Defensive woes grow for United

[Scottish Mag 3]

SAM Allardyce must overcome a mounting defensive crisis as a manager coming under increasing pressure prepares to face his biggest challenge yet at St James’s Park.

 

But despite having seen his side suffer a sixth defeat in nine first-team fixtures at the weekend, the Newcastle boss was last night in a defiant mood as he began to formulate his plans for Wednesday’s daunting match against Arsenal.

 

Magpies insiders have dismissed suggestions that Alan Shearer has been lined up to replace the 53-year-old should his team lose to the table-topping Gunners in a game some consider to be a make-or-break affair.

 

But Allardyce’s position could soon become untenable unless he is able to improve upon a run that has seen Newcastle fail to prevail since beating Tottenham on October 22.

 

The limited defensive options that are available to the former Bolton manager will not aid his efforts. Abdoulaye Faye and Stephen Carr both suffered injuries during Saturday’s 3-1 defeat at Blackburn, while Allardyce has yet to receive permission from the specialist treating Steven Taylor’s back to reintroduce the 21-year-old to top-flight action.

 

Claudio Caçapa has not been seen since his calamitous performance against Portsmouth on November 3, Peter Ramage remains on the long-term injured list, Jose Enrique has struggled to adapt to the Premier League and Celestine Babayaro’s status is unclear.

 

It is a situation that has left a beleaguered manager facing a considerable problem as he prepares his depleted side to face in-form opponents.

 

“I could do with having the players fit before I pit my wits against Arsene Wenger,” admitted Allardyce. “Our problems lie with the injuries we’ve got at the moment, the ones at the back in particular.

 

“If I’d had Claudio fit and Steven Taylor, Faye and Carr fit, things might have been different (at Blackburn). But you can’t have all those players missing from one area of the team.

 

“Faye had got himself fit but has injured his calf, Stephen Carr came on and looked good, but because he has been out for so long, he felt his hamstring.

 

“They’ll both be doubtful for the game against Arsenal and all we can do is attempt to get them fit again as soon as we can.

 

“I hope Steven Taylor will be fit but that all depends on the specialist.”

 

Taylor travelled to Ewood Park but has yet to receive the green light to return to action. In his absence, familiar failings have undermined Allardyce’s efforts.

 

“Our defensive frailties are the biggest problem we have,” admitted a manager unable to remove David Rozehnal from the firing line.

 

“I’ve been working hard on that with

 

the coaches all season but, given the disruption we’ve had, we haven’t been able to find the resilience to hang on to results and get points on the board.

 

“We’ll keep trying to improve in that area because, if we can, we’ll do better in games. I think we can consider ourselves unfortunate. The goals we conceded (at Blackburn) were avoidable ones.”

 

Newcastle’s performance at Ewood Park was a much-improved one and, having come under fire from the furious home fans during his last appearance at St James’s Park, Allardyce has urged his players to maintain such standards. “The players gave their all at Blackburn and I can’t ask for more than that,” he said. “I just hope it’s the same again against Arsenal because if we’re playing like that, the fans will be right behind us.

 

“If we give a committed performance, like we did at Blackburn, there won’t be a problem with the fans. The effort and commitment was there and it was hard to take the result.

 

“That’s what we’re playing for, results and points. But we’ve got to take the positives. We have to keep that belief and confidence.”

 

Having taken just one point from the last 15 available, Newcastle and their manager are coming under intense pressure, but Allardyce is determined to ensure his team do not crumble.

 

“We felt it for the first time against Liverpool, but you have to accept whatever comes your way as a professional,” he said. “You can’t let it affect you. You have to perform under pressure.

 

“We’ve got two big home games on the trot, and we’ve got to make sure we get something out of them. If we can do that it will lift everyone before the Christmas period.”

[sammynb 3642]

How long did it take for clueless to start blaming injuries?

Sorry now I'm just bring cynical but fuck we've heard it all before.

[MrBass 2821]

How long did it take for clueless to start blaming injuries?

Sorry now I'm just bring cynical but fuck we've heard it all before.

 

To be fair to Allardyce though, the majorities of injuries we currently have are with the defence. Given that it's a relatively new defence as it is, they need time to gel as a unit. You can't expect to chop and change personnel every game and still keep clean sheets.

[sammynb 3642]

How long did it take for clueless to start blaming injuries?

Sorry now I'm just bring cynical but fuck we've heard it all before.

 

To be fair to Allardyce though, the majorities of injuries we currently have are with the defence. Given that it's a relatively new defence as it is, they need time to gel as a unit. You can't expect to chop and change personnel every game and still keep clean sheets.

But didn't he also promise us the witchcraft to cure all our ills?