Guest post by Phil Lavanco written between the Crystal Palace and Stoke matches.
Simply put, the last two away victories validated the decision for every American who picked Newcastle United as their EPL team. The away fans were incredible. Their passion, voice, and presence were felt by me and probably every North American Newcastle fan watching from 3,000 miles away.
Here in the States on both occasions, NBC did a wonderful job of highlighting the stars of both victories: the traveling support. At Old Trafford in particular, the network made a point to show Newcastle fans celebrating and cheering the team long after the whistle. The traveling fans refused to leave their seats, and their unbridled celebration bled through the screen. It was everything you wanted to see when you signed up as a fan of the “greatest league in the world." Those images made me, and I’m sure every other Newcastle fan, swell up with pride acknowledging the exact reason we enlisted in the Toon Army.
I found myself overwhelmed with cathartic joy for the local Newcastle supporters who, quite literally, could not contain their delight. This might just be a personal feeling, but our distance from the club will always limit the level of our support. There is a bit of a glass ceiling. And even with our hometown clubs, most American fans have baseball, NFL, basketball, hockey, and college teams to occupy our minds. When the Mets season takes its predictable downward spiral, I just ignore it and start paying attention to the imminent Jets season.
As we have been told many times, in the one sport that matters, Newcastle is a one-team town. The picture above says it all: one city, one club. When our stateside support for the black and white reaches a 10, they get to an 11. They are the reason NBC made a point of showing the supporters wildly cheering at Old Trafford during their postgame coverage. They are the reason every gameday director knows to keep a camera focused on the away section. An overexuberant fan even risked being tackled by two stewards to receive Mathieu Debuchy's shirt at Selhurst Park. They reach a level of jubilation and pride in their club, and in their town, that we Americans wish we could experience.
Just in to the Get Your Phil news desk...
On Monday, Tim Sherwood was named "head coach" at Tottenham Hotspur on an 18-month contract. Basically, the club reserves the right to fire him at any point for practically no money. It’s the exact opposite of Alan Pardew's contract. Now that Tottenham has thrown in the towel this season, our boys sit in sixth place with only one real challenger to make up ground behind us, Manchester United. With the January window days away, does this give an impetus for our frugal owner (to put it mildly) to invest in a squad that could challenge for a Champions League spot? Of course not. No one even thinks he will, which is depressing.
Because of all the changes to the so-called big clubs, this season is uniquely different. There is a clear pathway to the Scrooge McDuck pot-of-gold Champions League riches. This is a very good and talented squad, but it is not deep. One or two injuries and the team is stretched to its limits. Every transfer window is not an exercise in how Newcastle can get better, but a desperate attempt to cling to the players we have. It’s a shame, because this core of players can really do some damage this season.
It’s been nice knowing you, Papiss
I want to do a transfer window column next time around, but a quick note before that deeper dive. As the title indicates, I think we need to cut ties with our number nine. It’s not a confidence issue anymore. It has been too long of a poor stretch to simply be a lack of self-belief. In addition, there is no reason to build a system around him. Why should a team which has lost once in two months build around an out-of-sorts striker? There is just nothing more we can do to get this guy to play to his capabilities. Likewise, Newcastle should not invest any more resources to get him back on track.
Newcastle has a bit of New York or Boston feel to it. To succeed in black and white stripes, a player has to be mentally strong, as well as supremely talented. St. James' Park is not a place where the support will clap you because you showed up and laced your boots properly (In the States, we call these supporters St. Louis Cardinals fans.) Papiss Cissé is not cut out to be a Newcastle United player anymore. And that’s OK. The system changed, and we are too far down the road for him to figure it out.
I wish you well, Papiss, in your next destination. I hope you score a million goals in Germany, Russia, France, or wherever you land outside of the Premier League. We will always have that goal at Stamford Bridge.
Mike Brazilliamson
Speaking of players who have had their fair share of abuse, if I told you at the start of the season there would be a "Mike Brazilliamson" Twitter account (@getmike2brazil) that isn't a joke, who would have believed me? The man continues to be immense in black and white. Just remember the fine folks here at I Wish I Was A Geordie who pondered the potential of the tower of power since September.
Newcastle Stat that may only interest me (shamelessly plagiarized from Peter King)
It’s amazing to me that we hadn't scored three times in a match this season until Crystal Palace. With all the firepower Newcastle has on offense, and the good streak we are on, it simply boggles my brain. Hopefully the manager loosens the belt of his $5,000 suit and let the Fightin’ Frenchies play a bit more. I guess it would help if we had more than one striker putting the ball in the net. [Editor's note: Phil wrote this before watching NUFC stick Stoke for five goals on Boxing Day. He also didn't realize that there is another forward at the club in the Premier League's top 15 goalscorers...]
Newcastle tweet of the time in between columns
The setup: Against Palace, the camera cut to Pardew on the sidelines. In the background was Hatem Ben Arfa, who looked like he would rather be anywhere else but on the bench.
I’m not sure those jokes will ever get old. But hey, he would come on later and score a goal. In my face, huh?
Merry Christmas and happy new year to all out there. Enjoy the festive season, and be safe while doing so. From my family to yours, happy holidays.
Comments