Ashley has, Now it's time for Pardew to step up

Will the fresh faces be able to spur Newcastle on?

The buck has to stop here. Newcastle have taken their fans on a roller coaster of a ride yet again. Within the space of a year, the Magpies have fallen from being challengers for the top four to fighting for their status as a Premier League. Flawed policies saw only Vurnon Anita come through the door for the Tynesiders in the summer. They say “when it rains, it pours”. When it comes to Newcastle’s luck with injuries this season, the phrase certainly rang true. The squad was devastated by one injury after another as the campaign saw stalwarts like Steven Taylor, Hatem Ben Arfa and Yohan Cabaye miss large portions of the season.

The common theme in most post-match press conferences during Newcastle’s disastrous run of only one win in their last thirteen for Alan Pardew has been the inability to call upon his stars when he needed them the most. That was the only grace perhaps that saw the gaffer from facing the axe, except maybe for the record eight year that Newcastle rewarded him for his success last year.

Now it’s time for Pardew to step up to the job. The grumblings of the Newcastle faithful over the unwillingness of owner Mike Ashley to spend in the transfer window have now been put to rest. Newcastle went overboard with their squad strengthening schemes in January, bringing in five in January, all of whom will be challenging for first team places from the get go. Introduction of new faces in Mathieu Debuchy, Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa, Yoan Gouffron, Massidio Haidara and Moussa Sissoko has lent great depth to the squad and a new belief around the region that they will be finally getting a squad that the club support over the years deserves.

There have already been shouts for the axe to fall upon the manager. A manager who was the winner of the League Manger Association’s seasonal award doesn’t become a bad manager overnight. Left out to hang dry with a lack of re-enforcement coming in to strengthen a squad which has the added task of competing in Europe as well, has taken its toll on the paper thin squad. But Pardew should know that patience in the Toon Army as well as the board may get exhausted at the rate of knots if he is unable to deliver now.

While sympathising with Pardew, his selections have been a touch iffy. The introduction of Marveaux into the side has taken ages while he has gone on to persist with Guttierez even though the Argentine has been unable to provide nothing on the offensive end. Last week’s travesty against Reading was masterminded from the sidelines as Pardew withdrew the three most influential players on the pitch for the Magpies in Cabaye, Marveaux and Anita to let Reading back into the game and secure their first away victory of the season.

The midweek fixture against Villa seems like the perfect opportunity for Pardew to answer his critics in his 100th game in charge of Newcastle. The squad has been strengthened in nearly every aspect and now it’s time for the silver haired gaffer to get his new troops to bring success. Make no mistake, there will be no bedding in period. Aston Villa themselves will look for some divine intervention to turn their season around after failing to score in their last four and only one goal in their last six home Premier league games. This would be the perfect opportunity for the Magpies to kick start their season.

With the big Sky deal coming into effect next season, it will be a huge impetus for Newcastle to stay in the Premier league this season. We may well say Newcastle’s season begins tonight. It’s nearly now or never for the Toon.