Cheeky Charlie

It's a story which sums up what's wrong with modern 'professional' football. The 'story' in question is the 'dummy spitting' tantrum apparently thrown by Newcastle United's French midfielder Charles N'Zogbia as a result of his manager's 'insult' to him.



So how exactly did big, bad Joe Kinnear insult poor Charlie?? Did he question the player's parentage? Did he call his partner 'ugly' or 'slapper'? Did he question N'Zogbia's commitment to the club?



Er, no (though the last one above could be viewed as an accurate 'concern'). Joe's 'crime' was attempting to pronounce Charlie's surname in a public interview and getting it wrong twice before reverting to calling him by his first name.... YES, that's correct! This is the 'sin' which has Charlie 'gurning' to the media about insults, and as Joe has correctly since surmised, looking for a way out of St. James' Park.



I'll tell you what.. if I was Kinnear, N'Zogbia wouldn't be still looking for a way out- I'D HAVE KICKED HIS POWDERED ARSE OUT THE DOOR PRONTO!! In these days of ordinary people suffering the hardships of an unprecidented economic recession, with hard-working men & women losing their jobs on a seemingly daily basis, such panty-pissing prima-donna antics from rich, arrogant Premier League footballers make me want to puke.



I have no love for Newcastle United. At worst, they have numerous 'supporters' who deserve nothing but contempt for their unashamed play-acting to the media as long-suffering, loyal, fervent fans who 'live for their club' when the reality was attendances in the low-to-mid teens of thousands in their nadir of the 1980s.... the chant 'Where were you when you were shite?' could have been made up for them (though it suits the vast number of 'Johnny-come-latelys' who make up the crowd at Stamford Bridge much better these days). If you wish to see REAL loyal, long-suffering fans, go visit Goodison Park. Everton's attendance figures, at around 40,000 for every home game, is testament to genuine football fans who haven't seen their club win anything of note in the last 15 years.



That said, I have nothing but sympathy for Joe Kinnear- the man has had nothing but ill-fortune and bad luck since he took over at Newcastle, culminating in an injury crisis which is overshadowed in number only by our own bunch of 'crocks' at Old Trafford. The latest additions in the shape of Michael Owen and the loathsome Joey Barton are experienced pros that he would have been pinning survival hopes on. The arrival of the combatant Kevin Nolan from Bolton Wanderers is a huge boost, but it's going to be a tough run-in for Kinnear.



Tomorrow sees the visit of their arch-rivals, Ricky Sbragia's Sunderland, to 'bar-code central'. If the visitors leave with all the points, Joe will once again see at first-hand how 'England's best supporters' react to defeat..... if they want a better target for their abuse, they should look no further than one Charles N'Zogbia. Now there's a REAL villain of the peace...