But what about Bolton, FLB? They just smashed Charlton 4-1 and with fixtures against Spurs, 'Boro, and Birmingham, I'd put them down for 6-7 points to add to their total. If we get four points, they could easily equal our points tally and beat us on goal difference.

What I cannot believe is the fact that Newcastle have somehow crept into real contention for Europe this season. However, I agree that they won't get 6 points from their remaining two fixtures.

Europe is very much in our own hands.

What you're suggesting is that he used to score goals direct from corners against kids, so he should try it in the Premier League? Against, y'know, good keepers? Keepers who can reach the crossbar? In over a season of trying, all he does is occasionally achieve one where the goalkeeper has to tip it over again. He hits the first man far more often than he does this.

Whipping set pieces on target at pace is extremely useful from free kicks at an angle - see Man united away, Boro at home. In my opinion, we should be scoring more goals from corners with the kind of delivary he is capable of, if he'd just put it in the box. I can only think of one goal (Norwich at home) where the corner-shot has worked, and that involved Dickov flicking on a ball at a very strange angle to stop the ball going out of play at the near side.

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Agreed. From free kicks we look extremely dangerous, from corners we pose no threat whatsoever. Unless Savage is taking them, of course.

I think the 5million a year salary or whatever he is on is more than enough reason for putting up with the "crap" he's been getting. If you're talking about exposure for affairs and for talking to fake sheikhs about leaving the England job for more money, then I wouldn't agree. If you're talking about criticism for poor tactics then I also think that that is warranted.

IMO if we don't beat Charlton we will have thrown away our chance at Europe.

Sorry TCJ, I don't see how anyone can seriously champion Stuart Pearce for the job.

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I know what you mean. I think Pearce should get rthe job because he is the best personality for the job; a man who will demand the best and damned well get it. He will feel every defeat and relish ever victory. I would say he has done a very good job at city. If they hadnt have gone on this horrible run of form, I'd say people would probably consider him a slightly more credible option. I would risk giving Pearce the job on his limited managerial experience over somebody like McClaren for these reasons.

In any case, I think he is a very tactically astute manager, certainly more so than Erikkson.

However, you'll see that I said that I don't consider Pearce a realistic option.

I don't know exactly. I just don't think that a foreign manager understands just how passionate a support we have and could never fully appreciate the honour of managing the national team. With Erikkson it just seemed like another job and another huge salary.

Yes, I'm looking at the poll right now and there's no McClaren on the list... I thought he was the favourite for the job?

Have I missed something? Steve McClaren isn't even on the list of possible managers...

I can't say I'm especially excited about any of the possible England managers, but if I had to choose, I'd go for Stuart Pearce. He is the only contender with any kind of passion; a man who wears his heart on his sleeve and will demand the best of this bunch of over paid morons.

However, he isn't really a realistic option with his limited managerial experience. Therefore, I'd go for McClaren. He has the respect of the England first team and experience with teh current set up and has a very decent record at Middlesbrough.

At first I didn't want him as manager, but looking at the alternatives, he's gone to to the top of my list. I just don't want another foreign manager.

No, unfortunately (was going out for dinner so couldn't be bothered to wait and threaten them afterwards).

However I still think my original idea (thought when Kidd was manager) was the best.  Each week, you put one of the players who are NEVER going to play for us again on the bench (now it's- for example Amoruso, it used to be the likes of Simon Grayson and Egil Ostenstad).  You plant baseball bats around the ground.  if the ref or linesman is having a mare, the useless sub goes to warm up, grabs the baseball bat when the lino/ref comes near and decks them- ensuring that they won't be able to continue.

They get banned (not a problem- they're never going to play again) and we get a different ref/lino who MIGHT have learned their lesson!  It would only take a couple for them to learn to think about their decisions.

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Haha, great stuff

QUOTE(Florida Rover @ Apr 17 2006, 21:41 )

FIFA has made  offsides an obtuse rule that no one can ever agree with another about.It is all about opinion.(Another fault of the handball =opinion)Forcing linesmen or AR's as they like to be known to make opinion calls about whether someone is active or not in a split second is a recipe for disaster.

Florida Rover

From today's Guardian

QUOTE

At least an acrimonious occasion punctured by spats between opposing players ended with some unity between the managers, Rafael Benítez and Mark Hughes both criticising the complicated offside rule that allowed Liverpool's winner to stand. "There's too much open to interpretation, and no one knows where they are or what the rule is now," growled Hughes. The fact that his opposite number concurred suggested he had a point.

Spot on Florida,

It's not the ref, it's FIFA's stupid rule which the refs have to interpret.

I'm sorry, but as stupid as this rule is, you'd have to be an absolute moron to interpret the way the ref did.

How more "active" do you have to be? If you're offside and touch the ball then you're given offside anyway by the usual rules that have stood for bloody ages. So if you're not active because you didn't touch it, then there is no need for the "active" rule. The ref ###### up, bad, and he deserves to be punished. A horrendous decision like that should see him demoted to the championship. It really was that bad a decision.

I'm not so sure, 5 points to catch up over 4 games against some very tricky opposition. If Bolton win tomorrow, which they most likely will, they will be only 3 points behind with better goal difference.

One recollection of the contrary is the cup game at Charlton, when we managed to score three times against a team defending a 2 goal lead. Reid is very good at controlling and pressing the midfield, but maybe we lack the power and presence of a bigger forward and some more creative players.

Looking at our and Bolton's fixtures, 6th place is totally unpredictable. I'd say we still look slight favourites, but I wouldn't be surprised if slip out of the top 6.

Today was the first time I'd seen Reid in a while and he was very good. He and Savage outplayed Alonso and Sissoko for most of the game. Hughes' tactics were clear to see in the first half - keep Alonso out of the game and give him no time on the ball. Once we managed to do this, Reid and Savage started dictating play. Liverpool aren't the same team without Gerrard.

However, I thought Nelsen was our best player. Shame that Sky Sports couldn't spell his name properly...

I thought Bentley was pretty good in the second half.

Liverpool really know how to defend a lead.

Yeah, I know what you mean

We were only lacking up front. Bellamy is having an off day and Dickov hasn't really achieved much. We controlled the midfield for most of the half, and up until the Liverpool goal, we were causing them real problems. We need some height in the attack and I really think we should bring Kuqi on.

On Sky Sports they're blaming the linesman, but surely this should lie with the ref. The ref should have gone to the linesman and asked whether Cisse was in an offside position, if he was then it is up to the ref to determine whether he was active or not, and he certainly was.

Hugely undeserved and unfair goal. If Cisse wasn't active, then I don't know what constitutes "active." He went to kick the ball and missed, the back line were playing him offside and saw him go to kick it and stopped. ###### typical.

We have been the better team and they barely look a top 6 team at the moment.

You gotta feel for the guy. It's a shame, but I really don't think we should bring him back.

And now Dunn looks as though he's going to be taken off...

Is there any way of viewing these goals again? I think I've been at at least half of those matches and seen every goal on tv, but I just cannot remember them.

Well he's in the reserves because he is coming back from injury.

His goal was absolutely superb, and he added to this with sokme real skill to set up a team mate for the second. I'd still prefer Jansen to any of our strikers, bar Bellamy.

As long as I am not at uni at the time, I would love to play.