Mac Back On Market For Mags?
WITH all the subtlety of a flower-clutching former suitor ringing the doorbell of a recently divorced old flame, Steve McClaren broke his media silence to announce he is ready to return to the cut-and-thrust of top level club management and Newcastle fans choked on their stotties.
Amid the acres of news print weighing up the runners and riders jostling to be next to rule themselves out of the battle for the St James' hot-seat one name was conspicuously absent. The press fell over themselves to champion an Englishman who has won nothing but got results playing direct football with bargain bucket imports and veterans in a like-for-like swap for Allardyce while Martin O'Neill, Alan Shearer and Mark Hughes all had advocates too.
But the domestic boss who probably ticks the most boxes - Steve McClaren - got barely a mention in the fevered speculation... until he thrust himself into the broadsheet spotlight in a bid to rehabilitate himself and advertise his availability after recharging his batteries.
The ex-England chief had kept a low profile since a wave of bile was directed at small screens across the country at the sight of him pathetically holding a brolly aloft at Wembley to keep the rain from leaving his thinning Titian locks and his international dug-out tenure washed out. He was last seen signing off unapologetically at a hastily arranged kangeroo court from which he departed with his reputation dented but a big enough cheque in his back pocket to cover any damage to his ego.
But amid the hysteria over the soap opera sacking of Fat Sam and the on-going speculation over his successor McClaren opted to thrust himself back into the spotlight with an interview in the Times in which he declared his readiness to return to the fray.
And while the Geordie faithful may scoff at the suggestion, the one time Boro boss could well end up being the perfect candidate for the job. In fact, it could be designed for him. Many wild-eyed Toon fans who have swallowed the spin about "the eighth biggest club in the world" may want Mourinho or Lippi but the brutal fact is that they will not come. They are holding out for Real, Juve, Inter and Barca, or failing that one of the other G-14 glamour club. Reviving a long slumbering strapping six footer is not the kind of challenge they are looking for.That is why the tabloids are reeling out the usual suspects for the job.
But Martin O'Neill is just starting to see two years work at Villa come to fruition and has money to spend to fine-tune his team. Why would he set aside his much publicised family needs to start again in a pressure cooker of a job? Mark Hughes is in a similar position, barring a recent blip, and besides, if his star coninues to rise he may well have his eye on Old Trafford. And Harry Redknapp? He is settled on the South Coast, is on the verge of a magnificent achievement in taking Pompey into Europe and as his bus pass looms does he need the hassle? He is a shrewd operator though and can probably find a way of translating the attention and any approach from Newcastle into a loyalty bonus to stay at Fratton park.
Newcastle sources have hinted they want an English manager which means they are working in a very limited market. As soon as they add that they want someone with a track record of winning trophies then the list becomes shorter still. Presumably they don't want Howard Wilkinson, Brian Little or Howard Kendall. Which leaves who exactly.
Steve McClaren could put an impressive CV together. In fact, measured in terms of trophies, finals and semis he is the most successful domestic manager in two decades. Crazy but true. Real big clubs may dismiss the League Cup but when you have passed the Golden Jubilee of the last real trophy domestic triumph it starts to look like a major achievement. Be under ni illusions as to how that would go down in the Bigg Market. Throw in the UEFA Cup final, a share in the England achievements of the rehabilitated Eriksson and a cheeky claim for some imput into Manchester United's 1999 treble and it is starting to stack up.
And there's more. McClaren publicly revealed that an approach from Newcastle when Bobby Robson was sacked so shabbily left his world "turned upside down" for a week, an undiplomatic slap across the chops for Boro fans that drove another nail in his coffin at the Riverside .
Plus the almost impossible demands of the Newcastle job demand someone who is thick skinned and brass necked and we saw at both Boro and England that Mac is a pachyderm who could outspin a spider and put a brave face on even the most unmitigated disaster. If only he could find an audience willing to believe.
And he has compelling economic arguments on his side. Whereas Harry or Hughesy or O'Neillsy could cost £3-4m in compensation on top of the £6m they gave Fat Sam to go away, Mac is available on a Bosman style free. He won't cost a penny, leaving all the more to waste on journeymen defensive midfielders.
Maybe equally useful is that almost all of the backroom team his would demand are already in place. Steve Round and Paul Barron are already at St James along with an appliance of science army of nuritionists, psychologists, sociologists, Prozone analysts and Feng Shui experts. If they take on Mac then Newcastle won't need to pay them all off and replace them all with chirpy Cockneys and they are quids in. Go on, give us a laugh. You know it makes sense.
*****
COULD Boro get Rafa sacked? The Liverpool boss is under pressure from above. The league is beyond them barring a miracle and the scraping through in the Champions League was far from palatable given the £50m expenditure in the summer. Having had a public spat with the owners there is a fragile peace but you still get the impression that one big slip up and the axe will fall.
Liverpool escaped giving that excuse as they stumbled to a draw with Luton. Could Boro make lightening strike twice and 'do an Arsenal' on the Scousers? Let's hope so. Incredibly the rookie Gareth Southgate is the eighth longest serving boss in the Premiership. Victory could see him climbing up that table as well.
COME ON BORO!
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MAGNIFICENT summing up of that Brilliant ex Boro manager McClaren. If he ever works again as a manager of a big club I for one would be totally surprised.
As for Managing Newcastle, I believe the Geordie Fan"s are equally as Football wise as the Boro fans who soon sorted out McClaren;s complete lack of understanding of the game of football. The FA Idiots who gave him the England job should all be sacked for their ridiculous appointment in first place.
Steve McClaren's a poor manager and Maccarone was right in what he said about him, as proved by his dismal failure to qualify for the Euro's, in my opinion.
His tactics in the last game and his choice of players, especially the keeper, were beyond stupid and I don't think that with even the best will in the world that you can say that he got it right, or that he was just unlucky.
He was rubbish and rightfully got the Spanish fiddle.
But that's not to say that he was a poor coach, as Ferguson is certainly no fool. So he must have some qualities.
But the transition from either player to manager, or coach to manager isn't one that just anyone can make and I don't think that McClaren was able or is able to do it.
I hope with all my heart the he goes to Newcastle though ! What an utter joke of a football club.
TB
P.S. I hope people welcome my new shortend posts !!!
Great column AV and for some strange reason Umbrella man fits the bill at newcastle. at 25/1 surely its worth a few bob. He allways gets the Newcastle job on Championship Manager so why not in real life?
Anyway enough of the skunks, more rumours about downing in this mornings press and ive got to say they seem stronger than ever. 10 million for Downing would be good business and with jinky ready and waiting surely the time is right to move on.
Im not sure about tainio tho we need a good ball player in the middle of the park not another utility man. id try to get routledge on loan and then move o'neill inside.
would give us plenty of width and we all know o'neill can do the box to box part plus he is comfortable on the ball and has a good range of passing.
We have an oportunity here to move on and recapture the optimism after eindhoven.
Alves and fred are strongly linked but i think it will be one
or the other with alves just ahead at the moment.
Robinsons available aswell so why not get him and let schwarzer go for 50p, great business i think.
Come on boro today lets have these scousers.
Up The boro
AV
Enjoyed the blog on The Ex but that's as much as I ever want to read about him - ever again!
As the waters get murkier round the Alves deal and with The Count allegedly in Lyons with Fred but with several other clubs there too I can see us, yet again, getting to 31 January with no striker in place.
Meanwhile we are about to make the stupid mistake of letting Downing go. Sadly, I think it's now inevitable and has been so since the stories started emerging about our usual stupidity over contracts with him.
That always leads to a departure as sure as night follows day. I can see from Stewie's point of view why he'd want to go, though.
I'm not so sure as others that we have a ready made replacement in Jinky - very much unproven at Prem level. He can beat a man better but I don't rate his delivery as anywhere near Stewie's. I suppose it's a role that Tuncay could play too if you were talking about the left side of a front three.
But I think that when Downing's gone and by the end of the season even those who are now supporting his exit will be asking 'why did we let him go' and 'why wasn't he playing for us like that'? Quite.
I agree with David Morrison that we don't want Taino - just another labourer.
If there are players involved then let's solve our goalkeeping problem with Robinson and go for Lennon (not Routledge - he's hopeless) and move O'Neil in one to partner Arca in the centre of midfield.
The Boat is on his way too. He's only still here because of the suspensions we have this weekend. He'll be at The Mackems, Pompey or Derby by the end of next week.
I'll look forward to what he'll doubtless have to say when he leaves.
I'd love to see us take three points today but that's only on Ian's principle that you sometimes get points when you least expect them.
I think a draw is more likely but I fear that Boro will disappoint the Riverside crowd yet again and lose.
Although I would love to see McClaren go and manage Newcastle, it's one way of making sure they never accede to their big club claims, but surely they cannnot be that stupid...can they?
However todays press seem to think that 'Arry Boy is the man for the job, and if to be believed he has asked for permission to talk to the Geordies.
Century radio are also stating that Shearer has thrown his hat into the ring, what price a Shearer/Redknap partnership??
Harry has today stated that he wants to carry on at Portsmouth, and good on him. He has transformed that club from top to bottom and are now pushing for a place in Europe. He is too good for the skunks up the road!
I hope Mac does go to Newcastle, I really do. Perhaps he could do us Boro fans a favour and get them relegated....how sweet would that be?
I think if we can get £10M+ for Downing, we should bite their hands off. This season he is our top scorer and assist maker, but he is playing in a poor team and is an England international, so surely it should be expected?
We have a couple of people who can play in that position, and it will give us vital funds to bolster our firepower, which is desperately needed. I think we should play 4-3-3, with the 2 wider of the front 3 dropping back when we dont have the ball.
I agree with the comments about players coming in. Tainio would be a bit part player and is no better than anyone we have in our squad, except maybe LDG.
I wouldnt touch Routledge with Newcastles, to be honest. He was overrated at Palace and has done nothing since Spurs took him.
I think if we were to look at anyone at Spurs, then I would look at Robinson, Prince Boateng or Defoe. I doubt whether any of those 3 would want to come up here, but they would all prove quality additions to our team and would be guaranteed first team football week in, week out.
Also, just been reading a statement from Lyon released this morning saying that they have accepted 3 bids, with Boro absent from the list. Spurs, Pompey and PSG are the teams involved in negotiatons.
This surely points to the fact that Fred is 2nd choice behind Alves, or someone else who we havent heard about yet. Or, perhaps someone is blowing smoke up our cavities and we will end up with nobody come Feb?
With Boro, you never really know what your guna get?
John
Lets hope one of my 'points from unusual sources' happens today. I dont think it will happen today but who knows with Rafa and Liverpool.
Like yourself I think Downing leaving would be bad for us but good for him. I fear the money we will get for him will sit in the coffers awhile yet. The longer the Alves/Fred sagas drag on the more likely a deal wont happen. Unless we get the 11.59pm, 31st deal. By the time anyone comes in Mido may be back in the team anyway.
I've sent this article to my barcode mates - it'll scare the life out of them! In the immortal words of Kevin Keegan, "I would love it..."
Also, it seems that our poster in Dubai who said he thought Mido would be out for 10 weeks was about right. I was against his signing and, although I was surprised by his positive attitude to begin with, I don't think he's going to make any significant contribution to us this season. I'd like to be proven wrong, though.
TB - I couldn't believe it when AV appointed you as a rookie poster. There were mutterings of "he doesn't know what he's doing", "he's just shouting the same thing over and over from the sidelines", "if we don't change things, this blog is going down!". But I have to admit it, you've learnt on the job and one day, maybe, you could be a great poster!
Here's hoping it's the untypical Boro that gets off the coach today!
"Many wild-eyed Toon fans who have swallowed the spin about "the eighth biggest club in the world"
The only people who fell for that spin were you dopey smoggies. LOL
Man u pay 18m for an unknown u 21 player from Portugal and some guys are happy with 10m for downing .how about 20m?
Mac for the barcodes!! Oh yes, too good to be true, but we can dream. If he went there I'd put a bet on him getting the sack come August.
Alves & Fred are both real possibilities, be patient one of them will come.
Stewie leaving will be a real blow, but it wouldn't surprise me I think GS has had it in his mind for a while, he intimated a while ago that a turn over of 'star' players was healthy.
He clearly has a replacement in mind whether it be jinky or Tuncay in that position, it will be a brave move for GS to let him go. I for one will be very sad, its never good to see a Boro born international leave the club, still thats football.
I agree with JP, when The Boat goes, O'Neill in the centre and maybe Aliadiere on the right wing.
Good result today.
Interesting choice of posting name from Harold Pinter above. Famed for his absurd playwriting ability the following extract is from Wikipedia: "Pinter's dramas often involve strong conflicts among ambivalent characters fighting for verbal and territorial dominance and for their own remembered versions of the past"
Harold the poster must have a wonderful, wicked and ironic sense of humour or is it yet another example of the seemingly unfathomnable Geordie pit of Homer Simpson type decision making.
On a more important note Gareth and his patched up 11 put on a superb performancetoday and credit where credit is due. Huth, Boat, Sanli and co gave 100% but special mention must be made for Wheater, Downing and especially Grounds, all academy products who for me stole the show.
Not a bad performance from any of them and Scwarzer seemed to discover his form of a few years ago.
It was a pleasure to get behind them and spend the rest of the weekend recovering from being hoarse. The effort was there for all to see and the 33,000 got value for money, not something often said on here.
The big challenge now is to keep this level of performance up against the Blackburns and Wigans of this world!
If McClown goes to the skunks, let hope they give him all the time in the world.
It would though go against the grain, as the only person given time at Newcastle lately was Joey Barton.
Thanks JC !
Today was a GREAT result and if truth be told we were unlucky not to win.
I'm so happy for GB as he's had such a tough season with everyone on his back and absolutely deserved a bit of good luck today. Well done GB !
He's a great guy and he's been a great servant to the club and fully deserves all the praise he gets for the way he plays with his heart on his sleeve and the way he conducts himself.
Now let's go out and really develop that winning mentality where we absolutely and truly believe we can beat anyone, because if we can FINALLY develop this then we really will be able to go to the next level.
Bring on Blackburn and let's win and end this bllody damn cycle of boom and bust football. GS, it's all in the head with these guys. Fix this and you're on to a winner mate.
TB
Good result and great to see the Riverside almost full. At one point I thought we deserved 3 points, but following that Torres strike I was happy to hold on for a point.
Now we have 3 prem games before we go to Anfield; we can pick up a sackful of points by then, and be above N'Castle...keep dreaming.
John Powls: The Boat was outstanding against Liverpool (so was Swartz for that matter) Good to see them performing. I agreed with your comments re the possible sale of Downing .. let's hope not.
As I have previously posted, all will now depend upon our Home form and our passionate support, thanks to all who came to the Riverside today.
It was a great result!! Though if only Liverpool didn't sign the only world-class player they got, we'll probably gotten 3 points.
Have to praise GS...His games are more entertaining than previous managers...McClaren & Robbo....where we hardly do any passing. I think Grounds had a good game and bright future and surprisingly Schwarzers was just good as his past this match.
Hope Geordies sign McClaren and let GS beat him down with our new revamped entertaining Boro!!
PS..AV..are you somehow related to Steve Vickers...one Boro great reserve defender of the late 90s?
**AV writes: No, although if you'd seen me trap a ball you might wonder....
AV
Are you sure MacMoses isnt in charge of Toon already, the performance at ManU reminded me of our Gunners fiasco. I suppose there are enough disciples of Macs coaching to make his presence felt.
A good performance from the lads, just a shame Downings shot didnt go in but a point against Liverpool is a decent outcome. It does show the need for a cutting edge upfront.
Wonder which Boro will get off the team bus at Blackburn?
Yes Harold Pinter, not quite fell for it as you put it, more like we fell about laughing.
Buy the Sunday Times today Mr Pinter (sorry AV) and read a wonderful article about Newcastle United.
The lunatics have definitely taken over the asylum, and long may it continue.
LOL so much my sides are splitting.
Downing is not only our top scorer but has made a lot of the goals for other people in the team.
The local lad should not be sacrificed to pay for an unproven Prem striker like Alaves who has been injured for some of this season but did score 7 against 'Heracles Almelo' last season WHO?
He looks great on You tube but so does Dong Gook Lee.
Lets just hope Spurs dont offer enough for another Hotel and golf course in the 11th hour or Adam Johnson will be under pressure to become Stewart Downing.
A striker should be added to our best players as we are trying to build a team from a skeleton squad!
Up the Boro, nice to see 33000 in the Riverside for a great performance.
Good result and a good performance - especially in the circumstances of all the illness around the squad and Woody's 'injury' again.
It did support - as if the notion needed support - the importance of us securing a top class striker this month. If we had one then we'd have had the three points. A look at the table tells why we need 3 pointers now and not just draws.
We need 6 wins from the remaining fixtures to scrape safety and we'll struggle for those without goalscorers and particularly if Stewie goes too.
The other thing which was an interesting and welcome surprise yesterday was the size of the crowd.
Any theories, AV or fellow bloggers?
Where did the extra 7,000 come from. Not all ex-pat Scousers, surely. They were no bigger draw than ManUre, Chelski or Arse. Our position is no better and our recent home form has been woeful.
Is it the offers for kids? Was it the possibility of seeing new signings? can't be the possibility of a Cup run, surely?
Whatever, long may it continue and long may the football on offer and the results justify it.
The result, the performance, the opposition and the crowd will all help attract and pay for new recruits and may help at least one 'want away' want to stay.
It seems clear now that Stewy Downing is being is to be sold to fund the move for a striker. If we had 12 or 14 million in the summer surely it would of been spent then.
A shame to lose a local lad with so much talent. I think theres a lot more to come from stewy. I for one wish him all the best you cant blame the lad for wanting a move when the club have dragged their feet over a new contract, and he,s had some unfair stick from some of the fans.
The reality is its good business for Boro to sell a lad who cost nothing to try an strengthen elsewhere in the team.
No doubt GS has his own ideas on whom to replace stewy with, Johnson maybe or Tuncay when Mido is fit. Personally i think Tuncay is much more effective in a free role behind the front one or two.Lets just hope the gamble pays off.
JP,
Reasons for the Extra 7000
All of the above, but maybe because we get the feeling that we are appreciated now by mfc.
An excellent game but disappointed with the result. I thought we did enough to win, although the strike from Torres was wonderful.
However where was the midfield just before he hit it? Not just then but in similar circumstances at least twice? We really do need somebody in that central role with the legs to track opposition players, and get a foot in.
I would be unhappy to see Downing sacrificed for an unproven ( in the Premiership) and costly striker, we certainly need Stewie until the end of the season and hopefully safe. Then if he wants to be away, yes for 10-12M.
One bonus yesterday, Grounds did not look out of place.
There is some pics going around web of alves at an airport.. although unclear what airport it is have you hear anything further AV? Rumours are its Teesside airport but doubt theres any direct flights from Amamsterdam, its hard enough coming from southampton to boro lol
John Powls my theory for the crowd size (apart from a large travelling scouse contingent) is that against the big boys we actually have a go and even win (citing Arsenal as a recent example).
I reckon the punters turned up to see a Boro team have a go and be able to say "I was there" if the upset happened.
The positive aspect from the game is that if they continue to play with the same spirit then the thousands will start to slowly drift back.
Getting back to the subject of a manager for our dear friends up north, I managed to get an email squeezed into the Guardian live text blog of the Man Utd/Newcastle game.
If I thought for one minute it would go up in it's entirety I'd have taken more care with the writing (not a strong point), anyway, my answer to the Geordie mangler debate:
18 min: The most exciting event of the last three minutes: Ronaldo has changed his shoes. "Who should be the next Newcastle manager?" asks ***** ****, a Boro fan, so you know what's coming.
"The answer is glaringly obvious to me - nobody. My theory goes like this: Geordie fans spend so much time abusing their managers, they don't pay full attention to the football being played on the pitch. No manager: er, what do we do now? er, better watch the match.
"After a few games it will dawn on them that they are actually terrible and have been living a lie for the past 150 years. Once woken from their delusional state they will be more amenable to the appointment of Steve McClaren. Problem solved."
Can you believe they replaced ***** with terrible?
**AV writes: Er, yes I can actually. [winky thing]
I think yesterdays game proved how important STEWY is to the current BORO line up.
Am I the one one who is a little concerned that we seem to be the only club that is prepared to be pay 10-12 MILLION for a 28 year old who comes across a bit mercenary.
If the club has that kind of money I've always been a fan of DARREN BENT or even the new Andy Cole that is LEROY LITA. If it goes wrong at least there is a sell on value, and premiership experience cannot be underestimated.
If we are looking for a quick fix then I'm all for the barcodes AMEOBI. I'm sure that escaping the sinking ship must be high on his agenda.
" Redcar Red wrote...
John Powls my theory for the crowd size (apart from a large travelling scouse contingent) is that against the big boys we actually have a go and even win (citing Arsenal as a recent example). "
Agree 100% mate. Until we can cure this once and for all we will never see the very best of any team we put out no matter how much we spend.
This for me is our biggest fault and for me it goes back to the stench of defeatism and the small town mentality talk that always gets repeated.
Hopefully the welcome noises coming out from the PR man are helping to address this, but it really is something that only SG can impose as the leader and main man, as he's the one that must set the example and lead from the front.
For the last few seasons I see him as being the main exponent of the " we're happy to just exist / cut the cloth to fit / small town in Europe " mentality.
We absolutely must put the past firmly where it belongs and look to the future with whatever we have in the most positive way possible.
This must come from the top down and it must be the only language that anyone at the club uses.
TB
What do you do when your team has struggled to score enough goals? Thats easy, sell your leading scorer who is also the leading creater of goals for others for a striker unproven in the Premier league!
Even if Alves/Fred or whoever arrives and turns out to be a good buy he is unlikely to settle before next season by which time we could well be relegated and needing to sell him as well to balance the books.
To sell Downing for £8M (as quouted tonight on Sky)would be crazy and preparing Boro for the drop. We've got this far (with Mido not far off from being back) and if the money isn't there to bring in a striker, let's wait till the summer when we would have the saving on Mendi's wages at least to create some scope to get someone.
They're Sky-mongering again!
If you read Sky Sports article on Downing (ref Vince’s post above),
http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11095_3044785,00.html
it's interlaced with unconfirmed speculation likely to (and some may even suggest, “designed to�) further unsettle an already seemingly self-declared unsettled player (Downing). And Downing is only unsettled because of the pressure being upped by Sky's "reporting" of the matter.
If you read what Downing is quoted as saying, nowhere does he state that he wants to leave Boro. He only says he's flattered by Spurs attention - big deal! So who wouldn't be slightly flattered by another club's interest.
He may however, be more flattered if Manchester United were interested though! Spurs? What's so great about them? They're 2 league places and 3 points above us. Hardly a world of difference!
However, they're possibly in a position to offer him more money! And that's where it all unravels! That's what it's all about. And at the heart of it all, Sky Sports and their own money-grabbing agenda!
In a purely footballing context, it doesn't feel at all right that Boro should even be considering selling/releasing Downing when we are already under-strength and we are trying to recruit (not replace existing) attacking talent.
If we continuously let our better players go - even if we replace them with potentially good guys like Alves or Fred (I’d consider a retraction if we get both!!!), as Vince's post hints at, we're likely to be weaker in the short term. This is not a great idea, taking even a modestly optimistic perspective of our current position in the league.
Further, it just feels all wrong. Why?
For a club that's supposedly ambitious to improve it's standing in the league rankings, we ought not to be letting our good guys go, but retaining them until something better is available and supplementing them with others to strengthen the squad.
Letting Downing go will strengthen the squad of one of our closest competitors and our relative position against them will be weakened. Downing is an attacking provider as well as an occasional goal-getter and his cross delivery has to be an asset for retention.
I sincerely hope we can find the financial resources to retain him and to bring in additional flair up front to make us truly competitive for the remainder of the season and into the future. I don't want Spurs money! I want Boro to finish above them in this league! Sky Sports don't!
I wonder....are Boro trying to bring in BOTH Fred and Alves???
The rumours about Downing and Spurs seem to be more than tabloid speculation. Perhaps Downing will be sold to Spurs and Boro will use the extra funds to bring in both strikers?
Wouldn't surprise me, but if Keith Lamb drags his feet with either deal they won't happen.
Interesting..................
Lot of positives to take from Saturday.
Theres not a lot wrong with the current team that a quality striker wouldn't put right. The balance is good and there is decent pace and a good work ethos.
As many have said, Stewy would be a massive loss to us and I think it would be folly to let him leave now. £10 million for the best crosser of a ball in the country (and beyond) is not enough.
I dont blame the club on this one. He is a quiet lad who has been the target of fans abuse, and wants a pay rise 'commensurate with his profile at the club and guarantees over future direction. These I hear may be a little unrealsitic.
Spurs helped to unsettle him, are apparently a 'massive' club so should pay a 'massive' fee of 12 million plus.
Those who slag him off need a good slap. Defensively not a world beater, but when was the last time we had a home town winger, one of us who was this good? If he wants to go, then it must be the end of the season after he has given his all to the cause and helped us stay up.
He still has 2.5 years left so we hold the aces there. Are we really prepared to gamble with our survival by letting a biggest creative force leave when we are 1 point off the bottom 3? If he wants to go, the end of the season gives Jinky a bit more time.
I cant understand why Matty Taylor, a left sided player in the Gario mould, hasn't been a target for 3.5 million. We could get Lita for 5-6 million, a safer bet than Alves, although Lita is a legend in his own living room! Two quality players and still change from the Alves dosh!
Good to see Boat and Skippy roll back the years. I for one think they get over the top slating here. Lots to be enthused about, especially the crowd, but aren't our home fixtures going to be sooooo important???
The Downing story provokes some debate not least on how true it is. At face value the club are going to receive a bid between 8 and 12Million.
Lets debate the pros and cons, lets call the deal £10million.
That is a lot of spondoolies for a home grown lad though he is a current England international and the only decent left sided midfield player (I discount Cole as I think if him more of a roamer). I think we could get more though the money would go some way to balancing the coffers and along with money for Davies and Morrison represent a return on our acadamy structure.
From Downings viewpoint he would move to a higher profile club working under a top class coach. It is hard to see it harming his career. He would be delivering amunition for some quality strikers which would be a pleasant change. He would also get away from the bile of our supporters. The problem there is the fact they will just pick on someone else.
We would lose our most important player and to some of us a symbol of the localness of the club. It would create an opportunity for Jinky and behind him it may encourage young Porrit to stay. Whether Jinky would take the step up is another matter. You soon get found out in the premiership and his delivery is as yet unproven.
Would it help bring in strikers? Possibly with the money but what would we lose in terms of service to them? He is also the player who works their goalkeeper the most in our squad. There may well be a trade off between creation and striking.
What we dont know is Stewies own thoughts and what he really wants. There is always much posturing during contract negotiations. We do seem not to be very effective though again we do not know what is going on.
Following the weekends results we are clearly still in the dogfight. If the club thinks he wants to go it may be worthwhile taking the money rather than keep an unhappy player (though I have seen no evidence of that in recent performances). If things go badly and we do go down then clubs end up in a firesale and often dont get full value for their players.
My view? On balance I hope he stays and we bring in a striker (or 2). My fears? He goes and we dont get a striker in the window or we get in more firepower but spend two months trying to get the right blend.
We could esily have a return of square peggism to fit the high profile players into the team. The corporate part of the club would not be unhappy to have the money without spending. It would be a scenario similar to Veruka where the club wouldnt do anything until the club was secure.
Whatever does happen I cant affect it and will just have to wait and see. If he goes I wish him well and good luck as long as he doesnt trash the Boro.
There are a few possibilities relating to will Stewie leave or won't he. One, is GS is prepared to let him go in the knowledge it will give him cash to spend? The other is that Stewie feels its time to move on, or his agent is stirring it up a bit as he is in contract renewal negotiatins with Boro and this is a perfect time to up the ante.
Personally I hope it is the latter and that Boro see sense and pay the guy the going rate. Presumably he should be at the top of the Boro pay scale along side Woodie.
I think it would be folly to let him go, he creates he scores, what more can we ask? No point having Alves stood up there in the opponents box waiting for a cross which isn't going to come because the assist king has headed south.
As for the big crowd on Saturday, I also think its a combination of supporters starting to feel a little more appreciated, the prospect of Boro turning over another big team and the fact that despite results Boro are actually playing well at the moment.
To sum up there are shoots of optimism starting to appear.
Blimey my posts are getting as long as TB's used to be, sorry folks! By the way TB I for one like your new succinct posts, I can read them while slurpping me coffee at work!
For a club that blew £16 mill on Darren Bent to offer £8 mill for Downing is a mickey take.
Richard and Andy- agree with everything you say about the Downing situation.
I wish Steve Gibson would ask for an interview with Sky Sports today to announce that we've bid £8 mill for Berbatov. Reduce the channel to a comedy show
I think Ian Gill has summed up the Downing situation pretty well.
Unless a Downing transfer is used as leverage to obtain another top class player it would be madness to sell him at this stage of a relegation fight.
I think he may go in the summer, and as Ian said it might allow Porrit to become part of the first team squad.
BTW: Good performance at the weekend - though we're still only a point above relegation and need to do this every week.
Met up with mates from around the Boro before the game and all had heard rumours in the different pubs they use.
The most obvious one was that Downing was on his way.
A couple of mates also said that Woodgate was unhappy and also wanted out. Another said Mido was also looking to leave.
We all thought Boteng would be on his way, however he had a stormer on Saturday. Was this because he had made up with GS or showing suitors what they would get?
GS is building his own team and as AV said in a previous blog, we are good enough to stay up with what we have.
So it may be a case of no ins or outs in January, followed by big changes in the summer.
The one common thought in the pub before the game was that Mido, Downing, Woodgate and Boteng would not be wearing a Boro shirt come August.
Add Scwarzer to the outgoing players and it looks like Mr Lamb and GS are in for a busy time.
Good match and atmosphere on Saturday.
JP - we should be able to get enough points to survive.
Home games against Wigan, Fulham, Reading, Derby and Bolton should ensure this
Interesting to note that Tainio was mentioned in connection to Boro this morning. He is Finnish as I am - he's been a Spurs fan all his life and I've been a Boro fan like wise.
Tainio is definately a midfielder. Earlier with French team Auxierre and now Tottenham. His attitude is great - tackling and running all the way to the ground! Very much like 'Boat but younger. One of the nicest guys off the field, too.
At our national team - we just missed the Euro 08 by a single goal - he has been superb. I recall a match agains the Germans where he showed his quality and skills. A very good buy to replace Boat in the long run.
He loves London currently but could find Teesside a place to live too. He comes from a small town just over 100 miles South of the Polar Circle. So nice and warm for him at Teesside.
I hope we cold keep Downing and add Afonso Alves, though.
Up the Boro!!
If Stewie does want to go then there isn't much Boro can do to stop him, but I would say keep him until the Summer. For certain given he has two years plus on his contract
We should ask for and hold out for £15 million. Iif spurs are daft enough to shell out then at least we will receive a lot of cash. I certainly see no point in selling for £10-12 million at this stage, he will still be worth that in May.
I for one hope this is contract posturing, but if he wants to leave then I will wish him good luck for the future, excellent player, good bloke.
Fingers crossed that he stays!
All these transfer rumours about players going to Spurs.
I thought Ramos said he never bought players in January transfer windows.
The translation from Spanish to English must have gone pear shaped somewhere along the line.
If Downing is to go Boro should use the cash to buy Taylor from Pompey and Sidwell from Chelsea.
If they know that Mido will never be fit then a striker needs to be bought ASAP
Numbers at the Riverside are up as Boro are playing Good football and a lot of the attacking is down to Stewart Downing. Selling Downing even at 10mil is a bit like selling the brushes to buy the paint!
Downings agent is upping the ante no doubt as thats his job but Downing provides more on the pitch than 2 of our other players put together.
The fact that he cost nothing as he is from the academy may prevent Gibbo seeing the wood for the trees and his true value to us as a proven prem left sided attacker.
HEAR ME NOW LORD GIBSON -Look at Shaun Wright Philips also an England international, who as an attacking right winger moved from his beloved Man City at a similar age to Downing for 21million to Chelsea in July 2005-
Downing is worth much more to Boro than 10 million!
The point is playing the best player we can afford in every possition and Keeping them if they are proven so as to keep the balance of the team.
Downing is the best left winger we can afford and he should not be sacrifised for an unproven [in the prem] striker!
Sky are just trying to create news, we should offer 6 mil for Bent to prove how valid their news is.
Up the Boro.
Just read the following article
http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11661_3046120,00.html
In it Fred seems to be saying that he will be joining PSG or Spurs. If the figures are right it might not be a bad thing that he does not come to the Boro.
Minimum £10m signing fee plus £3m a year in wages.
Re the reporting of Stewart Downing speculation:
"Well done!" to the Gazette (via Eric Paylor's column article) for putting the Boro's perspective out there into the public domain.
There are significant elements in Eric Paylor's article that although it fully acknowledges the situation concerning Downing and his contract negotiations, are not reported in the Sky Sports version of events.
Those elements which reflect Boro's position and are NOT therefore particularly supportive of Spurs or anyone else's move for Stewart Downing, provide the balanced reporting that we, the public need to have confidence in our management retained.
Once again, I think a "well done" to the Gazette and to the Club for ensuring that fuller information is made available to the Teesside public than the spin version that Sky mischieviously puts out.
Incidentally, today's Sky Sports report on the Fred situation contains a sting in the tail for Boro (anyone other than Spurs actually!) as well. (Have a look at the last paragraph.)
http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11800_3046120,00.html
It's this sort of unsubstantiated and speculative reporting, exonerated seemingly by the use of the qualifying "seemingly" in the text that really hacks me off!
(And yes, my own use of "seemingly" WAS intentional! A little release of sarcastic vitriol does me good from time to time!)
Great game on Saturday. And what fun to see 33K in attendance again! Boro's performance was worthy of the crowd and I hope they all appreciated it.
It would be such a shame if the balance of the side that's so close to being a VERY good side was to be lost by the loss of a key player. As I said in an earlier post, I DO hope we have the resources to supplement as well as retain Stewart Downing's services.
If we were to do so, it would send the RIGHT messages out to the 33K+ who attended on Saturday.
Looks like Alves was spotted at the riverside on sunday. A photo is doing the rounds on the internet. Maybe selling downing with finance a new striker.
**AV writes: Yes, he was here. But no deal is in th eoffing just yet. There are a lot of problems at the other end.
I totally agree with the comments by Nigel on the subject of Stewie; it would be madness to sell him for anything less than 15M; preferably not at all.
Good to read the comments by Jarkko; interesting comments on a player I had no knowledge of before.. thanks Jarkko.
Thank goodness for Jason Roberts goal last night eh!!!
UP THE BORO
THE BORO HAS TO BE ONE OF THE MOST EXCITING CLUBS TO BE AROUND AT THE MOMENT. I LIVE IN BRUM AND THESE TEAMS WOULD LOVE TO BE LINKED WITH THE PLAYERS WE ARE LOOKING AT.
THE GAZETTE STATE THAT "alves was not at the riverside this weekend" WELL WHO IS THE FELLA STOOD ON OUR PITCH NEXT TO GARETH?TAKE A LOOK AT VITALFOOTBALL.CO.UK.
I AGREE WITH NIGEL SPURS WILL PAY DAFT MONEY FOR DOWNING, THOUGH I WOULD RATHER PAY THE LAD WHAT HE IS WORTH.
THESE ARE MAKE OR BREAK DAYS AHEAD FOR THE BORO, IF WE BUY 2 BRAZILIAN INTERNATIONALS... AS I DO BELIEVE WE WILL AND KEEP STEWEY THEN THE FEEL GOOD SAMBA- JUNINHO EFFECT WILL BE BACK..
SELL STEW AND BRING HULSE OR WHOEVER !! AND WE WILL LOSE ALL MOMENTUM THAT IS BUILDING UP.
MR GISON ,LAMB AND SOUTHGATE SEIZE THE DAY AND DARE TO DREAM!! UP THE BORO
Time for me to offer my take on things...
Was pleased with the 'Pool performance, except the minute Torres unleashed his bullet we ran out of steam.
This underlines a weakness we've always had since I've supported 'Boro - we've rarely had players who can bail us out when we're not playing so well. (We got 10 home wins last season because Vids and the Yak were there to help us through the rough patches.)
It was even obvious in our Division One promotion campaign in '98 - if Forest were losing Van Hooijdonk or Campbell would bail them out, if Sunderland were losing Quinn or Phillips would bail them out. We just had Merson and whoever was up front with him.
Nowadays, we appear to be relying on Tuncay and Downing to do the same - but they are more team players. They are not prolific, and they can't make up for everything.
But still, great debut for Jonathan Grounds and Wheater was a rock (again). So I'm not complaining too much.
But how do things with the Boat and Stewie stand? Well, let's look at it this way. The Boat has been in decline since the captaincy was placed on his shoulders, and with the likes of Arca, Rocky, Catts and now Shawky (not to mention the developing Goulon, or O'Neil) making their presence felt, is it really time for him to move on?
I get the feeling that he doesn't like being used sporadically. In truth, I think he has to accept that this is the way it must be from now on - at the age of 32 he no longer has the legs to last a full season. Or you can look at it another way, and think that Barry Silkman - like Rocky's agent - is using his client's absence from one or two games to take advantage of the rumour mill. Pathetic.
Downing is a more pressing matter. He has been playing really well in recent games, but is it really for the team, or is it just to put himself in the shop window? Despite our seeming surfeit of left wingers (Jinky and the developing Porritt) can we really afford to let him go? He has some things Jinky doesn't - better ability in the tackle, a better ability to track back, and of course he's the best crosser at the club. No question. That, and - you know this as well as I do - Boro and Downing have become synonymous.
But then this is also a problem. As red_rebel once stated: "I dread to think of the stick Downing will get when he goes. He is local so he is expected to tie himself to the club for life and pay to play". The point here is that if someone doesn't want to play for the club anymore, we shouldn't force him. But he hasn't said he doesn't. Yet the speculation still won't go away...
And what's this I hear about Woody and Mido? I don't buy it - the former hasn't been here that long, the latter's rarely had a chance to show what he can do. Then again, Woody was only at Newcastle for a year and a half...
The picture in the Gazette shows the stumbling block in negotiations over Alves transfer.
Alves seems unable to look at Gate and that must surely be down to the cardie/waistcoat Gate is wearing. A clear case of fashion crime that the style police should stamp out. Having seen the stunning Mrs Gate I can only assume he hides such garments at the club.
The other question is how did the photo leak out, by the quality it looks like a snatched mobile or a secret lapel job, has AV infiltrated the MFC KGB?
**AV write: My understanding is that it was a snatched pic on a camera phone by someone on the post-lunch tour after the Riverside restuarant carvery on Sunday.
There was an attempt to reel it back in after it leaked but you can't put the genie back in the bottle.
great performance again. but we need strikers really badly. i think the rest of the team is fine. good defenders with cover,.good midfield with cover but we are really lacking a cutting edge.
go on boro. go mad and bring in fred and alves!!! i think we would have a team as good as 04 and a lot more cover.
In the liverpool game, when aliadiere went off, i would have loved to see mendieta come on as an attacking midfielder behind tuncay. i still believe he has a lot to offer. GO ON BORO!!!
Boro should make a take it or leave it offer to Heerenveen for Alves. If they don't accept then move on.
Sky today on the news channel were saying that sources close to Downing are saying that Boro are close to accepting £8m.
Surely if players like Alves and Fred who are unproven in the PL are commanding fees close to £15M, then a proven PL player of Downing quality has to be worth as much.
Ian Gill - Re Gate's fashion sense, maybe Boro need to hire Trinny & Suzanne to sort out his wardrobe, at very least the issue needs to be debated in the upcoming fans consultation process, otherwise the matter is in danger of spiralling seriously out of hand!
Alves photographed at the Riverside - I would have loved to have listened when Keith Lamb phoned Gibbo to tell him!!
AV - I bet the Gazette are off the Boro Christmas card list now. On a more serious note it wont help negotiations with Heerenveen.
Never Happy - I can't see Woodie or Mido going, just rumours I reckon.
If Fred wants to play he should come to BORO as we have hardly any strikers and he would be guarenteed a start.
If Spurs get him then they will have Berbatov,Keane ,Bent ,Defoe and Fred -NO WAY , they will sell Defoe to Villa and Bent will become the unplayed one out of the 4 ,unlucky.
Us having a couple of left wingers does not mean Downing is Surplus to requirement once the bid that does not exist turns up.
Selling Downing is not the way forward and the transfer window is more of a circus than ever because of SKY.
Do one !
up the BORO
AV - When you mention Sam Allardyce and his alleged 28 back room staff a quote from Bill Shankly came to mind
"football is a simple game made complicated by fools with meaningless certificates"?
How true this has become in football.
Not wanting to kick a dog when he is down but…
To be fair to Sam Allardyce he didn't get everything wrong at Newcastle. This was Joey Barton last June explaining why he chose St James' Park ahead of other destinations:
"Because Sam Allardyce made me feel like a wanted man."
And as Merseyside Police can confirm, a wanted man is what Barton - became. So hats off to Sam on that score.
C'Mon Boro!
Why has the Alves "Picture" story been pulled? Have the Gazette realised it's a fake? Or has a certain Keith Lamb been on the phone???
**AV writes: It's not a fake but it raises certain questions.
Listened to Uncle Eric on Downing, then read Stewies agents comments. Starting to look like when rather than if in my opinion though I dont know any details, it just feels like he is leaving.
If he does go he will leave a gap in the team and amongst the scapegoats though the latter will be easier to fill. There are plenty of young local lads to pick up his mantle and there is always Scissorhands - he isnt always unreliable and is a safe pair of hands as far as abuse is concerned.
Addendum:
I just don't know what to believe regarding Stewie anymore. One report says he's unsettled and would like to go to Spurs, another says Southgate has lost patience and will be happy to let him go.
On the other hand, there's reports saying the 'Gate's doing what he can to keep hold of him while at the same time, Stewie has never said he wants to leave. (But then, he's never said he doesn't.) What's really going on here?
Hope we can snag Alaves, but I also hope that Stewie stays. Jinky is a great player, but he still needs time to develop.
I hope that the "gut feelings" some of you have a bout Downing are wrong. Hopefully, we can give a good performance on Saturday at Blackburn. We should have beaten them on day 1.
if downing is allowed to leave,i believe he will have more options than just spurs,unless they are offering robinson as part of the deal that is
What a saddo that Never Happy is. Lifting that Allardyce Barton snippet from the press and passing it off as his own.
Wow, the Alves picture, must have been the shortest lived story ever published, still it shows how closely MFC watch The Gazette, maybe we should rename The Chief Operating Officer 'Big Brother'!
AV
I dont like to be rude AV but what issues can be resolved by removing a picture and story that is in the public domain? It is yet another Hagrid moment.
We are not daft, we are aware that he has been seen with 'fashion icon man' walking around the pitch, it cannot be undone, what were the club doing allowing people to see it on a stadium tour?
The interested parties elsewhere will already know where he has been. By removing the picture and story it looks like burying bad news or creating interest or putting pressure on elsewhere.
We are also aware there are difficulties involved in bringing players into the club. It just looks a bit poor.
**AV writes: Sometimes the media get to know something but don't feel they can use it: the identity of a murder suspect for instance, or a vital fact that should it become public may compromise an investigation and jeopardise a prosecution. Is that a cover-up or responsible journalism?
Or maybe, in another entirely theoretical scenario, you may find out that FC Ficktion are talking to a transfer target, let's call him Hypothetika, even though no fee has yet been agreed and are you are wary not to alert VVV FurstOptschoon who may claim they have already signed him and he should not be talking to other clubs.
Were such a situation to arise it would be best to clarify the legal position first before getting the paper - or anyone else - wrapped up in red tape and recriminations.
I can understand why MFC accepted less than Yak's real worth, because they needed the money to buy other players, and he wanted away. (Note that Yak's goal scoring record is better and more consistent than Anelka, but he went for significantly less.)
However if MFC accept any less than 12 million for Downing, it will seem to prove that we just can't get good value when we sell players...
its obvious weve had a rollercoaster season up to now and weve all had our opinions whether frustrated or downright sick of it all or just as you were expectations but to me I see a little break in the clouds,.
Can you imagine if we do get a decent striker who scores goals on a regular basis? where younger, quicker,reserve players who can slot in at anytime, kids coming through?
Weve proved we can compete with the top 5-6 teams on any given day, seeing whats going on with the manager merry go round, Gibbo has created a situation where anyone would want to manage this club but we all know it has to happen on the field,
I think we can do enough to stay up then i look forward to the next 5-6 years of success. w.ham, portsmouth, blackburn, clubs like these cant sustain more than the odd good run,i bet the average age of our squad (boat and mendi excepted) is 23-24. i dream of a decent goalie and striker
Thanks for that B Ord-Peruser.
I was not trying to pass it off as my own work. How could I when I was quoting what was said?
Still its nice to know there is someone as sad as me out there, trawling through sites for Boro news or sticks to try and beat other teams with.
A mate of mine was at the Riverside on Sunday and spotted Alves, Gibson, Southgate and another bloke (agent?).
Prehaps a fee has been agreed between the clubs and GS and SG were trying to convince Alves to sign.
Spurs are now looking to offload Bent, when they sign Fred.Could he be used as part off a swap deal for Downing. Robinson and Bent for Downing?
Ken - I totally agree with your point regarding Stewie, he is a player in demand has 2 years plus on his contract, if he does go it is the perfect opportunity for Boro to charge silly money for him. A minimum has to be £15 m and if someone is ready to pay that we have some serious compo. for losing him.
Personally I hope he stays, he's a vital part of the club.
Ian - I think your point re Alves is spot on, what on earth were the club doing showing him round while the 'prawn sandwich brigade' were on the loose? A complete PR disaster and one which may well compromise the whole deal. Imagine the outcry from us/MFC if Stewie was photographed at White Hart Lane, there would be hell to pay.
On Downing, it seems his agent is desperate for a move to happen. Obviously he is focussing on the players needs, not thinking of the windfall he would receive if this should happen. (How I wish I was Anelka's agent!)
Papers this morning seem full of 'Fred to Spurs' stories yet on Talk Sport last night Harry Redknapp said he was not pursuing Fred because the player was on his way to Middlesbrough.
Only time will tell but in the meantime its bl**dy frustrating isn't it?!
This hypothetika sounds too good to be true. I'd be made up if we signd him.
**AV writes: Very good.
'Were such a situation to arise it would be best to clarify the legal position first before getting the paper - or anyone else - wrapped up in red tape and recriminations.'
As the photo was published on the Gazette site is it not a bit late to be worrying about the above? It is however nice to see Boro being linked to the names that are being mentioned.
If any of these players are signed then maybe the 'lack of ambition' jibes made at the club will go away.
However if none are signed and Downing leaves crowds of 33,000 as per saturday may be a thing of the past.
Hands off Downing !
We are not in a secure enough position to sell him even if it was for 15mil.
2 weeks to go in the window and I am getting jumpy.
Paul Robinson is pony and trap as they say in Laaandaaan and I dont want to see him in our lovely Boro strip.
Just been reading more stuff about Alves.
The article states that Alves wants to come to Boro but AZ are claiming to have the first option on the player.The Dutch courts may have to decide if any pre contract between Alves and AZ is binding.
Surely AZ must realise that even if they win the race to sign Alves he doesn't want to be there. What is the point in signing a player who wants to be elsewhere?
Also as mentioned by some else earlier on the blog, are pre contracts in November allowed when the player is under contract to another club?
It is getting messy and needs sorting ASAP.
The article says that Boro's targets (in order) are Alves, Fred and Wagner Love. So a bit of Samba magic may well be returning to the Riverside
AV
Are Boro trying to get both of the Brazilian strikers?
What? Matty Taylor and the 2 strikers are all possibles. Perm any 2 from 3 and I will have a grin like a Cheshire Cat. Always rated that Keith Lamb me...
the alves deal looks done and we are in the running for this kid from scotland and also taylor linked again with the boro.
If we get fred will wilma be waging it around the cleveland centre?
Alves looks done from the pictures as you hardly see a player at a ground who then dosnt go on to sign for a club and with redknapp saying fred is coming to boro thats 2 quality strikers coming. what will happen to mido in all this?
surely dong gook will go that gives us tuncay, hutchinson and mido plus the new guys that could be 6 strikers by the end of the month.
it will be amazing if we can get these strikers because they wil certainly get the imagination running wild.
Downing is going to go im certain of that after what we have been hearing so its going to refresh the squad and bring in better than what we have got.
the early season gloom is beginning to lift and i ope we can push on and put a good run together. another high tempo performance at rovers on saturday and its 3 points im sure.
come on BORO!!!!!!!!!
View from the Left Field:
Are Boro becoming obsessed with the left? The Gazette says we're in for both a Motherwell left winger McCormack and Matt Taylor at Pompey.
Even if Downing goes then that leaves us with Jinky, Arca, Pogi, A Taylor, Grounds, Porrit plus M Taylor and McCormack.
The team will soon be running out to the sound of Beyonce - "To the left, to the left. Everthing we own is out on the left"
BTW: If Downing is to go, then maybe we should just swap him for Bent.
Good to see the targets and I guess the information is from the club and is for public consumption.
The club are clearly trying hard to bring people in though the transparency of what we are doing is unlike the clubs normal no news until it happens stance.
Whilst we are getting excited about signings lets remember we are only one point above the drop zone and need points sooner rather than later. If the new boy(s) come they wont be up and running for some time, I believe both Alves and Fred are not match fit and we dont want anyone to pick up niggles as did Mido and Young.
So it is a trip to Rovers to deal with first and as david Morrison said above a high tempo performance is needed.
Please dont sell stuart, we need him to not only provide goals but to also carry on scoring. He is one of our best players and with the other teams looking at strengthening their squads selling downing will only make things worse surely.
On a plus note, great news from the Gazette on Alves and Fred, please please please Boro sign one of these both would be terrific, but to get them both would propel us up the league, just dont sell Downing!!
Fast tempo is much needed on saturday. ive watched blackburn alot this season and if we let them have the ball they will hurt us, ala the defeat at home when they scored 2 late goals as we sat back and conceeded posession.
We need to keep the ball like we did on saturday against Liverpool and not give tugay, dunn and bentley in particular time to look up and hit a pass.
Its a massive game for us on saturday as we could be in the bottom 3 come 5pm and for attracting players like we are going for dosnt do the image good.
We have got a good run of home games coming up so picking points up away from home is going to be vital to secure premiership sooner rather than later.
I'm delighted to see Boro put out some positive and aggressive buying intent messages. Even if they don't come off because of complications, it's at the very least, reassuring for we fans to hear that the club's ambition would appear to be alive and well.
It's also reassuringly sensible for them to to be pursuing a number of options and with the announcement of interest in Taylor and McCormack (an exciting prospect if given a few weeks/months to bring himself up to premiership speed) it's clear what bases Boro management are covering.
It makes good footballing sense to me although from a business perspective nobody outside of the club can take a wholly knowledgable commercial view, not having access to the cash position or the banks' view of Steve Gibson's prospects.
Given the competition for signatures and the shortage of real class in the market, Boro's strategy of covering positions would appear to be a smart move. Particularly when situations like the Alves complication emerge when going through due process.
On that particular issue, it'll be interesting on Wednesday afternoon or Thursday morning to hear how the Dutch Heerenveen(t)!
I hope it goes in Boro's favour!
Someone asked in an earlier blog posting if Boro were looking to bring in both Fred AND Alves. Eric Paylor's column today suggests that may be the case.
I suspect that Boro may well try to do so if Stewart Downing's agent's wages demands can't be met for as many years ahead as he may want. Then, if Downing goes for a good number of millions, it may be decided to fund both. Unless of course the ambitious intent in the Riverside corridors of power is running higher than some feared and we end up with all three on the books!?
And with McCormack available for a relatively small fee, perhaps (more than) covered by the Andrew Davies transfer to Southampton, the strength of the squad, at least on paper, will have been transformed in the space of a fortnight!
Hells' teeth, if THAT happened, it'll have been one hell of a January for Southgate, Lamb and Gibson.
It ought to make the second half of the season a bit brighter on Teesside!
Interesting stuff reading these blogs while you're waiting for something to happen on the transfer front. Having read what's been said here's my tuppence worth (that's just less than 1p for you young'uns):
33,000 crowd = big away contingent + £9 under 11's + accompanying adults + attraction of Liverpool + a few returnees.
Downing - he's a local lad made good (one of a few recently) and I for one would like to see him stay. To me he has continued to improve during the course of this season. What's the point in getting a good striker or two if you can't put the ball where it's wanted?
Johnson hasn't made many telling passes into the box and Alliadiere has pace and some skill but doesn't know how to shoot or pass the ball.
According to GS nobody's made an enquiry or an offer for Downing so far in this transfer window. I don't take GS to be a liar. Maybe they're just waiting for Stewie's agent to stir things up a bit more. Another thing about Downing is his defensive support. Don't think you'd get the same from Johnson or Alliadiere. Tuncay is another option of course.
Money for new signings - I didn't think we spent a great amount in the summer, considering the cashpot that was supposed to have been available to all Premier League clubs, and we sold Yakubu at the 11th hour for a tidy sum.
So do we need to sell Downing to finance new signings? Gibson will only spend what he thinks he needs to (can't blame him for that) and that's all he did in the summer.
Losing Yakubu came late in the game and didn't leave much time to find a replacement at the right price (though I think Alaves was reputed to be available for about £7m in the summer).
Strikers - that's all we need. We've played some good football this season and lost because we couldn't finish the job.
Wheater - what a find, and I thought Bates was good!
Jonathan Grounds - a great debut, didn't look out of place at all.
Hutchinson - has some way to go. At present he makes DGL look reasonable.
In fairness to DGL he seemed to play better than previously while in partnership with Tuncay in his last couple of matches. Might come good just before we get rid of him
Boro Academy - fantastic. Look what we've had from it in the last 3 - 4 years. Let's hope it continues. We just need a couple of world class strikers to pop up in the next year or two.
Newcastle - get McLaren.....perfect!
Not that anyone will read this post at the bottom of the blog but I must pull AV up on a factual error.
He says "Real big clubs may dismiss the League Cup." Well, not really AV. the last 3 Winners have been Chelsea, Man Utd,and Chelsea. Arsenal and Liverpool were the Losers in two of those finals - so there you have it - all of the "Big Four."
So, the last 6 Finalists have been "Big Four" clubs with only Wigan the odd man out. Hardly "dismissing" the competition is it? I could go on......
**AV writes: Yes, but it a consolation prize for if they miss out on the competitions that count. Ask a Man United fan if they think it is important.
"Ask a Man United fan if they think it is important."
(out of the woodwork he crawls).........
mehhhhehhhhehhehehehehhhhhh
Owdooo folks. 'Smee again!
Hello Boys.
Well i see that Steve Mclaren did not get the Toon job, as you will know by now, even in smoggieland, that King Kev is now in the Toon hot seat.
Ginger whinger was never a serious option. One match at SJP when Mclaren was in charge. The sky people, took the TV moniter away on the orders of the 4th official, because ginger whinger contested every decision that went against the smogies. Good for him i thought and why not. At least he cared for his team, but oh! isn't he so boring.
Any way, i've got to go now. Will blog with you later.
Cheers lads & lasses - all the best.
**AV writes: Maybe Mac is playing the long game. Maybe he hopes to bring his particular brand of caution to Toon m next Septemebter to rebuild after the backlash against King Kev's Kavalier Kamakaze Kraziness .