ohhh_yeah

Do not think his injury is too serious but expect him to pack it in for the remainder of the season.

Will we see the obese bastard at a match again this season?

Quiet, you.

FFS! http://www.redandwhitekop.com/forum/index.php?topic=313450.msg0#new

By Lee Ryder From hero to near zero - how fortunes of Hatem Ben Arfa have fluctuated while on Tyneside There was once a time when Alan Pardew was ready to build his Newcastle United team around Hatem Ben Arfa. In fact, it is understood that, with the funds not forthcoming for the big- name new striker United fans craved, Pardew was ready to hand the Frenchman the No 9 shirt. The news was an eyebrow- raiser for me but at that stage Ben Arfa still had his best years very much in front of him. The plan was to use the French ace with the likes of Yohan Cabaye (right), Demba Ba and Sylvain Marveaux, who all came in during the summer of 2011. However, it never quite worked out that way. Today, against Swansea City, we could get a glimpse of the future at Newcastle – without Hatem Ben Arfa. It seems a long time ago since the schemer was potentially spoken about as the chief entertainer at St James’ Park. Over a pot of tea in a Jesmond coffee shop I asked Ben Arfa what he thought of the idea one day and he responded: “If they had handed me the No 9 shirt, I would have had no problem pulling it on. “It is a big shirt, but I enjoy the expectation and just want to deliver.” Of course, Ben Arfa is not the type of prolific forward you would associate with the traditional No 9 at Newcastle. Nobody needs to be told he is a far cry from the Malcolm MacDonalds, Alan Shearers and Les Ferdinands of the world. That is why it was a real eyebrow-raiser when I first picked up the news United were toying with the idea of giving him the No 9 shirt. In the end, he was given the No 10 shirt. When Ben Arfa has played for the Magpies we have seen glimpses of his immense talent. He has goals in him, he beats defenders and he creates for others. Is that only when he wants to? Is it only when he is in the mood? Or is this a deeper problem beyond Pardew’s managerial capabilities? How far should a manager go to give a player special treatment in order to get the best out of him? Certainly, the decision to let Ben Arfa play against Stoke City just days after a dressing-room bust-up after the Manchester United game did not go down well with some of the senior players at Newcastle. Fast forward three years from the prospect of him being handheld the No 9 shirt and Pardew’s relationship with Ben Arfa has become strained. Patience has worn thin and Ben Arfa is more likely to leave this summer then be offered a new contract as it stands. All of it is a real shame for the supporters who see him as one of the few players left at the club capable of flying the flag for the old Entertainers. Sadly, that is modern-day Newcastle for you. Pardew has been unable to come up with a solution which has resulted in Ben Arfa rediscovering match fitness, form and general happiness on the football field - despite the arrival of fitness guru Faye Downey last summer. However, Pardew is the man responsible for man-mangement when it comes to Ben Arfa. When Cabaye wanted his move to Arsenal last August, he refused to play in games against Manchester City and West Ham. The talk from club insiders then was: “He does not want to be here.” Therefore, I have sympathy for the modern manager. Quite how much Ben Arfa wants to be here, nobody really knows. My guess is he wants to be at Newcastle but does not want Pardew to be. Whether he is taking his chance until the summer and seeing if the Londoner will still be around for pre-season remains to be seen. The sad thing is, where does Ben Arfa – at 27 – end up next. He was dubbed one of the best players of his generation by coming through the ranks at Clairefontaine and is on a list of famous graduates like Thierry Henry, Louis Saha, David Trezeguet, Nicolas Anelka, Seb Bassong and Abou Diaby. Perhaps too often he has been allowed to go back to the famous French technical centre for treatment. Ben Arfa should be at an age when he should not be running away from his problems and facing the music. Something just has not been right for Pardew and Ben Arfa this season.Especially in 2014. When Yohan Cabaye was sold the hope was Ben Arfa would step up to the plate and try to fill the gap in terms of creativity. That just has not happened - he has been used sparingly and, while he has had the support of the crowd, the deeper problems were at the club’s training ground. Newcastle are a crazy club in which you cannot rule anything out. At the moment, though, it feels like the beginning of the end for Hatem Ben Arfa.

He is getting his first taste of the managerial limelight. T-minus how long until we see him doing a Klopp impersonation?

"Respect the shirt" Just fuck off to Argentina already.

Have to agree with this. We need to bring in players who actually want to play for our football club, says former Newcastle United favourite Rob Lee Would you take Frank Lampard at Newcastle United? Imagine for a minute Chelsea’s record goalscorer, available on a free in June, suddenly announced he fancied seeing out his playing days at St James’ Park. I would drive him up there myself! Lampard may be nearer 40 than 30, but he is still good for 10-plus goals a season. He is a terrific pro, would be a great leader in the dressing room and is capable of at least being available or most games. What is not to like? The answer to that question is, surprisingly, quite a lot - according to the club’s new managing-director. Lee Charnley this week seemed to dismiss altogether the prospect of the club going for an older player, any older player, because he was not value for money in the sense they would not make any money out of them. Liverpool did not make a penny from Gary McAllister when he signed for them at 35. They did, however, win the League Cup, FA Cup and UEFA Cup with the veteran pulling the midfield strings. I would call that value for money. Kevin Keegan paid £1.5m for a 32-year-old whose best days were apparently behind him. Peter Beardsley did okay. It is fair to say Kevin got his value from that bit if business. I would much rather we spent a bit of money on a guy in his thirties who knows what an honour it is to play in that black-and-white jersey, than another Frenchman who is only here because he sees the club as a stepping stone. I played until I was 36. Forget about age. Look instead at what the player can do. It was with some alarm this week I read Charnley saying the club would only sign one or two players a year. They would only be a certain age so they add sell-on value. That is not good enough. You cannot stand still in the Premier League – it is the same as going backwards – and if we only sign two importst, probably from France this summer, then I fear for us. We are going lose four or five first-team players. I am sure Cheick Tiote (pictured below) will go, especially if he can do something in the World Cup. Loic Remy, we know, will not sign, and I would imagine Hatem Ben Arfa will be sold, while Mathieu Debuchy will not be here much longer. We need to replace them AND strengthen. That is six or seven. One or two (and this means it could be on) new players just will not cut it. Let’s get back to this value- for-money thing. I do not have any problem with that. Yet are we getting that right now from the guys who have arrived over the last 18 months? I cannot comment on whether they are playing for Alan Pardew right now because I don’t know. I did think they would put on a show against Manchester United, but they could not even raise themselves for that. To me, it looked as if they did not want to be there. Is shelling out a decent amount of money on non-English players who take time to settle and some, not all, don’t make it, getting Newcastle any sort of value at this moment in time? Of course not. Getting back to Lampard, I could not believe it when Chelsea spent £11m. I thought it was way much – but when you look at what the guy has given the club then it is a bargain! I would love to see Newcastle spend money on some British players. I have two in mind – Jordan Rhodes and Danny Ings. Both are scoring goals for fun in the Championship and would cost a bit more than a French player, but they would walk to Newcastle to play for our football club. If over a period of four years either or both score 20 goals a season, then that is value. To be fair, if we signed Rhodes and he scored 20 in his first campaign, we would sell him for a massive profit. I don’t care about someone’s age. I don’t care how much we pay for them. I also don’t care where the come from, although we need a lot more British lads in the squad. What I care about most of all is, are they the right player for Newcastle United. That is the only thing Charnley and the United board should be concerned about.

Shepherd said: “When he started getting injuries there was a lot of noise then, that we had made a bad mistake. “Hindsight is a great tool. Certainly with Owen it didn’t work out as it should have. Injuries are injuries and this can happens. “Would I do it again? The answer is no. But, as I say, that’s with hindsight.”

Interesting that Ba sticks his boots in on Mourinho now. Most players would be celebrating instead of rehashing this. Wonder if this damages his chances into being recalled? I have to agree with JawD above. "We have three great strikers and I think that a lot of clubs would like to have them" "Maybe he [Mourinho] doesn't have strikers to his liking," said Ba. ''I'm happy to have liberated us. I haven't been given my chance much this season and I've taken it. I'm not out for revenge.''

Most would describe the FA as spineless but they have taken the correct stance on this issue. Two fingers held high in the air directed towards owner Assem Allam.

Poor timing for Jay Rodriguez. Announced he has ruptured his ACL. Thought he deserved a call up and plane ticket after his impressive season.

They could put a call out for Jamie. He has a special tool bag for every situation.

Champions League predictions??? Barcelona v Atletico Madrid Real Madrid v Borussia Dortmund PSG v Chelsea FC Manchester Utd v FC Bayern Munchen Athletic, Madrid, PSG, and Bayern to advance.

I took at as he meant crashing out of Group D.

Cahill, Jagielka, Lescott, and Caulker would be the four with tickets for me. Terry and Ferdinand on their couches. Rob Harris ‏@RobHarris 15s Denmark coach Morten Olsen exits Wembley press conference saying: "I wish you good luck in the World Cup ... you need it!" Ouch!

Aye. They combined have an average of a goal per match ratio. They currently have 41 goals scored which puts them 24 goals behind with 11 matches to go. If they stayed on course that would generate 22 more goals. Only 2 extra goals they would need to be picked up somewhere else along the way. It could get close to the record during the last visit to Anfield.

Cisse gets lass fired from her job. Unintentionally. FFS give her the job back. No harm, no foul in my opinion. “There’s me thinking ‘Eee there’s a footballer’ and I take a photo. I was just excited. I was behind the counter doing money transfers, but I didn’t do his money transfer,” she said.

The president 's abode in the Ukraine. Luxurious digs contain a zoo, galleon, and more. Greed! http://zyalt.livejournal.com/1007568.html

Is the combined goals record that Beardsley and Cole has had a firm grasp on in danger this season? How many tallies short will Suarez and Sturridge be?