NEWCASTLE United yesterday began another critical week in a state of denial, which is hardly a new phenomenon at St James’ Park. Before season-defining fixtures in the Uefa Cup and FA Cup, they were obliged to issue a statement insisting that a new round of allegations concerning Kieron Dyer were “completely untrue and without foundation”. On and off the pitch, they remain on the defensive.
The suggestion that Dyer, the England international, was involved in a nightclub fracas this month may be of little consequence, but it typified an uncanny knack for attracting unsavoury headlines. The same applies to the first-team squad’s recent bonding exercise in Dubai, which, according to one newspaper, featured copious quantities of alcohol, “dirty dancing” and flying a bookmaker to the Middle East.
Both stories were denied, but their very emergence is symptomatic of an organisation that is incapable of shaping its own destiny. The past 18 months have been a strain for supporters, who have seen their side transformed from Champions League challengers to cannon fodder in the Barclays Premiership and their club buffeted by ceaseless controversy.
The appointment of Graeme Souness as Sir Bobby Robson’s replacement has not reversed the trend, as the manager’s bitter dispute with Craig Bellamy demonstrated, while results have been appalling. Newcastle have been beaten just once in 2005, but their league record features three victories from their past 16 matches. They are thirteenth in the table, lacking confidence and direction.
Amid growing signs of discontent on Tyneside — chants of “attack, attack”, and a brief flurry of pro-Bellamy agitation — Souness’s players were jeered from the field after their 1-1 draw with Charlton Athletic on February 5 and there is a sense that the manager is facing a decisive period. Few fans were enamoured by his arrival and few others have been converted by Newcastle’s cautious style of football.
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Their two-leg tie with Heerenveen, of the Netherlands, in the first knockout stage of the Uefa Cup is bisected by the visit of Chelsea in the fifth round of the FA Cup. It is 50 years since the club won a leading domestic trophy. “This is a big, big week in our season but it’s one I’m looking forward to,” Souness said. “We have got two big cup-ties and both are very important to our season. These are vital games. That is the way it is at this club.”
Alan Shearer, the Newcastle captain, also made reference to a “big, big couple of weeks”, to which there will be repercussions. “We have got to make sure we are still in both competitions in ten days’ time as we put the league to bed for the time being,” he said. “We know that we have got to get our heads down. Our results just have to improve. We also know that we cannot pull the wool over anyone’s eyes, that we cannot kid anyone.”
Souness defended the Dubai episode. “It was a very good trip and it was exactly what we needed,” he said. “We have taken some flak for going to Dubai, but I would say this to anyone who has been critical: when you go on a holiday, when you feel a bit of sun on your back and have a change of scenery, doesn’t it make you feel better? That was on our minds, although, as I have stressed all along, it was not a holiday.”
Equally, following Newcastle has not been a picnic and warnings have been expressed from influential sources. “The fact is we are scoring fewer goals, we’re playing more defensively, but results have not got better, they have got worse,” Mark Jensen, editor of The Mag fanzine, said. “I have real concerns that if things do not improve between now and the end of the season, thousands of people will not renew their season tickets.” Promoted to assistant manager after Arthur Cox left the club last summer and has been credited with improving City’s defence. John Wardle, the chairman, has indicated that the former England captain will be in the running.