Stoke 1 - 3 Newcastle ; Ba’s hat-trick sends Toon up to 3rd
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newcastle are a surprise so far this season.
having sold carroll for a fortune and doing well in the premiership must make the owner damn happy.
i am very happy too. good to see newcastle doing well.
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Newcastle are getting a UCL place next season
hope to see them finally gotten UCL since 6 yrs ago? -
Originally posted by dragg:
newcastle are a surprise so far this season.
having sold carroll for a fortune and doing well in the premiership must make the owner damn happy.
i am very happy too. good to see newcastle doing well.
They play so much better without Carroll.
Pity Liverpool.
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Demba Ba’s hat-trick sends Newcastle up to third
Stoke 1 Newcastle 3
TRICK A TREAT ... masked Steven Taylor hails his hat-trick hero Demba Ba
DEMON BA BA ... Demba gives Stoke the chopFORGET Halloween — what Newcastle are doing right now is frightening.
On the most haunted night of the year, it was one-time Stoke target Demba Ba who returned to put the chills up their manager Tony Pulis with a terrific treble.
Ba was set to sign for the Potters in January only to fail a medical after a £6million fee was agreed with German side Hoffenheim.
Newcastle boss Alan Pardew took a risk though in the summer by bagging him on a free — and the Senegal star has responded sensationally with eight goals in his last four Prem games.
This well-deserved win, with Argy duo Fabricio Coloccini and Jonas Gutierrez outstanding, not only keeps Newcastle's unbeaten run going it has also lifted them into third place. Okay, they may not be there in May — but try telling the Toon army to look down instead of up.
The horror show many Geordies felt would unravel this term has turned into an all-too-rare Tyneside tale of happiness and light.
It could have gone all ghoulish for Newcastle when Jon Walters smacked home a penalty on 75 minutes but this is a Toon side with resolve and spirit.
And on 81 minutes, a stupid push by Robert Huth on Leon Best gave Ba the chance to score his second hat-trick of the season.
Pardew's last visit to the Britannia in March produced a comprehensive 4-0 thumping but yesterday the tables were turned. Lots of aimless passing, lots of huffing and even more puffing marked the opening exchanges.
Then, all of a sudden, Newcastle were ahead. A long clearance from Tim Krul was nodded on by Best into the path of winger Gabriel Obertan.
His first-time cross was a peach and it found Ba beautifully in the box to nod past Asmir Begovic from four yards.
The goal galvanized Toon and on 24 minutes, they almost made it two. A fantastic through ball from Yohan Cabaye set Ba through but this time Begovic raced out to clear the danger.
Stoke were trying to bombard the box but nothing was coming off even though the normally-unflappable Krul had a nightmarish moment when he fluffed a Jermaine Pennant cross and almost sent the ball goalwards.
Matt Etherington forced the Dutchman into a decent stop soon afterwards yet, on the whole, Pardew's men were well organised and ruthlessly efficient. And as half-time approached the Toon army were jumping as Ba made it two.
Coloccini's long ball was pumped into the box and Matt Upson's header flew straight to Best.
The Irishman's control was top notch before his slightly-scuffed cross shot fell to Ba who made no mistake from four yards.
Pardew did a little jig in the technical area. He couldn't believe it and nor, probably, could the Geordie nation. This isn't how Newcastle normally do things.
The home side were wretched in the opening 45 and had to improve after the break. And so they did for a spell. Huth headed just over as the Potters tried to build some pressure. But Toon, marshalled superbly once again by Coloccini and the maskwearing Steven Taylor, repelled just about everything.
There seemed no way through until 75 minutes when Ba was at the centre of the action again.
As the ball flew around in the box, the former West Ham man went to challenge Peter Crouch in the box and, although the lanky striker went down easily, ref Mike Dean did not hesitate to point to the spot.
Walters smacked in the penalty and all of a sudden, the Britannia erupted.
But the stadium was silenced six minutes later when Ba slotted in from the spot to seal the deal and send Stoke crashing to their first home reverse of the season.
So another three points gives Newcastle their best start in 15 years and they sit ahead of Chelsea this morning, one point behind Manchester United.
Newcastle in the Champions League spots? Scary stuff indeed.
DREAM TEAM
STAR MAN - DEMBA BA (Newcastle)
STOKE: Begovic 6, Wilkinson 6, Shawcross 4 (Upson 5), Woodgate 5, Wilson 5 (Huth 6), Pennant 6, Delap 5, Whelan 6, Etherington 6 (Jones 5), Walters 6, Crouch 5. Subs not used: Sorensen, Whitehead, Jerome, Palacios.
NEWCASTLE: Krul 6, Simpson 8, Steven Taylor 8, Coloccini 8, Ryan Taylor 8, Obertan 8, Guthrie 8 (Gosling 5), Cabaye 8 (Perch 6), Gutierrez 8, Best 8 (Sammy Ameobi 5), Ba 9. Subs not used: Elliot, Santon, Ben Arfa, Marveaux. Booked: Perch.
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Newcastle winning away at Stoke... Wow, this is very impressive...
Demba Ba the free arrival is really a hit... and together with his strike partner Leon Best... They are a threat to any defence right now...
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why dont one of the arabs but newcastle?
it has a very good fan base.
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I think it's because it's not worth buying?
Cos they are not in debts and Mike Ashley isn't in need of the cash... Also it would take a huge offer to persuade him to sell... Something over what it's worth i think... Like the Andy Carroll deal... He probably got 100% extra over his actual value...
Though they may have a huge fan base but unlike Liverpool, they don't have a huge following across the world. Theirs is mainly in England and more so in the North East only... And when Liverpool went for $300m pounds, Man City for $100m pounds... Ashley priced them at $350m pounds... That's alot when they don't have a almost ready potential for marketing returns like Pool, or the leverage City has in the Manchester brand made aware by United...
Newcastle might also not be the best or easiest place to attracting the best players from across the world to come as some players might not want to or able to get used to the North East life-style... Compare to London and even Manchester, it is a more remote location...
Nevertheless, Ashley has done a good job in changing the manager when many had disagreed at that time. Hughton wasn't experienced enough and might have kept them in the bottom or even drop out of the PL. Another good piece of business is selling Carroll for $35m and getting Ba for free...
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thats really sad.
so newcastle are gonna be like this forever?
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Well, to be frank... If they can keep it at this for a good number of years, they should be rather happy already I should think... There are worse places to be than their current position right now.
They have effectively reduced their wage bill by getting rid of higher earner like Carroll, Enrique, Nolan and Barton and replace them with lower earners like Leon Best, Ba, Obertan, Peter Lovenkrands, Dan Gosling...
It was reported that Ashley came out $45m from his own pocket to keep them together when they were relegated... But the sale of Carroll, Enrique and Nolan effectively cleared that sum i guess... But it didn't turn out badly for them b'cos they got a number of free players in like Demba Ba, Sylvain Marveaux, Dan Gosling, Mehdi Abeid... and good experienced players like Yohan Cabaye on the cheap too... They even promote from their reserved team like Best...
So they should be happy... Cos even right now, they are consider a big surprise to be where they are by many don't you think so?
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newcastle are now in 2nd place.
they play man city next week?