Consistency from Pardew will bring consistency from the team

Article by Newcastle Correspondent Jamie Elliott

Well the killjoy that is the international break (unless you're from Spain, Brazil or Germany) is upon us yet again and just like last time we have entered it on the back of a win. Alan Pardew said after our win at Cardiff that we can spend a couple of weeks wondering if our team are good or bad, and admitted he didn't know himself. Well if that statement came after a home defeat to Hull City then a victory at Cardiff, what on earth are we all thinking now?

Never has a Newcastle manager divided opinion as much as 'Wor Alan', and Im willing to bet me using that term to describe him has raised the blood pressure of some of you. He continues to raise as many questions as he answers. He continues to do enough to keep my faith (personal opinion I know), but frustrates me greatly as well. He is our team in one entity. Capable of matching and beating the best on a good day, capable of looking out of his depth on a bad one. Benitez, Hiddink, Mourinho, AVB have all been bettered over the last twelve months. Sadly there have also been some shocking performances and baffling team selections. However the feeling among the critics of Pardew, and certainly what the forums and articles on various sites suggest are that good performances and results are down to the players and in spite of him. Defeats are ALL Pardew's fault. This is quite simply inaccurate, and for me unfair.

The recent victories have brought back the feeling of 'that' season when we came 5th with the tactics setting out to stop opposition, picking teams accordingly to nullify and contain. Yes if Krul hadn't played so well we would of been beaten 3 or 4 at Spurs and we definitely caught Chelsea on a bad day but.......when did we turn into such a negative set of fans? Is it me or has it gotten to the point where certain people are looking for anything to moan about? I had a 10 minute debate with someone the other night who was incensed (and I do mean incensed) that he brought on Obertan instead of Ben Arfa after we've just beaten Spurs away. I'm all for playing devils advocate but......come on. We are playing better football than the last two seasons and sit ahead of the teams that had apparently left us behind with their big money striker deals in the summer (I'm sure you can guess who).

What I think all of us are nervous about is can he pick the team to carve Norwich to pieces a week on Saturday, something we absolutely should do given the players we have. Can he get us playing with such a style that we let teams worry about us.

Will he bring Ben Arfa back in and will Shola play? Who will play right back with Debuchy being suspended? It wouldn't surprise me to see Colo coming back in and Yanga going to right back. If this is the case, then Hatem has to start. I don't think playing with Debuchy suits Hatem at times as he likes to get his full back one on one and with Yanga providing a solid base behind him I think our most naturally gifted player could have a fun afternoon. I think Tiote, Sissoko and Cabaye the middle three with Gouffran, Remy and Ben Arfa the front three. Just a word on Tiote I have been his fiercest critic over the last couple of years after an outstanding first season and have mentioned in previous articles that I wouldn't have him the team and have Anita instead. His recent outstanding performances have as you expect changed my opinion and made me eat sweet tasting humble pie. Only this morning I was looking at the Opta site and saw he has the highest pass completion percentage of any Newcastle player at 88%. Anita is second at 87%......I wasn't completely wrong :)

Howay the lads

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