Newcastle United job: The early pacesetters as Pardew prepares to join Palace

By David Lee Wheatley      @davewh1980

Newcastle United boss Alan Pardew surprisingly agreed to talks with Crystal Palace over their managerial vacancy yesterday following a rollercoaster four-year spell at the St. James' Park helm, thus opening up an attractive post to a host of interested managers across Europe.

Here are the latest names being linked to the top job on Tyneside, as the club attempt to appease fans largely unhappy with the direction the club has taken in recent times.

FABRICIO COLOCCINI: Current United defender Coloccini enjoys a strong relationship with the club's board, but has absolutely no experience as a coach to date. There's been a rush of bets on him overnight to become the next permanent manager making him favourite for the role.

PETER BEARDSLEY: Former Newcastle favourite Beardsley has been doing sterling work with the club's academy and may be offered the chance to take over the senior team. Would be a popular choice.

TONY PULIS: Has been out of work since keeping Crystal Palace up last season and would jump at the chance to manage the Magpies, but his direct brand of football wouldn't go down well with many Toon supporters.

FRANK DE BOER: Has enjoyed splendid success domestically with four successive Ajax title victories. De Boer would probably only leave the Amsterdam giants for a Champions League qualification contender, while his agent says there's no chance he'll jump ship mid-season. However, he seemingly ticks all of the boxes in terms of what Newcastle require if they could nab him.

STEVE BRUCE: Corbridge-born Bruce is struggling to keep Hull City out of Premier League relegation trouble, so it remains to be seen whether the ex-Sunderland boss would be welcomed back to his Geordie roots with open arms. Experienced relative success with the likes of Birmingham City and Wigan Athletic, but struggled badly with heightened expectation when last working in the north-east. Would almost certainly accept an offer from Newcastle having reportedly come close to the post on at least two occasions in the past.

ALLY MCCOIST: Led Glasgow Rangers through two quick-fire promotions from Scottish League Two to the Championship after suffering the heartache of demotion to the bottom tier. However, continual upheaval at boardroom level eventually enforced his decision to resign with Rangers sitting in second spot behind leaders Hearts. The Newcastle job would appear too big a step due to his lack of coaching experience outside of Scotland, but owner Mike Ashley's business links to Rangers will undoubtedly see McCoist strongly linked.

CHRISTOPHE GALTIER: Rumours were rife in May about a reported Newcastle approach for Saint-Etienne head coach Galtier's services only for the 48-year-old to remain in France. He took Les Verts to creditable finishes of 10th, 7th, 5th and 4th after previous short stints in charge of Marseille and Aris Salonika. The former Portsmouth assistant to Alain Perrin is likely to be high up on the list of contenders.

RAFA BENITEZ: A slightly fanciful name thrown into the ring is that of former Liverpool and Chelsea boss Benitez. The current Napoli coach could be tempted by a return to England with his future in Italy unclear thanks to stalling contract talks. Has claimed 12 major honours in a highly decorated career, so would be expected to wait for a team competing in continental competition to hand him a way out of Naples.

TIM SHERWOOD: Has been linked to a series of Premier League and Championship jobs since leaving Tottenham Hotspur, where his straight-talking style divided public opinion. Sherwood would almost certainly fancy taking on the gargantuan task of leading the Magpies, but his appointment would be met with collective dismay on Tyneside.

REMI GARDE: Former Arsenal player Garde left Lyon at the end of last season for personal reasons following three years in charge. He inspired a French Cup triumph in 2012, but couldn't return the club to their former dominance of Ligue 1. His decision to take a break from football to spend more time with his family just over six months ago might suggest he's unwilling to rejoin the managerial merry-go-round yet.

TEMURI KETSBAIA: Georgian who stepped down as head coach of his national side in November following heavy defeat at the hands of Poland in a Euro 2016 qualifying match. Ketsbaia enjoyed cult hero status during his Newcastle playing days and has often spoken of his desire to one day manage the Magpies. Must be considered an outsider for the role, though.

JOHN CARVER: Newcastle-born Carver has served as assistant manager to both Sir Bobby Robson and Alan Pardew at St. James' Park, while also having a short spell as caretaker following Robson's departure. It's unclear whether Carver would have the appetite to take over the hot-seat on a permanent basis.p

GLENN HODDLE: The former England manager has been out of top-flight management for several years and may be viewed as a stop-gap appointment if handed the United reins. Hoddle currently splits his time between media work and carrying out coaching duties as part of the backroom staff at QPR. 

FA must throw book at pitiful Pardew

By David Lee Wheatley

Newcastle United manager Alan Pardew stooped to an all-time low this afternoon at the KC Stadium when getting involved in an astonishing touchline fracas with Hull City midfield man David Meyler, resulting in referee Kevin Friend sending the fiery Londoner to the stands after 72 minutes had elapsed of a match easily won by the visitors.

Meyler, in a rush to grab the ball after it ran out of play, ushered Pardew to one side as he went by; an action that was admittedly unnecessary. However, what came next was quite literally stunning: Pardew approached the Irishman with aggressive intent, the two going head-to-head before the 52-year-old directed an apparent head-butt in the direction of Meyler's cheekbone.

It's the latest in a long line of misdemeanours from the one-time Crystal Palace player during a turbulent managerial career at the helm of Reading, West Ham United, Charlton Athletic, Southampton and now Newcastle.

There was that infamous shoving match when in charge of the Hammers in 2006 with Arsene Wenger, for which both men received FA charges. Then the white-hot north-east derby atmosphere got the better of the Wimbledon-born boss when squaring up to then-Sunderland manager Martin O'Neill during the March 2012 draw between the bitter rivals, which also saw Magpies' goalkeeping coach Andy Woodman sent from the dug-out.

Most would think (or at least hope) Pardew would've learned to keep his cool in such circumstances by that stage, especially given that he is subjected to the high-pressure world of top-flight football on a regular basis. Alas, it was not to be, as he proceeded to push a referee's assistant in August 2012 next to Pardew's technical area with United one-up at home to Spurs. Furious Pardew insisted the ball had gone out of touch for a throw-in to his side and felt so aggrieved at the lack of a flag to the extent that he was compelled to 'do a Di Canio' on an official. For that, he was hit with a two-match touchline ban and £20,000 fine - nine games less than Di Canio received 14 years prior and only double the money.

Pardew's rap-sheet resembled something from the Shawshank Redemption (!) by then and yet he still continued unabated with his crazy behaviour. In January of this year he aimed a foul-mouthed rant at opposite number Manuel Pellegrini, as Manchester City ran out 2-0 winners following a feisty St. James' Park encounter in which Newcastle star Cheick Tiote had a goal wrongfully chalked off at a critical stage of the game. His language towards the Chilean was so colourful that Pardew condemned himself to community service of sorts by helping out with local projects close to his heart, despite the FA's reluctance to hand down further punishment to the beleaguered United manager. It was a nice gesture from the Newcastle supremo and earned him back a little self-respect in the wake of another ill-judged temper tantrum.

However, today's outburst displayed a nasty streak the levels of which have been rarely witnessed in the history of the Premier League and the authorities will have a task on their hands deciding exactly what sentence to give the under-fire Magpie manager.

He should be setting a fine example for his squad to follow, but what kind of example is this?

Thanks to their leader's antics, the United players will sadly get little attention for their resounding win over the in-form Tigers, while the incident firmly places the spotlight on much-maligned owner Mike Ashley as regards an appropriate response to such unbelievable scenes.

The Sunday Express newspaper was banned by the club for its assertion that Pardew would be sacked if they lost to Aston Villa last month, a fate they avoided in any case. This might well be an opportune moment for Ashley to pull the plug on Pardew's reign in light of his gross misconduct at the KC Stadium, thus making the Express' report seem not too far from the truth just two matches on from that desperately needed victory over Villa.

If Pardew does lose his job, he will have only himself to blame.

Twitter: @davewh1980

The Report: Everton v Newcastle United

fBy David Lee Wheatley

A rampant Everton side were three goals up against a woeful Newcastle United at half-time, before a change of shape and personnel inspired a fight-back that almost rescued an unlikely point for the visitors at Goodison Park last night.

Powerful striker Romelu Lukaku opened the scoring in only the 5^th minute after great work down the right from Belgian international team-mate Kevin Mirallas.

The Magpies were defending as if they’d never played alongside one another previously, with some particularly strange decision-making from centre-back Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa.

Alan Pardew’s men were ripped apart midway through the first period by a neat interchange between Lukaku and Ross Barkley, who dashed through to finish smartly following an intelligent move that split the United central defence wide open.

If things were looking bleak for the away team at that stage, it got even worse eight minutes before the end of the half when a hopeful long ball from Toffees goalkeeper Tim Howard somehow found its way to the ever-dangerous Lukaku; Yanga-Mbiwa inexplicably ran away from the forward rather than challenging him, thus leaving Krul and Coloccini hopelessly exposed. Lukaku gleefully accepted the generous offer of a free run at goal to take the game seemingly beyond an awful Newcastle side.

Apart from a couple of fleeting glimpses of attacking threat from Hatem Ben Arfa, there was very little for the travelling Toon Army to get excited about. However, the home supporters were in utter delirium at what they had witnessed, with chief protagonists Barkley and Lukaku looking capable of conjuring scoring chances at will.

Toon boss Pardew must have been livid at his team’s listless performance and he made two decisive substitutions in an effort to turn the tide, bringing on Williamson for Yanga-Mbiwa and Cabaye for Ben Arfa, thus pushing Sissoko out wide. Midfield man Cabaye had been a doubt prior to kick-off due to a groin strain, but Pardew had evidently seen enough and made the call to take a risk on the Frenchman.

The gamble paid off spectacularly six minutes into the new half when Cabaye picked the ball up 25 yards out, strode confidently forward before unleashing a missile of shot that was going into the net from the second the ball left his foot. Newcastle looked remarkably compact in contrast to their initial showing and were causing more than a few problems for the Everton rearguard - finally a glimmer of hope amid the gloom.

It appeared that Everton were in danger of collapsing under the pressure at times, as the black-and-whites worked tirelessly to drag themselves back into contention in a match they seemed to have lost by the halfway point.

Despite Loic Remy bundling his way through a challenge to score with a minute remaining, their remarkable turnaround in form during the second period was to no avail. Alas, no points were accrued, but at least some pride was salvaged from the wreckage of the opening 45 minutes.

For Everton, their unbeaten start to the season under Roberto Martinez continues thanks to a classy first-half display and specifically a powerhouse performance from Romelu Lukaku; how Chelsea must rue letting him go out on loan for the season in light of their ongoing issues in the striking department.

 

Twitter: @davewh1980

Match Preview: Everton v Newcastle United

By David Lee Wheatley

Monday night action involves Everton hosting Newcastle United at Goodison Park, with the Toffees full of confidence following an impressive start to their campaign.

A place in the top four beckons for Roberto Martinez and his men should they take three points this evening, but they'll face a side smarting from a disappointing home defeat against Hull City last time out in the league and the visitors will be absolutely determined to grab at least a point from their travels to wipe away that memory.

The Magpies will need to defy the odds, however, if they are to spring a surprise on Merseyside when faced with the only unbeaten team in the Premier League. Not only that, but Everton haven't lost at home since March, thus turning Goodison into an impregnable fortress despite the transition between David Moyes and Martinez in the managerial hot-seat.

Hatem Ben Arfa and Loic Remy are recalled after missing out on the midweek cup victory over Leeds United, while Yohan Cabaye only makes the bench. Papiss Cisse also has to be content with a substitute role, which will do little for his self-esteem after scoring to help put Leeds to the sword.

Meanwhile, Everton's experienced midfield battler Gareth Barry makes his 500th top-flight appearance and second-half stars from the Toffees' clash with West Ham United, Romelu Lukaku and James McCarthy, are both handed the opportunity to prove their worth from the beginning of proceedings.

Newcastle have won just once in ten away to Everton and will need to perform at their very best to improve on that record tonight. Martinez expects his charges to continue their rich vein of form and secure another fine win over the Magpies to break into the Champions League slots at this early stage of the season.

Twitter: @davewh1980