Happy Face

Billionaire's don't like to fail (or be also rans) at anything they do, they'll do it 100% their way though. T'is one of the things I'm optimistic about. What would be interesting ( and something I doubt we'll know until after his reign) is what exactly his measure of success is? Also I know this may seem odd, but I just don't think of Ashley as a Billionaire. He moved up the Forbes list to number 491 in the world this week. Up 150 places 15th richest in UK Net worth $2.5 Billion now.

Some other amounts... Mike Ashley’s Magpies finished the financial year - which ended on June 30, 2011 - with an operating profit of £13.3m. the value of playing staff dropped by £17.2m in the period This meant the club made an operational loss of £3.9m. The club sold players worth £36.7m spent more than £25m on bringing talent to Tyneside. http://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/north-east-news/evening-chronicle-news/2012/03/08/newcastle-united-reveal-annual-accounts-for-2010-11-72703-30490016/ Not sure how the last 2 tally with £5.4m net receipt.

McFaul 30/03/11 - Turnover will be at least £95m this season without any doubt, the profit will be between £8m and £15m Turnover was 88.4m Mystic McFaul just reached too far this time.

£270m+ bid required for Ashley to break even. Can't see it happening.

Is Tim Kruls loss of possession not more down to the tactics employed, rather any gross lack of skill on his part? Absolutley, I don't think his kicking is poor, I just think we don't have Andy Carroll anymore.

Overall good news. Do I bite my tongue and say "wonderful" or do i point out the rose tint to some of the statements?

I posted it for the Ben Arfa info, but it makes me weep to look at Krul's possession loss. I'd put whoopee cushions on the top of his boots so he pumps every time he kicks it. Gotta start throwing the ball out to defenders and building from the back more.

Conversion rate as good as Van Persie. Close third on minutes per goal.

Touted as one of Europe’s best talents, Newcastle United were due to get their hands on a pure ‘wizard’ of the game, an exceptional French flair footballer from the bowels of the infamous Clairefontaine academy. Hatem Ben Arfa’s debut at Newcastle started with the proverbial ‘bang’, with a glorious goal in a 1-0 away win to Everton. However, then came that Nigel de Jong tackle and Ben Arfa’s season was duly over. Alan Pardew knew exactly what he had at his new club acquisition and signed the playmaker in January 2010, and the black & white fans could not believe the talent their club was gaining. Talk of No.10 roles and word class status over the summer, laid the expectations down for the young Frenchman, but on rehabilitating from his long lay off, Ben Arfa hasn’t had as fruitful a time as he, and probably all of Newcastle, would have hoped. A goal against Bolton, a wonder goal v Blackburn and a few cameos here and there; Hatem Ben Arfa has struggled to dig his way into Alan Pardew’s first team plans, deemed a little too ‘sporadic’ in his play and lacking the defensive discipline the team requires. Of late though, Newcastle United have not been playing like the team that has seen them flourish to the dizzy heights they’ve reached in the Premier League this season. 2 hugely disappointing halves of football in the last 2 games have seen the Mags take just 2 points from 6 at home to opposition that would probably have been steamrolled earlier on in the campaign. And, in both of those encounters, a certain Frenchman has shown his credentials and offered Newcastle that little spark they seek to continue their progress over the final 11 hurdles of the season. Against Sunderland particularly, Hatem Ben Arfa manipulated the ball like no other player at Newcastle, at least, can do, constantly tormenting Sunderland’s Keiran Richardson to the point of his departure via substitution. NUFC_Stats looked at the numbers for the enigmatic Frenchman so far… It’s obviously not too fair to compare Ben Arfa to the other players at Newcastle due to his limited pitch time, but the above graphic can give an indication as to what some of his strengths and weaknesses have been. In terms of his pass completion, only 4 of the starting regulars have a better accuracy than Hatem Ben Arfa and his 78% is 1.5% above the team average. One of the Frenchman’s best attributes has been his dribbling and no one at Newcastle currently produces more successful dribbles per game than him on average. At 1.7 per game, he is 0.2 better off than Jonas Gutierrez. When it comes to crossing, most fans will tell you that he always seems to want that extra touch and doesn’t deliver as early as he could sometimes – because of that notion, he hasn’t produced as many as he should (0.1 per game) and his 7% cross accuracy is the worst of any player at the club. However, when it comes to getting a shot off, only Demba Ba & Papiss Cisse from the starting regulars have more frequent shots a goal than Ben Arfa – he gets one-off every 59 mins on average, although Shola and Dan Gosling do it a little better out of the non-regulars. Finally, one stat not shown on the graphic is his tackling – he has thrown himself into 5 tackles this season in his 15 Premier League appearances, he has won 100% of them! The above table shows the possession-based touches from Newcastle players in the Premier League this season. For his time on the pitch, Hatem Ben Arfa’s numbers for unsuccessful touches and dispossession are relatively high and he has overran the ball less than only Jonas and equal to Obertan. HBA’s total losses of possession aren’t too healthy either; he loses possession 9.67 times on average per game, worsened only by 5 Newcastle players. Although Ben Arfa’s dispossession statistics aren’t the best, what he doesn’t do, is lose the ball in silly areas – that’s a misconception of his game. The above table shows HBA’s passing stats in his Premier League appearances this season. In his own half, his passing percentage is 91% – 8 games he has produced a 100% passing record in Newcastle’s half of the field. It is further up the field where these dispossession numbers come into play. His loss of the ball via passing drops along his accuracy – 73% in the attacking half and 71% in the final third. From an attacking and creative point of view, the area in which the Frenchman works is the most vital and interesting part to his analysis. Last week’s article (NUFC: Goal scoring and creativity) highlighted the need for more innovative play in the final third and around the penalty area. Ben Arfa’s aforementioned 71% final third passing accuracy is only bettered by Davide Santon, and is equalled by Gabriel Obertan, meaning when he gets the ball in there, there are few better at making things happen with it. Against Sunderland, Hatem Ben Arfa wreaked havoc in this area. The graphic shows where Ben Arfa picked up his 34 ‘receives’, showing just how attacking minded he is in getting on the ball. 19 of those 34 receives were in the final third of the pitch; 31 in the opposition’s half. Relating back to the dispossession stats – even when Ben Arfa is tackled or has a bad touch, because of the area he generally takes possession in, the opposition is still left with a lot of work do before they hurt NUFC. Once on the ball, that havoc for Sunderland really magnified! The above shows where HBA attempted his dribbles and that 7 out of the 10 he initiated were successful. But, the graphic shows just half the story. Everyone who was either at the game or watched it via ESPN can have been only dumbfounded at the way he consistently breezed past Richardson – one in particular where he cut through two of Sunderland’s players with ease, using incredible skill and pace. For the majority of his performances this season – both. For Wolves and more so Sunderland – MAJESTIC! Hatem Ben Arfa is a world beater, there are no two ways about it. But, what he has to develop in his game is an adaptation to the English way of playing. He needs to be more meticulous in where he decides to start his ‘magic’ and concentrate on the basics when he is near halfway. Once in the final third though, is it really a concern if he loses possession even 50% of the time? HBA does what others at NUFC don’t and that is continuously attack the full back. Jonas Gutierrez was once Newcastle’s best bet at doing it, but in Pardew’s more defensive standing outfit, he is now required to fulfil more a duty helping out at fullback and his attacking game has suffered. At home in particular, Ben Arfa is absolutely imperative for Newcastle to continue their form and finish the season high-placed. Pardew is not going to change his formation to suit the Frenchman, so a place on Newcastle’s flanks is where he should be settled for now. He has the pace and skill that full backs simply cannot handle, and his determination and persistence mean that regardless of his dribble’s/skill’s success, he will continually try to make things happen. With Arsenal’s defensive record the way it is this season and considering his last performance, Ben Arfa simply must start against the Gunners on that right hand side – should Ryan Taylor suffer though? Probably not. Simpson however… http://www.eplindex.com/11161/hatem-ben-arfa-mercurial-maddening-opta-stats.html

It's a brilliant way to stop people giving up on tickets down the line. I'm paying £450 for a seat that should be £550 this season. Next season with a 5% hike it'll be £580. They aren't getting the complaints about the hikes cos you're only affected if you're new. I'll not give up my £450 ticket in 5 years when it's up to £700 a year. But I'll be buggered in 9 years whe it's over £800 and i have to pay almost double.

His derby goal has totally rehabilitated him it seems to me. This time last year most would have been happy to see him go after very few appearances. 5th top for appearances this season though. I Hope he's not getting so many games over the next 2 years because it'll mean we've not found anyone to fill those holes where he's stepping in, but he's a good quality utility player to have available when required.

Not like you to twist something. You're twisting my melon.

"when Keegan stormed out as a result of boardroom interference player recruitment in August 2008, he turned Ashley and Llambias into hate figures." Was this written by Llambias? All Keegans fault.

Debt reduced to £111m? Previously £150m. Interesting.

It's the last 38 games so includes the last 11 from last season.

From that perspective, Taylor played more this season than he managed last. Difference being he got injured in pre-season last year, so we started that year with a depleted team and only won 2 of the first 8 games. The 11 game run at the start of this season was confidence building, with Taylor much more competent than Williamson/Perch. The longer it went on the more confidence grew, and the league position has maintained that belief. Interesting to note we were 8 points better off than the previous season when Taylor was injured after 14 games, and all these months later we're still only 9 points better off.

How's it looking now PP?

I go off the performances. I think they've rarely looked much improved on performances last season. We've been class at taking points off terrible bottom half teams that we threw away last season though, which is champion.

I think the squad is better, there was a thread at the start of the season where it was debated and more or less the majority thought so too. But it was debatable. We could have sold Alan Smith and brought in Jason Lee and the squad would be improved so the question is to what extent. Our position in the league currently might suggest it's a great deal better, but it could also be a sign of other teams falling away. If teams that finished above us go into free-fall, then just maintaining the existing standard is enough for us to climb. Have we made significant strides on the field that have enabled us to overtake the likes of Sunderland, Villa, Everton and Liverpool this season? Or have they all put in very disappointing performances compared to what they'd hope for. I don't think the latter can be doubted. We've scored less than we had after 27 games last season and we've conceded more. It's great that we've achieved better results from less goals and a worse defence. But we were 45 minutes from finishing 9th last year, we'd have been 1 point off 8th. Finishing 7 will be going in the right direction certainly, but it'll be taking very slow steps.

10 more goals and he's Barca's all time top scorer. 24 year old. Unbelievable.

Going to a Les Ferdinand talk in on 6th April (Good Friday). Someone on here asked me to mention if owt like this was coming up after the last one I went to, but I can't remember who it was. It's in Hebburn, £30 a ticket witha all profits going to the local hospice. Drop me a PM if you want the number of the lad sorting it.

This Messi lad could be worth a bid in the summer.

bring back St. And greavsie tbh

Just quoting this in the hope Leazes won't ignore it twice. Hilarious isn't it, he brings up Spurs, asks a question, which I answer and he goes off on a "oh no usual bollocks about Spurs again" rant I might start a poll. Do you think a) Breaking into the top 4 without even a net spend (let alone the £400m suggested) is still possible, like it was in 1992? Spurs are just lucky? Both can't be true. Some people want LM to argue one, some want him to argue the other. Spurs have reinvested the money they've accrued very well and broken into the top 4.

I'm happy to try Spurs approach but see 5 teams whose revenues/profits/cash are very hard to match. That's why imo challenging around 5th/6th/7th is about "right" sadly. Beyond that its about management/luck. Yeah, I think that should be the expectation, with anything higher something worth celebrating. Having the 3rd biggest stadium has less impact than it used to. Having the 6th biggest revenues and the 7th wealthiest owner should give us a good headstart though. Having the 20th net spend going hand in hand with an as yet unknown profit (before the hefty profit on player trading is accounted for) doesn't suggest we're doing what it takes to maximise those things we have in our favour though.