Newcastle

Toothless Toon show King Kev the scale of his task

By Neil Jones ⋅ January 21, 2008 ⋅  Print This Post ⋅ Post a comment

It was one of the most emotional comebacks witnessed since that fella stepped out of the shower in Dallas. But if that was dramatic (as well as baffling), then Kevin Keegan’s return to St James’ Park was anything but, as his new old club were held to a goalless draw at home to Bolton Wanderers.

Keegan has already stated that he is aware of the scale the task he is faced with in waking this sleepiest of Sleeping Giants, yet witnessing his admittedly weakened side struggle against Gary Megson’s equally insipid visitors, the reality will have bitten hard. Newcastle did not manage a shot on target in the entire ninety minutes, and in the end were indebted to Shay Given for keeping out a late JLloyd Samuel effort to preserve their point.

At least the passion was back. The fans made it clear that the “Geordie Messiah” was still deserving of his nickname as they chanted his name throughout. Keegan himself was as animated as ever on the touchline, appealing for penalties, rallying his troops and speeding up Bolton players who were dallying over throw-ins.

But passion could only take his side so far, it was quality that was lacking here.

Newcastle may well be missing Habib Beye, Abdoulaye Faye, Geremi and Obafemi Martins at the Africa Cup of Nations, in addition to the suspended quartet of Nicky Butt, Alan Smith, Joey Barton and Emre and the injured duo of Mark Viduka and Peter Ramage, but the lack of creativity in the side was still worrying.

Michael Owen, captain for the day, cut a tragic figure as he struggled to get anything even resembling a chance. His recalled strike partner, Shola Ameobi, battled gamely but still lacks genuine quality at this level, whilst the wide men of Damien Duff and James Milner were pretty well shackled by Ricardo Gardner and Gretar Steinsson, and when they did manage to create a bit of space, the standard of their crossing left a lot to be desired (particularly from Milner).

Charles N’Zogbia was better, his dribbling and pace caused Bolton more problems than any other home player, but it wasn’t quite his day, and alongside the clumsy David Rozehnal in the centre of midfield, it was always going to be a hard shift for the young Frenchman. Keegan will be grateful for the return of Smith, Butt and Emre to his midfield, whilst reports have also surfaced that he may select “problem-child” Barton for next week’s cup clash at Arsenal, with the ludicrous idea of substituting him early in order for him to be home in time for his 7pm curfew also suggested.

Keegan is a known fan of Barton - he gave him his debut for Manchester City - and he has stated that the 25-year-old will be given the chance of a clean slate at the club. The sight of Rozehnal bumbling round the pitch conceding possession incessantly will have surely helped convince him that that would be the correct decision.

Still, there were some positives. A clean sheet is always pleasing, especially for a side like Newcastle and a manager like Keegan - as Setanta Sports’ commentary duo Ian Crocker and Craig Burley took great delight in repeatedly pointing out - and Keegan will have been heartened by the way Claudio Cacapa and Steven Taylor handled the physical threat of Kevin Davies and the late midfield runs of Kevin Nolan. That, coupled with a much improved display from Given, along with £6m Spanish left back Jose Enrique (one of the many sticks used to beat his predecessor with) and the return of some genuine Premiership experience in Stephen Carr, may be enough to give him hope that the much-maligned defence may not quite require the extensive surgery suggested by most experts.

Reports in todays papers are linking Newcastle with all kinds of players as you would expect. Michael Carrick’s name appears regularly, with an imminent £18m bid reported in the Daily Star Sunday, and he would add plenty to the midfield in terms of ball retention and creativity. Carrick has slipped behind United new-boys Anderson and Owen Hargreaves in the Old Trafford pecking order, but still it would take all of Keegan’s infamous persuasion technique to convince the 26-year-old to swap the comfort of the champions for the rollercoaster ride at Newcastle. And at £18m, he would swallow a lot of Keegan’s transfer kitty.

Shaun Wright-Phillips is another name being linked, with lazy journalists reporting that he would be “keen to link-up with his old City boss” on Tyneside. But with the England winger finally finding a bit of consistency, and a manager who picks him, in his third season at Chelsea, a drop down the table looks unlikely. As does a move for Tottenham’s Jermain Defoe, who says he has been told he can leave Spurs, but also claims he has no intention of doing so.

Defoe has been linked with both Aston Villa and Middlesbrough recently, so it is only natural that Newcastle should appear somewhere along the line, but it is pretty common knowledge that the 25-year-old would like to stay in London, preferably with Spurs. Add to that the fact that Newcastle have a similar type of player already on their books in Obafemi Martins (as well as Owen, Viduka and Smith) and this move looks a non-starter also.

Keegan has ten days to bring in a “quality player” to add to his “quality squad”, but he will need to do some serious convincing if he is to attract players of the calibre he is used to.

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