Palace trip is a defining moment in Toon season
NEED FOR POINTS - AND GOALS IS NOW CRITICAL FOR MAGPIES
BRING back the heavy artillery... Salomon Rondon, Jonjo Shelvey, Jamaal Lascelles, Admiral Collingwood, Emperor Hadrian, Glenn McCrory, Lord Armstrong, Earl Grey, Geordie Ridley. Your folk need you! This has gone beyond serious. It is now desperate. Premier points are required as a matter of urgency.
Newcastle United go looking for capital gain on Saturday with the problem twice as bad as it might at first seem.
They have not only taken just a solitary point from their opening five Premier League matches but have lost eight of their last 10 in England’s elite division.
The only exceptions in a horror run have been a 3-0 home victory over Chelsea at the end of last term and a 0-0 draw at Cardiff at the beginning of this.
All of which means the situation needs drastically addressing before it becomes a permanent disease.
Yes, there has been a run of teaktough fixtures of late but the legit imate excuses have now run out. It may be seen as all Mike Ashley’s fault but Rafa Benitez is carrying the can which has in the recent past proved too heavy for such soccer blue-chip heavyweights as Ruud Gullit (resigned) and Bobby Robson (sacked), both going at a similarly early stage of a United season. If points mean prizes then very few points mean departure unless you are Benitez with a good case for the defence although I suspect he has no wish to live on more borrowed time. Crystal Palace represents an opportunity to mount a victory parade even if an easier one at Cardiff was squandered on a missed penalty. Actually Palace are a decent side under an undemonstrative but sound manager and United will have their work cut out. The question we always ask of this squad is who is going to score the goals. It would appear to be justified – peruse this little snippet of information if you will.
The record for a non-defender going the most away Premier League matches without a goal is now held by Matt Ritchie stretching over 38 appearances on the road with Bournemouth and Newcastle.
Ritchie stands alone after another we know well, ex-Mag Georginio Wijnaldum, abdicated by notching during Liverpool’s 2-1 victory at Spurs last weekend.
His total with Newcastle and Liverpool had stood at a whopping 57.
In comparison to Ritchie, who never seems to score as many goals as he should even at home, Wilfried Zaha threatens danger on a permanent basis.
He is either Palace’s lucky mascot or their most treasured possession. Broadly speaking they win when he plays and lose when he does not.
We know of his benefits so let’s consider the negative figures – minus Zaha Palace have played 10 and lost 10, scoring only three times and conceding 23. See what I mean?
Nothing serious but may he trip over a matchstick or his bootlaces before kick-off. Otherwise he has to be taken care of, no question. Pundit Jamie Redknapp, who took a pop at Benitez’s tactics recently, believes Zaha is “the best player outside the top six clubs” and adds that having publicly drawn attention to his rough treatment at Huddersfield “it would not surprise me if he wins a penalty against Newcastle.” Oh, ta very much. I will look forward to that! Like Zaha, the darting Andros Townsend must be silenced rather than allowed to do damage to his old boss and club but then every Premier club has players who offer a threat if not challenged properly. Should United defeat Palace and then cuff Leicester City up here next week all the current gloom will be blown from our boundaries but equally should yet another defeat arrive in the south west outskirts of London the wailing will waken the dead. This is indeed a defining moment in a new season.
If points mean prizes then very few points mean departure – unless you are Benitez with a good case for the defence