FC Showster

We have a midfield that doesn't get into the box so it's hardly surprising that we lack goals and crosses (not the 70% that are dire) find an opposition shirt. Spearing doesn't get into the box, Adam only does it when he already has the ball, Gerrard does it but is playing too deep and so is doing it less, Henderson doesn't really do it either

Why not score one of them = implication that we'd miss the other. It's really not that difficult - do try to keep up. United has the best chance conversion rate at about 20% so although they might be 1 chance = 1 goal their strikers can play knowing that miss one chance and another will come along instead of masses of pressure to take your 1 or 2 chances if that's all that you create

If you're going to take that view then why not score both? Even on here you have us missing chances ffs. The reality is that teams who create 2 chances per game are going to struggle to win games

Well done GJ for getting himself forward for the goal

Except Spurs. Still makes me cross thinking about it

I think Carroll's issues are twofold 1) Our crossing is terrible - whoever the front man is we hate him, why else would we keep trying to kill them with low driven crosses? 2) Lack of support - too many of our players seem afraid of catching something in the oppostion box. We need runners from midfield and wide coming in - something we were fantastic at under Kenny last season. Leaving AC 1 v 5 in the box is incredibly easy to defend against

Lucas put Silva in his pocket game 1 Lost game 2 3-0 (not Silva-Adam related) Silva didn't play game 3

It's the "modern thing" that these same people sneer at. Someone isn't playing badly, having a poor run, or is short of confidence. They have to be worse than that, they have to be belittled and each comment has to beat the last in terms of nastiness

I stopped reading there

I'm not saying that Kenny didn't have difficulties or that we were flying high when he came in but complete turmoil? Fans and players truly behind him, no expectations to season's end because of how badly Woy had done, owners who weren't bleeding the club dry and cash to buy players without first having to sell Perhaps it's more your actions and reactions that allows to to know what it feels like to be a Newcastle supporter

The things that had the club in turmoil were removed by the time Kenny became manager - H+G and Woy.

But Carroll gets less support in the box (sorry)

One of the big questions of the season so far has been Maxi's exclusion for so many games at the start. If Carroll doesn't fit into the philosophy then surely Maxi does. For what it's worth I don't think Carroll is anywhere near as bad as he is showing but he is a player who relies on chances being created for him and for the most part the team is failing in that respect. There is a major change in how we play this season from last simply in the number of players who get themselves into the box. That isn't a Carroll issue though, it's a team selection and transfer issue. We sold Mereiles who did, we didn't play Maxi who did, and we have Henderson and Downing who don't

I agree but there have been too many people reacting to criticism of the manager as a secret desire to see him removed - which is bonkers ffs. The last few weeks I think we've made too many tactical changes and it's led to confusio and a disjointed style of play. Our midfield at the moment is horrible - no forward runners and no-one tracks opposition runners. Wide players who don't score and can't seem to cross and it's all come at the worst possible time with two massive games this week. Hopefully we play at the oppositions level in both games and then we only have Wolves until Suarez comes back

Paying over the odds is one thing, adding in the English tax is quite another. If our scouts can't find a Downing level winger on the continent for cheaper than £20m then we need a clear out of the scouting department. £16m on Henderson is all well and good if we're also going out and buying a midfielder for now so he can develop with cameos and the odd start. If we don't have the cash to buy that other midfielder then we'd be better leaving Henderson to develop at Sunderland and bringing in the "now" player

Ok - people seem unable to lay any criticism at Kenny's door and want to blame poor transfers on someone else. It doesn't help us and does Kenny no favours (he's not a child that needs protecting).

You're wrong. Forum lore now states that he is an office worker who has wandered onto the pitch and he's not a footballer. Obviously if he does come good, what with him still being young, then forum lore will state that no-one was ever that wrong or harsh about him

Has there been any indication that Kenny doesn't have final say on transfers? I think this smacks a bit of not wanting to say anything negative about Kenny rather than any hard evidence

The buck stops with the manager. Commolli won't have bought players that Kenny didn't want or spent a bigger portion of the budget than Kenny agreed on. Perhaps I'm mis-reading your post but doesn't "The buck stops with Commolli, whether or not Commolli relied too heavily on kennys opinion." imply that Commolli wrongly listened too much to Kenny? If so, how can you then say Kenny deserves two more summers if you think his judgement is unreliable?

Starting to worry that we sat back in the first leg when they were s**** and might be made to pay for that on Weds night

Too many of our crosses hit the first man or are too high. Our crossing is poor and we don't get enough players into the box which is in direct contrast to last season under Kenny when we were flooding the box and scoring lots of goals. Carroll is a popular and easy whipping boy but we need to look at Henderson, Downing, Adam, and whoever else in the midfield is not consistently getting into the box and getting onto the end of things. We cannot rely simply on Carroll in the box on his own against 2,3,4, sometimes 5 defenders. As great as we are at keeping possession I think we're doing it too often in areas that doesn't hurt the opposition and leaving the strikers to their own devices. Gerrard coming back to full fitness is a boost but I wonder how much he's going to have to babysit Adam instead of concentrating on going forward

Apart from the "pinch", did Suarez contradict the written statement that he supplied to the FA in any other case?

So Comolli says something and Marriner says another - FA go with Marriner Marriner says one thing, Kuyt says another, and Evra something else entirely - FA say both Marriner and Evra are correct and dismiss Kuyt "We think that the shrugging of the shoulders by Mr Suarez is consistent with both answers" - but having claimed that this is a heated exchange in a fierce game between hated rivals why would Suarez say "Because you're black?" in a shrugging/questioning way? Surely it'd be as a statement - "Because you're black". I don't see how that is consistent with both answers which surely throws doubt on Evra's testimony prior to going to the ref

That's something that should provoke legal action. Chief football writer for a national tabloid cannot surely get away with such comments.

He looks like a rat (sounds to me)