On The Home Straight (Of the Highway To Hell..)

Okay, highway to hell is probably a bit strong, for a club in no real danger of relegation. But the road Newcastle United have been taking this season is one of those winding country roads which has turned into a dirt-track, with no sign of a street light, road markings, or any visible route back to civilization. At the same time, there appears no direct threat, no wild animals, no cliff edge, no howling winds, no snowstorm - just a slowly dwindling tank of gas, with nothing more than a thin blanket in the back seat to keep warm, and a small supply of water and tinned food.

That is the situation Newcastle, as a going footballing concern, finds itself in. A reported fourth straight year of profit, £19 million to be exact, will see the moderately-priced champagne corks popping in the Mike Ashley boardroom, as the same trotted out lines of investment and ambition are dusted down for another year. The only investment will be of the feeding with one hand while taking with the other. The taking has already happened this season, given the nudging out the back door of Davide Santon and Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa on similar deals. The first 11 picks itself, not because they are quality squad members nailing down their place in the side, but because the personnel management has effectively jammed their square pegs into the gaping round hole. In some cases, the pegs are positively hexagonal. The decision to leave two 30-something centre-backs with nothing approaching senior cover has led to the already stretched full-back resources spread even further, leading midfielders to drop into said full-back roles, and what happens when they get injured? Papiss Cisse getting shoved into midfield? The already tiring Ayoze Perez shoved out on the wing?

It is not an exaggeration to say that a starting 11 worth of players is an absolute must this summer. That needn't require top-four levels of scouting, just careful, considered scouting. And not just from France. Newcastle's one-trick pony system of scouting has come somewhat unstuck over the last year or two, in some ways because there is so much reliance on it. Nothing of note has come from the academy of late, bar Paul Dummett, who actually could have a future at centre-half, based on performances this season. But again, injured. Some those farmed out on loan to our some-time stepbrother club, Rangers, could probably have been integrated into the team slightly more. Promise had been shown, but successive managers have chosen to rely on perceived solid pros, despite most of the time being nowhere near any relegation danger. Giving academy youngsters a tryout, such as the loaned-out Remi Streete at centre-half, would at least pique a bit more interest in the results of the club. All there is to play for are the hopefully slim chances of John Carver's glorified caretaker role being made permanent, and each defeat, as a fan myself, feels no different to a win at this point. A severe shaking up is necessary, as sooner or later that cliff edge could come closer and closer, and this time with no safety net.

Kinnear Resigns From World's Easiest Job.

After eight months in charge of Newcastle's overwhelmingly underwhelming transfer activity, Joe Kinnear has resigned as the club's director of football, in the latest twist of the Irishman's bizarre Tyneside adventure.

As shocked as the fans were that he was the replacement for Kevin Keegan as manager back in 2008, to be put in charge of Newcastle's recruitment drive last summer really took the biscuit for strange decisions made by Mike Ashley. Alan Pardew was already feeling the heat after a desperately disappointing 16th place last season, and Kinnear's appointment read like a blatant attempt to undermine him ahead of the new season.

Against all the odds however, Pardew has outlasted Kinnear, with the boss becoming more and more frustrated with a transfer policy that has yielded only two loan signings and the sale of star player Yohan Cabaye. Pardew, in the wake of the shocking 3-0 home defeat to Sunderland, intimated that if he was in charge of player incomings things would have been different - it looks like Kinnear has listened, and jumped before being pushed.

More cynical observers would suggest that Kinnear was merely doing the job set out for him by Ashley. Newcastle have been the most profitable club in all the most recent transfer windows, so from a business point of view the Irishman hasn't done badly. From a football point of view however, the perspective that the manager and fans hold, he badly let the club down. In a season of transition for all the top clubs, with a bit of ambition Newcastle could have been fighting it out for fourth place. Instead, a top-half finish will take some doing, with form and morale low.

Ambition doesn't have to mean splashing millions out on players the club can't afford, as was the case when Freddie Shepherd held ownership. However, to not ensure the replacement of players like Cabaye, or properly strengthen the attack, leaves Newcastle in danger of losing what quality they have. Yet again, an opportunity has been missed, and one suspects that with Ashley in charge the pattern will continue.

Ashley's Last Chance Blown

Somewhere a rather overweight man is rubbing his hands in delight at the international break. Not only will Mike Ashley be ardently cheering on his beloved England tonight as they take on Spain, but watching his controversial Newcastle stadium name-changing scheme slowly slip from the headlines.

He is a very smart man. Newcastle do not play again at the so-called ‘Sports Direct Arena’ until December against Chelsea. He is banking on the fact that any anger will have long burnt out by then. I for one am not so sure this will happen.

There is every chance that the unbridled optimism of Newcastle’s start to the season will be snuffed out by a couple of sound beatings at the hands of the two Manchester clubs. This would lead to a touch of negativity returning, and what better excuse to protest at Mike Ashley than this latest fiasco.

His henchman, Derek Llambias, claims that the Magpies stand to earn up to £10m a year through selling their stadium naming rights. He claims that because the fans wanted a new striker the club are forced into this situation of a stadium name change.

This would fly in the face of the recent financial figures. The club announced a £4.7m loss for the 2010-11 season, with a profit expected for the current year. This is better than many clubs, yet why do Newcastle, operating in a one-club city, with 52 thousand seats in their stadium, need to resort to changing this stadium’s name for the relatively meagre sum of £10m?

Or could it perhaps be possible that Mike Ashley has no intention of actually selling the naming rights to St James’ Park, and that we will see the Sports Direct name become a more permanent fixture. After all, his chain of sports shops are now benefiting from some free advertising. He has already demonstrated his lack of understanding of the rich heritage and local feeling that the club represents, so could he just be taking the loyal support for a ride?

Don’t get me wrong, this has nothing to do with the club’s performance on the pitch. I am actually in favour of his current transfer policy, as Alan Pardew seems to be able to work wonders on such a tight budget, and as long as Graham Carr remains chief scout, there is absolutely nothing to worry about on the playing side.

I only regret the fact that Mike Ashley seems to have an unrivalled ability to shoot down any budding optimism in the region. He did it with Keegan, turning what could have been a glorious second coming into the damp squib of reality. He did it with Shearer, totally ignoring the club legend who wished to rescue Newcastle from Championship oblivion. He did it probably most inexplicably with Hughton, who was stabilising the club in its first year back in the big time.

Through sheer luck more than anything else, Ashley has landed on his feet with Pardew, yet by plastering his own brand over the St James’ name, he risks losing the 12^th man that has carried Newcastle over the line on so many occasions already this season. The Toon Army will always sing for the team. They are even beginning to sing for Pardew. But this latest stunt has ensured that Mike Ashley will never ever hear his own name sung in the Gallowgate. At least, not in the way he would prefer.