Football Dissected

Kevin Keegan is doing himself no favours with the decisions he’s making. Playing Charles N'Zogbia, one of Newcastle’s most menacing attackers and arguably their quickest player by far, at left-back against Manchester United was suicidal to say the least. And United’s opening goal proved that fact. Ronaldo dazzled his defender one way and then the other before whipping in the deadliest of crosses and Wayne Rooney simply obliged to tap-in at the far post to give United the opener. And who was supposedly marking the dangerous forward? Yes, that’s right – Charles N’Zogbia. Not only did he not know where Rooney was, but criminally, and probably most importantly, he didn’t read the cross coming in from Ronaldo.

But, in his defence, he’s not a natural left-back. Actually come to think of it, he’s not a defender at all. His talents lie at the opposite end of the field in attack, with his dribbling and speed. They’re on the wing, running at the opposition’s right-back and whipping in crosses into the box. Plus he can take a mean deal ball.

So why, if Keegan is stretched of options like it appears to be the case, did he not take the chance to improve his squad during the January transfer window. Maybe he didn’t have the funds. Maybe he naïvely thought the current squad was good enough to last out the season. Or maybe, just maybe, he’s not that great of a manager as some people make him out to be. His stint with England was as depressing as a Gordon Brown speech in the House of Commons and his spell with Manchester City, though relatively successful, didn’t bring any silverware to Eastlands. So, with that in mind, can he bring success to St James Park?

Well let’s look at possible targets he may want to bring in during the summer. Taye Taiwo, the Nigerian left-back currently at Olympique de Marseille, could be a valuable addition. Likened to Roberto Carlos, the Nigerian’s stamina is just as astonishing as Ebbsfleet United winning the FA Cup. And he’s got one hell of a left-foot, which comes in handy when taking free-kicks.

Another could be Geoffrey Dernis of Saint-Étienne. A midfielder who’s good with both feet, Dernis could be just the type of player Newcastle needs – creative, tactically aware, and relatively cheap. His team-mate, Bafetimbi Gomis, may also be a good addition to add depth to Newcastle’s strike force, although they'll probably have to fight to sign him as Rangers are also interested.

Mohammed Ali came back once to often and we all know how that ended. With the Premiership having developed so much in the past 11 years since Keegan was last manager of the black-and-whites, tactically and athletically, can he really develop a team that will be considered better than the one he had in the 90s with Beardsley and co? The Geordies better hope so because if he doesn’t, there’s no way they’re going to win anything.