It’s never boring being a Newcastle fan is it? The latest news from St James’ Park is that former Wimbledon and Luton manager Joe Kinnear has been appointed as their interim boss until the end of October. The 61-year-old comes in to help a team that has lost their last three league games and has been without a manager since Kevin Keegan resigned at the beginning of September.
I am aware that you should always expect the unexpected with Newcastle these days, but let’s be honest; no one would have placed a football bet on this happening would they? Kinnear has been out of management since 2004 and although he claims he is ‘excited’ about the challenge ahead – I’m pretty certain not many Newcastle fans are.
Kinnear says that he expects to be in charge of the club for ‘six to eight games’. During this time, Newcastle face arch-rivals Sunderland at the Stadium of Light, one of only three away games in the next eight fixtures. I think it is far to say that there is a very good chance that things could get a lot worse before they get any better. With the majority of the matches with Kinnear in charge being at St James’ Park, the atmosphere at the club will be tested a number of times. The poor attendance against Tottenham showed where abouts the fans are right now. I bet the players can’t wait to get started!
If some of Kinnear’s comments are to be believed though – there is light at the end of the tunnel. The new Newcastle boss says that a takeover of the club is close and that when it is sold, Kevin Keegan could return with Alan Shearer as his assistant. Now, I don’t mean to sound too negative, but I get the feeling that Kinnear has been instructed to say this to stop the fans panicking too much. It acts as a silver lining to the disastrous Newcastle cloud.
If Keegan and Shearer do become the new management team they will certainly have a tough job on their hands. Kinnear could surprise a few people and get some results, but the reality is that Newcastle will be languishing in the bottom three by the time any takeover is complete. The players are without any confidence and with the uncertainty around the club being prolonged – I don’t think anyone at Newcastle will be on top form in the next few weeks.
By Thomas Rooney – A professional sports writer who blogs about football betting
You may be surprised. Joe is an excellent man manager, motivator and wont take any crap. At least for a short while everyone knows what their task is and if they focus they will start to climb the table. Sunderland will be put to the sword.