JOHNGIBSON Even if it takes time, why not be ambitious?

I USED to love to watch Paul Merson play, even if he tried his utmost to ruin his career, just like Paul Gascoigne.

Merse and Gazza had the same favourite girlfriend – Stella Artois.

The couple played together at Middlesbrough when Bryan Robson, who could sup a pint himself, was manager and Gazza nicked the 52-seater team coach and drove it into a wall. Mad as a box of frogs.

Like Gazza, the former Arsenal star had oceans of God-given talent and was a joy to watch in his pomp.

However, I reckon Merse has fallen a notch down my pecking order after his weekend rant about Newcastle United.

I mean, does he feel the Mags are condemned to playing defensive football for life?

Sir John Hall refused to accept such a thing was cast in stone.

Faced with a relegation fight to avoid dropping into the Third Division for the first time in the club’s history, he took the considerable risk of appointing an untried flamboyant manager Kevin Keegan. And we all know that was so adventurous it led to the birth of the Entertainers.

A club can change direction and pretty quickly with the right desire.

Yet Merson said that “at Newcastle you need to be realistic. You need to play with 10 behind the ball sometimes, even at home.”

Even if a new consortium is willing to pay £300m to take us over, 10 men behind the ball at St James’ Park should be the height of the club’s ambition? No thank you.

If we all accepted the ‘inevitable’ in life then what’s the point?!

But it would seem we’re doomed to walk in the constant shadow of failure, in Merson’s eyes at least.

“If Newcastle think it’s suddenly going to be Kevin Keegan football all

Paul Merson, pictured with former Newcastle star and fellow mercurial talent Paul Gascoigne, thinks Newcastle need to be pragmatic and realistic – but why should a club limit its ambition? Left, Kevin Keegan with Les Ferdinand

over again, they will end up getting relegated,” he said. “It’s all very well saying the new owners will throw money at it. But how much? And who could you attract to transform that team overnight? It won’t be easy.

“At Newcastle you need to be realistic sometimes. You need to play with 10 behind the ball sometimes, even at home.

“If they’re really going to replace Steve Bruce, they need someone like Rafa Benitez who is a bit more pragmatic. Not Mauricio Pochettino.”

Evidently Poch likes to open up his team too much. Just like Keegan, who turned United’s darkest hour chroniclelive.co.uk

into their finest achievement in terms of league position since they won the title way back in 1927.

Transformation takes time. Even KK brought in Brian ‘Killer’ Kilcline to close the back door and start his revolution. Only after that did the flair and heavy artillery arrive.

Clubs can change their philosophy. Merse ought to know that – the old chant used to go ‘one-nil to the Arsenal’ thanks to their impregnable back four. Later, the artists arrived.

We don’t expect Keegan football overnight. We couldn’t with the current squad. But we would eventually like a transformation from dour to delightful. Is that so wrong?