday afternoon on American television, it was head-shakingly apparent why Newcastle prefers Pieters despite Cissokho's flashy skills. Cissokho played almost no role in the match, as Montpellier peppered the opposing goal even after being reduced to 10 men in the second half, deserving far better than a 2-1 loss. The performance did nothing to dispel fitness questions about Cissokho first uncovered two years ago during a failed transfer to AC Milan and outlined here last week.

The Dutch press, by the way, is having a bit of fun in print at the moment with the English press (including the Newcastle papers), which have been running photos of Swedish striker Marcus Berg, pictured at right, and calling him Erik Pieters, pictured at top. The resemblance isn't exactly uncanny. Perhaps it's a Freudian error, as Newcastle does need a striker as well, with the most widely reported possibility at the moment being Brest starlet Nolan Roux (profiled with video in our summer transfer guide).

As thin as Newcastle may be at striker, it's not as thin as what the club survived with during the latter half of last season. We could soldier on until January not signing a forward; we can't soldier on at all not signing a back. The season may hinge on whether PSV and Lyon are more convinced of that than Newcastle's management as the transfer countdown rolls. In contrast today's match feels almost inconsequential. Enjoy it as a sabbath to rest up for a critical week.

U.S. TV AD TOUTS NEWCASTLE UNITED, HILARIOUSLY

On a Magpie-free Saturday that failed to produce much of surprise or interest in the Premier League, a television ad on Fox's U.S. soccer channels was a laugh-inducing eye-opener for Newcastle United fans in America.

Open with a young couple dining at a trendy American sushi joint. He is focused on his smartphone; she is feeling neglected. "Can't we have a normal conversation?" she complains. He ignores her as the phone emits beeps to indicate gaming or texting or sexting.

 

 

 

 

Finally she snatches the smartphone from him. But as she peers at the screen, her anger dissolves to a smile.

 

 

 

 

 

 

"You don't have to hide this from me," she says, in an erotic purr.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

She displays the screen. The camera closes in. It's WorldSoccerShop.com's merchandise app site for Newcastle United. "Is this what you like?" she asks.

 

 

 

 

 

 

"Ohh yeah," he says, sheepish and panting. A graphic pops on screen: "Just tell her what you want!" Cut to WorldSoccerShop.com logo and URL.

 

 

 

 

 

 

We at the blog have been saying Newcastle United is an attractive and even marketable alternative to Manchester United, Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool in the growing American soccer market. But I believe this is the first time I've actually seen Newcastle featured rather than those bigger clubs in a national U.S. advertisement, and on a Liverpool telecast, no less.

The ad could easily be configured to feature other clubs, and perhaps that'll happen. But all day today, at least, the club was Newcastle, and such choices are usually made with careful forethought by advertisers and agencies. One wag on Twitter quipped, "OF COURSE you'd hide the fact you're a Newcastle supporter!" We prefer to think, in the wake of United's well-attended summer adventure in America, someone aside from us is realizing U.S. soccer fans are turning weary of the same four polite-clapping bandwagons - and desiring a naughtier, even sexier, alternative.

CUP LESSON: HEART CAN SURVIVE BARTON TRANSPLANT

I wasn't quite as down on the Reverend J. Barton as my blog partner was. Yes, Joey's a red card waiting to happen, but part of me still enjoyed watching him yank Gervinho up from his debut dive in the Premier League by the scruff of the neck. Yes, Barton's move to QPR is at odds with his professed loyalty to Newcastle, but at his age the term of the contract is as important as the wage, and if it were completely about the money, he'd have been gone without taking time to think. Yes, his intermittent pace and direct style didn't seem to match the era of control football Alan Pardew is trying to usher in - but Barton seems to have had no more loyal fan within the club than the manager himself.

Newcastle United can do without Barton's head, and probably without his skills. What worries me more is the loss of his heart. As one of our followers tweeted at us succinctly during yesterday's desultory first half at Scunthorpe, "like him or hate him, in the first 18 minutes newcastle has shown less passion than @Joey7Barton would have eating a sandwich."

But yesterday's second half and extra time showed that regardless of the holes in Newcastle's lineup - including, now permanently, Barton's - the heart of the club is beating. Especially in the bodies of its younger, hungrier prospects.

To say Scunthorpe shouldn't be giving trouble to Newcastle is accurate but simple-minded. The benefits of winning a Carling Cup match hardly outweigh the drawbacks. Here's Mike Williamson on crutches, and for what? From our hyper-capitalistic American standpoint the mere idea of sending a Premier League club to a third-tier stadium is absurd, especially when the home club can't even fill their seats for the occasion. The best that can happen in a match like yesterday's is avoiding injury and embarrassment. Hardly prime motivation.

Yet Newcastle's performance after halftime was almost ridiculously stirring. Plenty of clubs would've folded, including, perhaps, last season's edition of Newcastle United. Stevenage couldn't have been far from any of our minds - a match in which Barton scored a scintillating but ultimately meaningless goal and threw a ball into an opponent's head. But with nothing at stake but pride, pride carried the day at Scunthorpe. In the end it looked like a top-half Premier League club bullying a pretender, and the home team was lucky to last past full time.

The issues continue to be obvious. Though Ryan Taylor is really good at threading a ball over a wall, he's no left back, and Danny Simpson isn't taking up much slack on the other side - if the club in its present configuration were to lose playing time out of the captain or Steven Taylor it would be an instant catastrophe. I wish I could buy the Ramadan-fast explanation for Demba Ba's lethargy, but questions about his match fitness date back through the summer and even his productive Premier League debut for West Ham last spring, when he was protected from an FA Cup quarterfinal even as he racked up goals in the league. Leon Best and Peter Lovenkrands work hard, but close calls aren't good enough when a club lacks this much at striker. While one continues to wonder what Sammy Ameobi and Haris Vuckic might do with a chance against top-flight resistance, it'd be just that: a chance.

Through it all, as the transfer window disappears and our fingers grow sore from being crossed, take heart. Despite the shortage of arms and legs at critical parts of the field, the soul of the club, at least so far, has not gone missing. Not even in the person of Joey Barton.

BARTON SHOWS TRUE COLORS; NOW ASHLEY MUST ACT

Remember this tweet from @Joey7Barton back on July 31?

"Things need addressing as am not prepared to go through a relegation again."

Judging from the fact Joey Barton looks set to join Queens Park Rangers on a free transfer - with a lucrative multi-year contract the main attraction - the opinionated midfielder doesn't seem to be overly concerned with relegation anymore.

Not to knock QPR, but barring a major spending spree over the next week, it looks like a definite relegation candidate that will be battling at the bottom of the table all season long. But the chance for one last big payday appears to be enough for Barton to overlook that.

So for me, Barton's greed and ego were the primary causes behind the saga that's led us to this point. It's not that Newcastle United's hierarchy hasn't made mistakes over the past few years; we all know that's not true. But Mike Ashley and Derek Llambias' biggest error in dealing with Barton this summer was not trying to get rid of him earlier.

Barton has become a bigger pain in the ass over the past eight months - his first good season since coming to Newcastle seemed to unduly embolden him - while at the same time he's become less of a factor on the field. With Andy Carroll gone and an influx of foreign players, Alan Pardew has repeatedly said he wants to change Newcastle's style of play to a more possession-based game.

Barton is best-suited for a direct style, where he can operate from deep and hit long diagonals and early crosses. It's also become painfully obvious that he's no longer a central midfielder, simply because he doesn't have the speed to cover the necessary ground. When he plays on the right side of the midfield, where he has the luxury of floating inside to get separation from the opposition's left winger and fullback, he generally gets more time on the ball.

Newcastle has enough candidates to take over Barton's spot in the starting XI, between Gabriel Obertan, Dan Gosling, Sylvain Marveaux and even young Haris Vuckic. While none of them are proven in the Premier League, all are much more mobile and don't bring the sort of constant red-card risk that Barton does every game.

The real key is whether the savings from jettisoning Barton - reportedly about £60,000 a week - will spur Ashley and Llambias into action on the recruitment front. Offloading Barton on the cheap puts even more PR-pressure on them to land a left back and a striker in the final seven days of the summer transfer window. United has adequate replacements for Barton; it still needs to find some for Carroll and Jose Enrique.

THE EXPECTATIONS OF A REASONABLE NEWCASTLE UNITED FAN

As foolish as it may be, I tend to have an optimistic outlook as a fan of Newcastle United.

I'm generally willing to see how the club's decisions pan out rather than rushing to judgment. I don't believe in writing off new signings or managers before they've been given a fair chance. And, while I'll readily admit Mike Ashley has made grievous mistakes in his tenure as owner, I'm open to seeing what exactly his vision of the club is.

So I'd like to think that would classify me as a reasonable fan, even if Derek Llambias was defining reasonable.

I never expected Newcastle to spend all £35 million of the Andy Carroll money on transfer fees alone this summer, and frankly I was OK with that. As long as a handful of quality players were brought in, I wasn't overly concerned about their transfer fees. And I feel like United did some intelligent business early in the summer, landing intriguing players for prices well below their market values.

But when you're trying to fill specific holes, sometimes you have to overpay to land the right players. And that's the position Newcastle finds itself in at the moment. A left back and a striker are badly needed and there are simply no excuses if both aren't signed before next Wednesday. United has known it needed a new No. 9 since cashing in on Carroll in January; shortly after that it became apparent that Jose Enrique would be leaving when he refused to discuss a contract offer.

There seem to be sufficient options for both spots, but Newcastle is clearly holding out for cheaper prices - a dangerous proposition at this stage of the summer. And even as a reasonable fan, that disturbs me.

I don't disagree with Ashley's fiscally-responsible vision of the club. But I'd also like to see just a tiny bit of enthusiasm from him, a sliver of belief that he takes some pride in owning a proud club. I'm not expecting Daniel Sturridge for £18 million. I'd settle for Ashley ponying up the £7 million or so required for a legitimate left back and the £10 million needed for a quality striker.

And if that's too much to ask, then go ahead and call me unreasonable.

LATEST TRANSFER NONSENSE MAKES HORRIBLE SENSE

Put together the conflicting press reports about Newcastle United's late-window transfer movement and they begin to make a horrible kind of sense.

After speculation in Holland's largest daily De Telegraaf yesterday that Newcastle's bid for PSV defender Erik Pieters is stalling in favor of a cheaper loan move for surplus Man City defender Wayne Bridge, the Journal's Mark Douglas reports today that Newcastle is ready to improve its bid for Pieters in part because a move for Bridge "would not fit into United's budget." WTF?

Both outlets are reliable; it's likely neither report is baseless. The difference is, the Dutch report is relying mostly on PSV sources, and the Journal report is relying mostly on Newcastle sources. It's not a matter of which journalist we trust; it's a matter of which sources we trust.

Let's look not at the commentary in the stories, but the facts. Bridge's cost to Newcastle for the season is quoted at £2 million on the fee and £40-45,000 a week on the wage. That's between £3.5 and 3.7 million. PSV is reportedly demanding £6.5 million on the fee and the player is demanding £30,000 a week on the wage. That's about £7.6 million this season. Granted, Pieters' fee can buy more than one season. But his wage still runs, and the difference in fee looks too large for time to soften it.

So if Bridge isn't in Newcastle's budget, Pieters isn't either, unless PSV cuts its fee. Suddenly the stories don't seem so much in conflict. Add in Douglas' assertion that Bridge "does not fit into the [NUFC] blueprint of wanting major re-sale value from new signings" and we start to understand what the budgetary issues really are with the Man City deal.

Similarly, over the weekend reliable French media outlets reported that Newcastle was prepared to meet Lyon's £8 million asking price for defender Aly Cissokho, while today Douglas reports that price is too high and Cissokho is fading from the picture. But the French media are relying on sources in Lyon who are increasingly desperate to move the player, while Douglas is relying on sources in Newcastle who are looking to send a pessimistic message that will loosen the fee. The optimism in Lyon may be stemming from Newcastle's willingness to keep the Cissokho option open if all else fails. But we know Newcastle, and we know that move will happen only if other bids don't materialize in Lyon and Cissokho's price plunges as the window closes.

It's hard to maintain much more hope than that for Pieters. The laugh line of the day, and perhaps the summer, is that "The Journal understands it is now a case of persuading Derek Llambias to meet PSV’s valuation." To his credit Douglas goes on to add, with presumably irony-soaked understatement, "Previous experience would suggest that is far from straightforward."

Given the reporter's track record, there's little doubt today's Journal story is adequately sourced. Someone within NUFC must be telling Douglas - one guess would be Alan Pardew - that the bid for Pieters may be raised. Having been in Douglas' shoes, I can tell you that at a certain point a reporter has to report what sources are saying and mute skepticism in the name of preserving access to the club you're covering, not to mention having anything to print.

But so long as Llambias, the man making the bid, still has to be convinced of the other side's valuation, any significant improvement in the bid falls under the categories of wish and prayer. Read the news carefully, and while it may be contradictory on the surface, it points the same direction in the end - a discouraging direction for Newcastle United fans.

PIETERS OR CISSOKHO? DUTCH MONEY IS ON BRIDGE

Alan Pardew was in Holland yesterday to watch PSV defender and Newcastle target Erik Pieters hold solid in a 3-0 blanking of ADO Den Haag. But while the price tag on Pieters remains steady, the price tag on stopgap option Wayne Bridge is falling, with Manchester City reportedly offering to pick up half his wage. The Dutch press knows enough about Newcastle United and its ownership to predict the end of this story.

"If PSV had agreed to an offer of 5 million euros, Pieters would already be playing for Newcastle," wrote Holland's largest daily, De Telegraaf, this morning. "But PSV wants a higher amount. For the English it is now more financially attractive to rent Bridge." De Telegraaf's story isn't sourced, but the paper is respected, and the article rings with skepticism borne from knowledge. Bridge's wage for the year under City's offer would be below £2 million, and while the fee was previously reported as £2 million, if they're bargaining on the wage, they may be bargaining on the fee as well. Bridge could come in at half the cost of Pieters for the year.

All we have to say about that is: oh-oh.

Meanwhile, the prospect of Aly Cissokho's departure is not exactly causing fans at Lyon to rend their garments in distress. Today the Lyon blogger at Football.fr has this to say, basically, about the weekend's Cissokho-to-Newcastle rumors: good riddance. He also speculates that Cissokho's 52nd-minute disappearance in last week's Champions League match against Rubin Kazan was due to manager fatigue, not muscle fatigue.

On the Modibo Maiga front, in an article that has now ducked mostly behind a paywall, eastern France's regional daily L'Est Republicain is reporting that club and player are still at a standoff over his desired transfer to the Premier League, with Sochaux telling Newcastle to back the eff off. With such an unwilling seller, this buy, like Pieters', is in obvious question.

We can still hope for a more satisfying climax to the summer than Wayne Bridge on loan. PSV is in the kind of dire financial shape that might eventually soften their resistance to Newcastle's characteristic hard line. No other serious suitors for Pieters are being reported, as yet. But we know Mike Ashley values soccer players with about as much sophistication as Wal-Mart values houseware. With an alternative to Pieters available for more than half the quality at around half the price, we can assume the bargaining is finished on Newcastle's end, with only nine days of summer breeze yet to come through the transfer window.

IS THERE A CATCH WITH CISSOKHO? WE'LL BITE

The reliable French general-circulation daily Le Parisien is reporting, according to the also-reliable French sports daily L'Equipe (the Le Parisien story is behind a paywall, the bastards), that Newcastle United has lodged an €8 million bid for Olympique Lyonnais'star French-Senegalese left-back Aly Cissokho, matching Lyon's asking price. Cissokho has received raves for his frenetic pace and work rate at Lyon, which paid €15 million to pry him from Porto in 2009.

Wait a second: if he was worth €15 million then, why is he worth €8 million now? Also, if Newcastle is interested now, why wasn't Liverpool interested pre-Enrique? Wait a second: they were. Until a €9 million move fell through mysteriously a few weeks ago.

We don't know what the catch is with Cissokho. But we do know this: if he signs, he'll become the third member of the failed-medical club to join Newcastle this summer. As well as the first member of the failed-dental club, perhaps ever, in soccer.

Before Lyon lured Cissokho two years ago, he was on his way to AC Milan for the same €15 million tab until concerns arose, of all things, about his teeth. Contrary to what was widely reported at the time in the English-language press, Milan's staff wasn't actually worked up about his overbite. They were concerned about a related misalignment in the top of his spine, which they felt might have other effects down the line, such as bone deterioration and muscle fatigue. Sure enough, in last Tuesday's Champions League match against Rubin Kazan, Cissokho was subbed in the 52nd minute because of - according to Le Parisien - muscle fatigue.

We're speculating here. But I speak Italian, and this summer we've learned a bit of French, and from what we can make out in the media over on the continent, it would appear that Cissokho is on sale at a 50 percent discount because of a crooked line that stretches from his thigh muscles to his spine to his jawbone.

Let's try not to go overboard (even though we're Newcastle fans and that's what Newcastle fans do). Reports from Italian press sources say Milan still wanted Cissokho, overbite and all - just not for €15 million. He hasn't missed inordinate amounts of playing time. You can find opinions that he took a step backward last season; you can find other opinions dismissing that opinion. And you can find plenty of film that will make your heart race so fast your brain will forget about his teeth.

Like Demba Ba and like Sylvain Marveaux before him, Aly Cissokho appears to be a possibility for Newcastle because he entails risk. We may want to temper our excitement. But our club can't afford sure things. This desperately needed left-back seems like a risk worth taking.

UPDATE: The Lyon daily Le Progres is reiterating that Cissokho appears headed to Newcastle, and reporting that Inter Milan starlet Davide Santon is being targeted by Lyon as his replacement. The 20-year-old Santon, on loan last season at Cesena, is a hot name in Italy when discussing the future of the national squad; he's been called a "mini-Maldini" since Marcello Lippi compared him to Italy's most celebrated defender of all time. If the Santon report is true, it would seem less like Lyon is merely dumping Cissokho on Newcastle with no other plan.