All Aboard! - The Managerial Rollercoaster

[Werrett]

FA Cup 3rd Round Draw

With the calendar year coming to an end we now approached the draw for the only remaining cup competition we're part of, the 3rd round draw of the FA Cup.

The board have set the expectations to reach the 6th round but I know the Geordie fans dream of a visit to Wembley, and I hope to deliver.

The balls are mixed in the bowl, and the draw will now take place.

...

Presenter: "Ledley, if you'd like to stick your hand in and pick out a name for us please.."

"Ledley King: "It's been a while haha, let's see what we've got here...Number 25."

"Presenter: "Did you say 25?...That is..Newcastle United."

...

Former Tottenham defender Ledley King takes part in the FA Cup draw....

Presenter: "So Newcastle will play a home tie in the 3rd round, can you pick out the away team for us, Graham?"

Graham Souness: "Sure thing, number 33."

Presenter: "Norwich City..So Newcastle United will take on Norwich City at St. James' Park in the 3rd Round of the FA Cup."

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With our name having been pulled from the bowl we will be facing fellow Premier League side Norwich City at St. James' Park, I'm fairly confident with our chances of progression especially given the fact that we just beat them 4-1 in the league, but it's a cup competition so you never know!

Our expectation for the FA Cup is to reach the 6th round but ultimately I'd love to exceed these expectations, Newcastle haven't won a trophy since 1969 and it'd be nice to give the fans something to cheer about.

The match will take place on Saturday 2nd January, 2016 at 15:00.​

 

[Werrett]

Lionel Messi reclaims Ballon D'or

Barcelona's Record-Scoring Forward was named as the winner of the 2015 Ballon D'or ahead of 2014 Winner Cristiano Ronaldo and Barcelona teammate Luis Suárez. The Argentinian star has now won the honour on a record FIVE occasions and is delighted with receiving the prestigious award for the 5th time.

L.Messi: "I am very honoured to accept this prestigous award for the 5th time, but I couldn't have done it without my teammates, the coaches..Family and my friends, without their support I would not be able to perform as well as I do on the pitch and I am truly blessed to have these people in my life. While I have won this award 5 times I would like to dedicate the award to my club, without whom I would not be standing here today. From the bottom of my heart I want to thank everyone who voted for me throughout this process, I am truly humbled and very happy."

Having won the award for the past two years Cristiano Ronaldo could only watch on as Lionel Messi stepped up to claim the World renowned award.​

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Bony named in African XI

Elsewhere, Newcastle's Ivorian Striker Wilfried Bony was named in the Best African XI of 2015, the Ivorian has scored 19 goals in 32 appearances throughout the year.

Wilfried Bony has enjoyed a great year in 2015, not only for Club but for his Country as well.​

 

[Werrett]

The New Calendar Year - 2016

​

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Clement is Untouchable!

Mike Ashley was quick to ensure me that my performance at the club so far had been outstanding and that he felt I was definitely the best man to lead the club forward. I was delighted with his comments and am keen to continue doing what I've been doing.​

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New Deals at St. James'

With the transfer window now open I was quick to offer contracts to three of our players, Anita and Santon have been in top form this season and with club's sniffing around I decided that it would be best to tie these players down to prevent them leaving the club.

Although 29, S.Taylor was offered a new deal as with Coloccini looking to leave the Club I am keen to keep an experienced defender at the club. Taylor hasn't played too often this year but has been brilliant in the locker-room and has had a positive effort on the younger lads.

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Sissoko Returns to France

Newcastle midfielder Moussa Sissoko has today announced that he has completed a move back to former club Toulouse, the French international has found it tough at Newcastle this season and has decided to leave the club in a bid to cement his place in the French squad.

He released a statement to the media earlier today:

M.Sissoko: "It with sadness that I announce today that I am leaving Newcastle United, I've enjoyed a great couple of years here but have failed to have an impact this season and with the Euro's nearing I would like the opportunity to be selected as part of the French squad. I wish Newcastle all the best and hope they can achieve European qualification."

Sissoko returns to Toulouse, whom he spent 10 years with.

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Newcastle Complete Signing of Spanish Striker

Newcastle United have today announced the £5.5m signing of Spanish Striker Alvaro Morata from Juventus (Forgot Screenshot), Paul Clement who saw the move take place has been commenting on the transfer throughout the day.

P.Clement: "I'm delight that we've been able to sign Morata, he showed a lot of promise at Real Madrid and a lot of Premier League teams were after his signature. Sadly for the lad he's not lived up to expectations at Juventus but for a cut-price I'm delighted to bring him in. Obviously Bony has been outstanding this year, but Cisse is 30 now and wants to leave and Ayoze is a versatile player, he often finds himself on the wing so with those two factors in mind we needed a second striker, and I'm delighted that we've been able to get Morata."

Life in Italy has been difficult for the young Spaniard, but a move to England will give him the chance to reignite his career.

Morata himself was quick to express his happiness at his new move.

A.Morata: "I'm very pleased to be moving to the Premier League, I was linked with a move there a few years ago but chose to move to Juventus but sadly for me this move hasn't brought the best out of me. I want first-team Football, making the Spanish National team has always been my dream and I believe playing in one of the best leagues in the World will allow me to do that."

Morata has some fantastic stats for a striker, he's quick, strong and can finish. He's also only 23 years old meaning there is still a lot of time for the young man to improve, and for a third of the price Juventus paid 2 years ago I'm delighted to have signed him for the club.
​

 

[Werrett]

January - A 50/50 Month

January proved to be a so-so month, we began the month in fine form as we picked up some big wins but began to fade towards the end in which we dropped what could be vital points. We played 9 games in 4 weeks, which is what I put the end of month slump down to, far too many games.

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We began the month with our FA Cup 3rd round tie against Norwich City at St. James' Park, a poor performance which resulted in a 0-0 game, which forces the replay at Carrow Road. Desperately wanted us to win this match during the 90 minutes as our fixture schedule is already hectic without us having to play an extra-match.

We created a lot but failed to take our opportunities, a poor performance.

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Our first league match of the month was a 3-1 win over Everton, a fantastic result to go with a brilliant performance. I'm very pleased with the way the team is playing as we are consistently able to beat other teams who are challenging for European qualification.

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Our brilliant home record continues as we defeated a strong Arsenal side to reinforce our European ambitions, I was delighted to beat Arsenal as it helped us extend our gap above the top 5.

Our home form so far see's us with 9 wins from 10 games, having lost only 1.

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Following our poor home performance against Noriwch City we took on the East Anglian side in the Replay of our 3rd round tie, this time we were much more clinical as we took a 3-0 win over the Premier League side to secure our place in the 4th round.

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Due to our FA Cup replay the away match vs. Southampton was postponed and we instead took on Hull City in our 3rd successive home game, and once again we picked up 3 points with an impressive performance.

I'm ecstatic with how we've played at home this season. We don't have the best away form in the league but our home form has certainly made up for it, it's among the best in the league.

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This game was the beginning of our slump, a poor performance as we were beaten by Southampton 2-0, we didn't come out firing and didn't look like the confident side we usually are. A disappointing defeat.

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A repeat of last years Capital One Cup defeat, this time in the FA Cup as we were beaten by Middlesbrough 2-0 in the Tyne-Tee derby. I was hoping to see us progress past this stage given the kind draw but once again we failed to live up to expectations in the cup.

My wait for a trophy at Newcastle will have to wait another year.

Newcastle fans will have to wait another year for the chance to win a domestic trophy.

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We fought back from our back defeats to earn a draw at the Valley, albeit a disappointing one but I'm happy that we were able to avoid defeat at the hands of a struggling side.

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We were robbed in this match, I wouldn't say we deserved to get the three points but I don't feel QPR deserved to win either. A late Matty Phillips goal gave the spoils to the hosts as Tim Krul parried a free-kick straight out to the winger who slotted the ball into the empty net. A poor way to end the mont h following our impressive start.

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Despite our end of month collapse we still remain in 3rd place in the table. The gap between ourselves and the Europa League places has become smaller, this means we need to up our concentration to ensure that we don't slip down the table.

We've had a good start to the season and I'm eager for us to keep it up.​

 

[Werrett]

The First Sacking of the Season Comes in February

West Ham United have today confirmed reports that Alan Pardew has left the club by mutual consent. Pardew who joined the club in Fall of 2015 has been unable to improve on the clubs position last year and has thus been removed from his position.

Chairman David Gold spoke to the media earlier today.

D.Gold: "I'm here today to report to you all that Alan Pardew has been removed from his position as Manager of West Ham United. We brought Alan in with hopes of achieving a higher league finish than last year but with the club on a poor run of form we feel that the club should follow a new direction in 2016. We wish to thank Alan for all that he has done during both spells here at Upton Park."

Alan Pardew was then aproached by reporters hoping to get some insight into the decision to change managers.

A.Pardew: "As you all know, Football is more than a game..It's a business, people are here to make money. With West Ham laying lower in the table there won't be much of a chance for these investors to earn money at the club and I think that's ultimately what's cost me my job. I'm upset but I'll pick myself up and hope to move on to a new challenge."

According to Sky Sports sources, Ian Holloway, Alan Irvine and Steve Bruce are believe to be in the front-running for the Managerial vacancy at the Hawthorns.​

 

[Werrett]

February - The Shortest Month

​

February was an amazing month, due to the fact that we only played 4 matches the team were able to have a lot of time to train and recover which I believe is the underlying reason behind our 100% record from our 4 matches.

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A fantastic performance against Manchester City saw us pick up our first win of February, a brilliant performance by Yoan Gouffran as he bagged a brace to help secure the result.

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Yoan Gouffran once again proved to be the hero as he helped guide us to a 2-0 win over Liverpool at St. James' Park, the winger who's stepping in for us has been outstanding and has certainly raised my eyebrows.

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I really am running out of superlatives for Gouffran..He just can't stop scoring! A great performance in which we beat newly promoted Ipswich Town 1-0 at Portman Road, a tough fought contest and we probably should have scored a couple more, but I'm delighted.

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Pearson Takes West Ham Vacancy

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West Ham United Chairman David Gold today announced that Leicester manager Nigel Pearson has been hired to take over at the West London Club.

Gold took to the media to release a statement earlier today.

D.Gold: "I'm pleased to announce that Nigel Pearson has been given the task of leading the club for the foreseeable future, he's done very well with Leicester this year and we believe that his philosophy and experience can help turn the fortunes of this fine club."

Pearson expressed his delight at being back in the big-time earlier today.

Pearson has decided to leave Leicester for the 2nd time, following interest from West Ham.

N.Pearson: "Oh it's a fantastic opporunity. West Ham have been home to some of the biggest legends of English Football over the years and I'm delighted to have been given the opportunity to manage at this great club. I've had a good season this year with Leicester and while promotion was looking likely, I can't turn down the opportunity to manage a team like West Ham. I wish Leicester all the best in their search for a new manager."

...

West Ham Subject to Takeover!

Following the hiring of Nigel Pearson, news has today broke out that David Gold may be looking to sell the club with an unknown Billionaire looking to invest in the club. This could be great news for West Ham fans as they look to qualify for European Football.

Could West Ham's fans soon have something to cheer for?

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He's scored again! Yoan Gouffran finds the net once more as we overcome a tough Villa battle to scrape a 2-1 win, 12 points from 4 in the month.

Ron Vlaar's 12th minute equaliser was also the only goal we had conceded throughout the 4 games.

I'm delighted!

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Following the 100% record in February we remain in 3rd place, and with 9 games left in the season I'm really beginning to believe in our chances of reaching Champions League qualification. It's been a great year so far!

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Burnley Sack Dyche

Following Burnley's 3-2 loss to QPR on Saturday, Manager Sean Dyche has been sacked by the Burnley Chairman.

Mike Garlick and John Banaszkiewicz released a statement during a press conference earlier today.

M.Garlick: "It's with great sadness that we announce today that Sean Dyche will no longer be the manager of Burnley Football Club. Mr. Dyche has done a fantastic job over the past few years, not only guiding us to promotion but keeping us in the Premier League, but with the club slipping into the relegation zone we have no option but to relieve him of his duties. A change in direction is required."

Dyche, who was upset at his dismissal spoke to the media earlier today.

S.Dyche: "I'm upset. I've tried my very best for this club in which time I've had nothing but love for the fans, the players and the club itself, but I've found it tough this year, we're not a rich club and so signing players is very difficult for us. I believe the lack of strengthening is what's costing us, but I wish the club all the best."

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Arsenal Lift First Post-Wenger Trophy

Arsenal today got their hands on the Capital One Cup as they overcame Manchester City to win their first trophy in Villas-Boas' reign, a cup won in front of 90,000 onlookers at Wembley.

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A very strong performance from the Gunners as they dominated Manchester City throughout the 90 minutes with young England star Calum Chambers netting the winner for the North London club.

Calum Chambers celebrates scoring the winning goal for Arsenal in the Capital One Cup Final.

The 2016 Cup victory is the first time Arsenal have won the league cup since their 1993 triumph over Sheffield Wednesday.

Following the Cup success, manager Andre Vilas-Boas spoke to reporters to express his joy at winning his first piece of Silverware as Arsenal Manager.

AVB: "I'm over the moon, we put in a fantastic 90 minutes where we were simply too good for Manchester City. It was a close game but it's a cup final so you expect the drama, I relished it. I'm glad to see Chambers get the goal and hope I can go on to fill the cabinet with many more trophies."

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Injury Update

To round off the month I caught up with Derek Wright to check up on the injury status at the club.

I'm pleased to see Janmaat and Ben Arfa close to return but am deeply upset to see that Ameobi will be out for the remainder of the season. Ameobi is beginning to get to that age where it's make or break and this injury could ruin his career.

Ameobi is currently on loan to former BPL side Charlton Athletic.
​

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Clement Wins First Managerial Award

I was informed today that I was named Manager of the Month for February, my first award as Manager of Newcastle United.

While it is nice to be recognised for my accomplishments I am solely focused on my team and wish to keep my feet on the ground.

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Yoan Gouffran - Player of the Month

Yoan Gouffran was also named player of the month for February, it's been a great month for the Frenchman as he scored 6 goals in 4 matches, having scored in each of our 4 matches.

I'm delighted with his performances as without him we simply wouldn't have picked up 12 points, the Frenchman has certainly earned a spot in the first-team.

Despite the reports the Frenchman may leave St. James' Park in the near future the Frenchman has certainly been focused on the task at hand, catching the eye of pundits and fans alike with his outstanding performances.​

 

[SamPeters]

January was a bit shakey but what a month in February and YG could not stop scoring! hopefully he will carry that on for you and that has brought you in now within a small chance of getting the title!

 

[Klippybo]

I quit my NUFC save after a month or two as it was too easy and we were scoring a rediculous amount of goals and I remember Gouffran scoring in 6 games in a row i think - he is far better than his stats suggest it seems.

Lets hope he goes on a run like that in real life!!!!

Not very likely alas..................

 

[Werrett]

January was a bit shakey but what a month in February and YG could not stop scoring! hopefully he will carry that on for you and that has brought you in now within a small chance of getting the title!

January really was, not sure why we struggled so much towards the end, must have been fatigue! (Making excuses), as much as I'd love to win the title I think it's too early in the save for us to achieve that, I'd take a top 4 though! (Ideally 3rd so I avoid the play-off)

I quit my NUFC save after a month or two as it was too easy and we were scoring a rediculous amount of goals and I remember Gouffran scoring in 6 games in a row i think - he is far better than his stats suggest it seems.

Lets hope he goes on a run like that in real life!!!!

Not very likely alas..................

Haha luckily my save has been somewhat realistic, 8th in the 1st year and now we're just having a great year..Gouffran has been pretty average this season up until last month where he just became a God overnight!

You landed on a save yet for an FM15 story?

 

[Werrett]

Marching On

Traffic lights in March, 4 points from 9 and I'm sure you've noticed the absolute demolition at White Hart Lane, but we'll get to that in due time.

Into the last 10 games now and we need to dig out that consistent form we had earlier in the season if we're to get a top 4 finish, but there's a few nerves around the locker room.​

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There are no words for what happened in this game..I set up with a good formation to counter the way Spurs play with and without the ball and yet we got battered.

Spurs came flying out anf scored 4 quick goals and from there we just never recovered, every time they had a shot it seemed to fly past Tim Krul into the back of the net, I'm extremely disappointed and puzzle, sure to say I'll be looking at the tactics and looking to find what went wrong. Maybe it was just a bad day at the office...

The only positive I can take from this annihilation is that Alvaro Morata netted his first goal for the club, definitely the silver lining to this fixture.

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More Youth Arrivals at St. James'

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A couple of interesting arrivals in this years intake, Hatfield, Hunter and Baker all have decent potential and at the very least can be developed and sold for profit but we'll try our best to develop them.

Hopefully if we qualify for European competition we can bring more finance to the club, which will hopefully lead to us developing our facilities in a bid to bring through the youth.

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New Boss at Burnley

Former Portsmouth, Tottenham and QPR Manager Harry Redknapp was today unveiled as the new manager of Burnley F.C.

Redknapp who has a lot of experience with relegation threatened clubs will be given the task of rescuing the club from the drop zone, a task he will be eager to get stuck into.

Mike Garlick and John Banaszkiewicz released a statement to the public earlier regarding the decision to hire Harry Redknapp.

J.Banaszkiewicz: "We're delighted to announce the hiring of Harry Redknapp today, Harry has a lot of experience in Football management and we believe that his philosophies and ideas will help save this club from relegation. We feel very confident about the clubs chances at fighting the drop and are delighted that Harry accepted our offer."

Redknapp responded to the statement by expressing his own thoughts.

H.Redknapp: "It's an interesting one isn't it? I've been out of management for a little while now and relish the chance to rescue Burnley from the drop, they've got some top top players at this club and I think we can dig deep and stay in this division. I'm very happy to be here."

Burnley fans will be looking for a positive reaction under new manager Harry Redknapp.

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We picked ourselves up for the fixture against Crystal Palace, we kept the ball well and created a lot of chances but ultimately we didn't see out the 90 minutes, Dwight Gayle found a late equaliser to shatter our hopes of picking up the 3 points in what was only the second time we've dropped points at home this season and the first time we've been held to a draw at St. James'

A draw was to be expected though, coming into this game I'd played Palace 3 times and had drawn every one.

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We did however managed to finish the month with a victory, albeit a marginal one over a strong Stoke City side.

Having found ourselves 2-1 up heading into the final 20 minutes Marouane Fellaini committed a cynical foul inside the area to give Stoke a penalty..A disappointing moment as not only could Stoke equalise late on, but Fellaini was dismissed which ultimately would severely harm our chances of finding a winner.

Luckily Tim Krul stepped up to the plate to deny Brek Shea's penalty kick, a fine save from the Dutchman who following his penalty heroics in the World Cup is known for being a good penalty stopped.

Tim Krul repeated his World Cup heroics by denying Shea's penalty late on to help guide Newcastle to a 2-1 victory.

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The Geordie faithful are beginning to feel the nerves as we approach the final 6 games of the season, while a title push is looking off the cards we can certainly finish in the Champions League places, what a season this could be!

Newcastle fans will surely remember the moment when Shola Ameobi silenced the Nou Camp by equalising against Barcelona. Could the Toon return to the Champions League?​

 

[Werrett]

Approaching The End

April was a fairly good month, we managed to pull off a massive win against Chelsea as well as a late winner in a dramatic finish against West Ham United. Pretty odd that we played 4 homes games but this is due to rescheduled matches, however our loss to Norwich could damage our season horribly.
​

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A good performance in this game, plenty of attempts on goal but West Ham United held strong defensively to deny us from finding a winner until Pablo Sarabia fired into the bottom right hand corner in the 92nd minute to give us the 3 points, a massive win!​

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A great win over Burnley here as Alvaro Morata scored more than one goal in a game since joining us from Juventus in January, back to back wins put us in good contention for a top 4 finish.

Morata is finally beginning to settle in to life in the North-East after his big move from Italy.​

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Newcastle to Return to Champions League

Following our 3-1 win over Burnley we have guaranteed a top four finish meaning we will be taking part in the 2016 UEFA Champions League.

Hopefully we can secure a top 3 finish which will allow us to avoid the play-off match.

Newcastle will be playing Champions League Football for the first time since 2002/03.

Following our qualification I was immediately contacted by Mike Ashley who was quick to lay-out the budgets for next season, not the most money in the World but once adjusted we have roughly £11-12m and 100k available wage budget. But I will also be looking to sell a few players so the transfer market will certainly be interesting.​

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This result was probably the best of the seaosn so far, even better than the 5-0 win over Manchester City.

Chelsea are currently top of the league but we came out fighting and took an early 2-0 lead before Diego Costa was sent of for a vicious foul. We then proceeded to dominate the London club although we did concede from a few great bits of play from the Blues.

Gouffran has proved to be a 'big-game' player this year picking up another two goals but Ben Arfa will be taking home the match ball following his hat-trick!

Ben Arfa's hat-trick helps Newcastle United to a shock 5-2 victory over league leaders Chelsea.​

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We slumped to a big defeat here at home to Norwich City, only our 2nd home defeat of the year but the lack of points puts us in danger of slipping from 3rd spot in the table.

I'm not sure how we didn't find the net, Ruddy was brilliant but we didn't create a lot of opportunities which ultimately cost us the game.​

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Heading into the final 2 matches we sit 3rd in the table, only 1 point above 4th. However we face an uphill battle to finish 3rd as we have to play both Manchester United and Everton away from home whereas Arsenal face already relegated Ipswich Town at the Emirates. It's going to be a nervy finale!​

 

[Werrett]

Ding Dong Battle at Old Trafford!

Newcastle United took on Manchester United in what proved to be a thrilling contest at Old Trafford, both teams were looking to win the game with Manchester United looking to take the spoils in order to challenge for successive titles and Newcastle looking for a win to secure a 3rd place finish.

United fans were out in large number in hopes of seeing their team bring home successive Premier League titles under manager Louis van Gaal, a win here today would certainly give the Manchester Club a glimmer of hope.

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Despite a 2-0 lead we were unable to hold off the league chasers as they came back to lead the game 3-2. Gouffran picked up what I thought was sure to give us a point when he found the net in the 86th minute before a poor backpass from van Dijk let Wayne Rooney in on goal, the Scouse Striker finding the net with ease.

Captain Wayne Rooney celebrates his late winner against Newcastle, United now trail Chelsea by 3 points with one match to go, a glimmer of hope!
​

 

[only1tinoasprilla]

epic story!!!!!!! what role do u play perez in not doing great 4 me

 

[Werrett]

epic story!!!!!!! what role do u play perez in not doing great 4 me

Thank you! I play him as a False 9 when he plays up front or as an Attacking Winger.

 

[Klippybo]

Back in the Champions League!!!

I remember every night we have had in that competition, from smashing several dinner plates at our exit on penalties against Partizan Belgrade to doing a Klinsmann dive down the beers, wines and spirits aisle in the supermarket I worked at on nightshift when i found out Bellamy scored an injury time winner against Feyenoord.

And then there was Tino's hat-trick against Barca...................

Sigh

 

[Werrett]

The Final Day

May 8th came round quickly, a day where we would play our final match of the season against Everton at Goodison Park. With us needing a win to secure a 3rd place spot we entered the game full of confidence a hope, as well as a few nerves. A loss today wouldn't be the end of the world, but avoiding the UCL play-off would be ideal for the club.

A game full of nerves for both teams, Everton needing a win to secure Europa League Football and Newcastle needing a win to secure a 3rd placed finish, it's going to be a good one!

Attendance: 39,452

For this cracking final day match-up let's have a look at the team-sheets!

[TABLE="class: outer_border, width: 500, align: center"]
[TR]
[TD]Everton[/TD]
[TD]Newcastle United[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]Howard (GK)[/TD]
[TD]Krul (GK)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]Baines (LB)[/TD]
[TD]Haidara (LB)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]Stones (CD)[/TD]
[TD]van Aken (CD)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]Jagielka (CD) (c)[/TD]
[TD]van Dijk (CD)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]Coleman (RB)[/TD]
[TD]Dummett (RB)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]McCarthy (DM)[/TD]
[TD]Tioté (DM) (c)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]Gutierrez (MCL)[/TD]
[TD]Fellaini (MCL)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]Gibson (MCR)[/TD]
[TD]Anita (MCR)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]Lulic (AML)[/TD]
[TD]Gouffran (AML)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]Zozulya (AMR)[/TD]
[TD]Ben Arfa (AMR)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]Lukaku (STC)[/TD]
[TD]Bony (STC)[/TD]
[/TR]
[/TABLE]

Pre-Match Prediction

J.Redknapp: "Newcastle have found it extremely tough on the road lately, couple of losses here and there. Whereas on the other side of the scale Everton have been a good team at home this year, I'm going for a 2-0 win to the home-side. Newcastle won't be helped by the injuries to their full-backs."

G.Neville: "I agree, Newcastle have been a bit weary on the away side of things towards the end of the season, defensively they've not been as good but they've got a great attacking unit, I'm going for a draw."

The players are out, the handshakes have taken place..Now let's get this game underway!

The referee checks his watch as the clock strikes 15:00 and...Phweep! We're off!

...

11th minute: Coleman now down the right hand side following a break down in Newcastle's attack, Coleman plays it into McCarthy who switches the ball out wide to Zozulya, The Ukrainian cuts inside on to his right foot before beating van Dijk, Zozulya hits it!...GOAL!

We've got the opener here at Goodison Park and it's disaster for Newcastle!, a lovely team move before an incisive finish from Roman Zozulya gives the hosts the advantage! 1-0!

Roman Zozulya who signed from Dnipro in the Summer scores the opener against Newcastle.

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23rd minute: Ben Arfa runs forwards with the ball, but it's cut out by McCarthy who spreads it out wide to Lulic, Lulic beats Dummett before delivering a cross..Lukaku rises and wins the header before cushioning it down to Gibson who hits it!...GOAL!

It's 2-0 to Everton as they seize on another Newcastle mistake to double their advantage, it's going to be a long day for the Northern club!

Former Manchester United player Darren Gibson doubles the Toffees lead over Newcastle.

...

39th minute: Lukaku gives the ball away on the half-way line to Virgil van Dijk, the Dutchman calmly controls the ball and plays it in to Tioté who finds Ben Arfa on the right. The Frenchman cuts inside with one of his trademark runs before picking out Gouffran on the edge of the box, the left winger cuts inside onto his right foot and hits it!...GOAL!

Newcastle are right back in it just before half-time, a lovely bit of build up play from the Magpies as Ben Arfa picks out Gouffran in miles of space before he cuts inside and leathers the ball past Tim Howard..It's 2-1!

Yoan Gouffran who has enjoyed a fantastic season pulls one back for the away side, there's still hope in the Newcastle camp!

...

45th minute: Phweeep! It's half time here at Goodison Park where Everton lead Newcastle United 2 goals to 1.

...

Half-Time Analysis

Presenter: "What did you think of the opening 45 minutes there, Gary?"

G.Neville: "Well from what I've seen so far Newcastle have been poor defensively, the injuries to their starting full-backs has certainly caused them a lot of danger as Everton have looked to exploit the wings, so far that's led to two goals and Newcastle desperately need to fix that."

Presenter: "And you Jamie?"

J.Redknapp: "Well I agree with Gary in regards to the wide poisitons but I believe that late goal will lift Newcastle, I'm expecting them to come out firing in the 2nd half and with Arsenal still 0-0 at half-time I think there's still a belief in the camp that Newcastle can finish 3rd."

Presenter: "And with that being said I think we're ready to get things back underway at Goodison Park."

...

The Referee checks his watch and Phweep! The 2nd half is away!

...

(45 minutes later)

90th minute: Phweep! It's all over here at Goodison Park, a very bland second half that see's Everton take the 2-1 victory, they never looked like losing this one!

Everton celebrate a vital victory against Newcastle United, despite missing out on European Football.

View attachment 316402View attachment 316401

Elsewhere Arsenal managed to beat Ipswich Town 3-0 to secure 3rd place in the table, a 2nd half hat-trick from Alexis Sanchez securing the win for the Gunners.

Alexis Sanchez celebrates after scoring his hat-trick goal in the match against Ipswich Town, helping to secure 3rd place in the table for the Gunners.

...

I'm devastated..We played very poorly in the last 3 games of the season and having been in the driving seat to confirm that 3rd spot we fell short and had to settle for 4th. The pressure got to the team but I'm still glad to see us finish in 4th place which when you're expected 8th is a very pleasing position to be in.

We'll go away over the Summer, strengthen..Regroup and come back stronger next year.

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Chelsea Win 2015/16 Premier League Title!

Chelsea have won the 2015/16 Premier League title following a 1-0 win over West Ham United at Stamford Bridge, relegating their opposition while doing so. José Mourinho will be delighted with his teams fighting spirit as they maintained their spot at the top for the majority of the season.

José Mourinho pictured holding the Premier League title, the 3rd time he was won the league during his time in England.​

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As you can see we finished in 4th place with a total of 73 points, at the start of the season I'd have broken your hand off for a top 4 finish but having sat in the top 3 for the majority of the season I'm disappointed to see us finish below that.

Bit of a shock at the bottom as West Ham United, who were subject to a tycoon takeover have been relegated to the Championship. I may look to sign some of their players on the cheap.

Harry Redknapp was unable to save Burnley from the drop and Ipswich Town finished where they were predicted, Charlton only had 2 points after 11 games but the Addicks fought deep to maintain their place in the BPL.
​

 

[Sam94]

Good season there mate, will be nice with the CL next season and big surprise there about West Ham!

really loving the read, keep up the good mate !

 

[Werrett]

News Around Europe

Championship

While one North-Eastern club are returning to the Champions League, another have slipped down to the 3rd tier of English Football. That's right, Sunderland have been relegated once again making it back to back relegations for the Black Cats.

On the other side of the spectrum Leicester City made an immediate return to the Premier League following last years relegation. Their rivals Nottingham Forest have also been promoted after years of play-off failure with Fulham winning this years Championship Play-Off Final.

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Here's a look at some of the title winners from around the continent:

Barcelona win Liga BBVA

Barcelona have reclaimed their position as the holders of the Spanish title after topping the league in Luis Enrique's second season at the club, a valiant effort from the Catalan club as they win successive league titles.

Barcelona celebrate another title winning campaign in front of their home fans.

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Dortmund Win Bundesliga Again!

A surprising turn of events in Germany as Jurgen Klopp's Dortmund side have de-throned a dominant Bayern side and pipped their rivals to the title for the second year in a row. A disasterous campaign for Bayern Munich's Pep Guardiola which will find the Spaniard under tremendous pressure!

Dortmund celebrate back to back title wins under coach Jurgen Klopp.

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Juventus Win Serie A Again!

Not much has changed as Juventus once again claim the Serie A title under new manager Massimiliano Allegri.

Juventus fans will watch on with joy as their team celebrate winning the Serie A for the 4th time in a row.

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Monaco Win Ligue 1!

Leonardo Jardim has guided Monaco to their first Ligue 1 title win since 2000, PSG have now failed to win the league for the past two seasons, a big disappointment for the fans.

Thierry Henry was part of the squad who won the title back in 1997.​

 

[Werrett]

Sackings in Large Quantities

Usually I'd post a detailed update in the event of a sacking, but there have been so many towards the end of the season that I'm just going to show you a brief overview of the outgoing managers, there are some big names in the departures!

Despite getting Europa League Football Ayestarán has been dismissed from the club after finishing 8th in Serie A, a poor performance from the Italian side.

Pep Guardiola guided Bayern Munich to a 3rd placed finish in the league, another poor year from the Munich club resulting in the dismissal of Guardiola.

Real Madrid finished 2nd, but after two years of failing to win the title Ancelotti has been removed as manager of the club.

Emery only took over at PSG last Summer but after failing to bring silverware to the club he has been dismissed by the PSG board.

After Lyon finished 8th Frank Rijkaard was already under pressure from the board, but after expressing interest in the Roma job he has been terminated as Manager of Lyonnais.

Wolfsburg have sacked their 2nd manager in 2 years after Die Woelfe finished in 8th place, a poor finish from the German side.

Manchester City finished 5th this season which will cost the club a lot of money in terms of lost revenue, as a result Pellegrini has been dismissed as Manager of Manchester City.​

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Serie A Manager Movements

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Here's a look at the Italian Manager Movements in full if you're interested.​

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Ligue 1 Manager Movements

Here's a look at the French Manager Movements in full.​

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Liga BBVA Manager Movements

Here's a look at the Spanish Manager Movements in full.​

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Bundesliga Manager Movements

Here's a look at the German Manager Movements in full.​

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Premier League Manager Movements

Here's a look at the English Manager Movements in full.​

 

[SamPeters]

Well done on getting 4th mate! and wow Harry Redknapp at Burnley! lol