The neutral fan doesn’t understand why Alan Pardew must
leave Newcastle
If you look at the table compared to the Newcastle United
squad, 9th place would be seen as a reasonable finish. One which
most fans would have taken at the start of the season. Therefore, neutral fans
do not understand why Pardew gets so much stick. This article will explain the
reasons why.
In 2014, Newcastle haven’t scored many goals. In fact they’ve
managed just 3 at St James’ Park since the turn of the year. So why is it that
Pardew continues to leave out his most creative players? I get that losing
Yohan Cabaye was a big hit to the squad, and that not replacing him was an
obvious error. But continuously picking teams with no creative outlet is
obviously not going to result in goals. Pardew has players who can create goals
in his squad. Hatem Ben Arfa, who I won’t hesitate to say is the most talented
player in the squad, rarely starts games. When he does, he is blamed for his
lack of defending. The fact is, Ben Arfa can do things that no-one else in the
squad can. On a similar vein, Sylvain Marveaux is almost never seen, not even
from the bench. Strange seeing as he had the most assists in the squad last
season. Neutral fans may argue that yes, we are still 9th in the
table but there is a right to complain. How would Chelsea fans react if Eden
Hazard was regularly left out with John Obi Mikel played in his place on the
wing? What about Arsenal fans if Nicklas Bendtner was selected to partner
Olivier Giroud regularly with Santi Cazorla on the bench and Mesut Ozil not in
the squad? What about Manchester City fans if Silva and Nasri were leftout of
the lineup only to make way for Jack Rodwell on the flanks? They wouldn’t be
impressed and would also call for their manager’s head. The fact is football is
all about entertainment and most Newcastle fans don’t get that. I for one, have
often sat twiddling my thumbs for 65 minutes knowing that the thought that we
might score doesn’t enter my head until Ben Arfa is turned to. I’m not saying
Ben Arfa and Marveaux are comparable in ability to Cazorla, Ozil and Hazard but
they perform similar roles for the Newcastle team and without them Newcastle
are dull as dishwater to watch. Since Alan Pardew took over 3 and a half years
ago, I don’t think Ben Arfa and Marveaux have started more than 10 games
together, this shows Pardew’s defensive style. I think West Ham fans will sympathise here,
thinking back to the days where he left out Carlos Tevez and Javier Mascherano
for Marlon Harewood and Hayden Mullins. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a worse
Newcastle team to watch, not even the relegation season saw a side that was as
boring as this one, it doesn’t have to be with Ben Arfa and Marveaux in the
squad.
Similarly, Pardew prefers to play players out of their usual
positions rather than turn to some of these players. This season alone, Davide
Santon has played as a central midfielder, right back and left back. Moussa
Sissoko has played as a central midfielder, right and left midfield, right and
left winger and as an attacking midfielder. Yoan Gouffran has played all across
the midfield and upfront, Mapou Yanga Mbiwa has played all across the backline.
Some of these players have deserved to be dropped but Pardew keeps them in the
team continuously. Moussa Sissoko offers very little to the team and doesn’t
compete for the ball, yet still keeps the likes of Ben Arfa, Marveaux and Sammy
Ameobi on the sidelines and praise from his manager who says he has had a “terrific
season”. Yoan Gouffran I think is a good player but needs some competition, I
struggle to think of a good performance he has put in since boxing day because he
has had no-one pushing him for a spot. Davide Santon has been a liability for 12
months but has only finally been replaced because he has had injuries. Pardew’s
frequent selection of Shola Ameobi who scored his first premier league goal in
16 months on Saturday is baffling.
Furthermore, Pardew frequently mentions his struggle to
motivate his players to play for Newcastle since a top half finish formerly
looked a near certainty. I am by no means saying the players are blameless here
but surely Pardew should be able to motivate his team. That is a part of his
job. The falling to pieces of Newcastle sides that have gone 1-0 down, only to
lose by 3 or 4 since January has been disgusting. I witnessed the home games
with Everton, Tottenham and Man Utd and the team just stopped trying once it
went behind. It was embarrassing to watch and it made me angry. Any football fan
is entitled to expect 100% commitment from his team at any point.
Part of the worst bit of Pardew’s management is his excuses.
It’s never Alan Pardew’s fault. This season he has blamed injuries ( which I
feel we have not had that many of this season, compared to other seasons), the
local media (implying fans can’t decide for themselves he’s useless- believe me
they can), a negative stadium (because of your team’s poor performances),
Cabaye going ( you could use that for a week not 3 months and counting), science
(a very odd suggestion), the wind ( not convinced again), tiredness (not
surprising seeing as you never change the team and rest players). Not only
this, he has used the excuse that we “controlled the game” on various occasions,
when we quite simply haven’t, yesterday being a prime example. The arrogance of
the man was summed up yesterday when he argued that he would have stopped the
Swansea winner going in, had he been on the touchline, prior to the Southampton
game he said his return to the stadium would give his players a lift, they lost
4-0 in perhaps their worst performance of the season.
This brings me onto the worries for next season. The current
form would see Newcastle relegated from the premier league. 13 defeats in the
last 18 games means that it is likely that Newcastle will be battling
relegation next time out without some serious changes. Yes new players are
needed, new strikers and wingers in particular, but Pardew’s mismanagement of
the current squad means I don’t think he is equipped to handle a squad
overhaul.
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