The punters at the Tavern aren’t sure about Newcastle United at the moment as they have had a very inconsistent season so far under the leadership of former England boss Steve McLaren.
McLaren was a contentious choice to lead the magpies into the 2015/16 season when appointed by controversial owner Mike Ashley.
The ex-Manchester United assistant has had mixed results whilst attempting to rejuvenate his career after his disastrous spell as England manager in which the national team failed to qualify for Euro 2008 after an embarrassing loss to Croatia in the rain at Wembley which unfortunately not even a couple of pints will help to forget.
McLaren endured mixed results managing in Holland, Germany as well as spells in the Championship and his appointment at St James Park marked his first opportunity to showcase his managerial abilities since the debacle that ensued whilst he was in charge of England.
Newcastle impressed in the summer transfer market with big money signings such as Florian Thauvin, Aleksander Mitrovic and Georginio Wijnaldum. However only the later has impressed on a regular basis this season.
Hit the image below to see FIVE players crucial to Newcastle’s current form!
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Fabricio Coloccini
The curly haired Newcastle captain has been a key player at the club for 8 seasons now and even remained with the club during their brief spell in the Championship. The Argentinian international is a leader at the back and has developed into a top quality Centre Back in the Premier League.
Although he can be guilty of being erratic at the back and making errors that lead to the Magpies conceding cheap goals, it is crucial that Coloccini remains on form in order for Newcastle to push on this season.
Moussa Sissoko
The box to box French international midfielder has impressed at St James’ Park since his transfer from Toulouse in January 2013 becoming a vital player in the middle of the park for the magpies. Sissoko was linked with various big clubs before his transfer to the Toon and has since continued to be linked with a move away from the club due to his stand out performances.
The aggressive midfielder contributes to both attacking and defensive phases of play and will be looking to contribute with more goals for the team as the season progresses. Geordies may be hoping he doesn’t stand out too much however as they look to hang onto him in order to move on in their climb up the table.
Georginio Wijnaldum
Geoginio Wijnaldum burst onto the scene in Holland becoming the youngest ever player to represent Feyenoord when he made his professional debut in 2007. He is a player that manager McLaren knows well from his time managing in the Eredevise and has made an instant impact at St James’, netting 7 times already in the first half of the season.
His highlight so far was a standout performance in the Magpies 6-2 victory over Norwich City, scoring a classy hat trick. The young Dutch midfielder has time on his side and therefore there is still room for improvement, his impressive performances under Louis Van Gaal at the 2014 World Cup displayed that he has the ability to deliver on the big stage and Geordie fans hope that he will continue to be the creative lynchpin in the side for the foreseeable future.
Ayoze Perez
Young Spanish forward Ayoze Perez came to the North East with a burgeoning reputation, claiming that he rejected offers from Real Madrid, Barcelona and Porto to join the Magpies. The tricky striker can have a real impact when coming off the bench and has already contributed with important goals for the Toon in his short time at the club.
Ayoze is a box of tricks who can conjure up a piece of magic on his day. Newcastle fans will be looking to the striker to provide more memorable moments in the second half of the season in order to push the team further up the table.
Aleksander Mitrovic
Upon signing for Newcastle for £13 million in the summer, Mitrovic claimed that he hoped to be able to play like club legend Alan Shearer. The 21 year Serbian international striker has however found adapting to Premier League difficult so far.
He began the season with various disciplinary issues, booked 22 seconds into his debut for the club and sent off 15 minutes into an early season home loss to Arsenal. The striker will be looking to add to his 3 goals so far this season and replicate the form that heralded his transfer fee. If he manages to settle down and find a good run of form, he could be the missing ingredient needed to fire the Magpies up the league.
