Tag: Europe

Gutierrez Poised for Europe

Newcastle United winger, Jonas Gutierrez, was a key figure in the side that qualified for the Europa League, last season, and now the Argentine is looking forward to the competition.

The Magpies, under manager, Alan Pardew, worked wonders last term, and superseded expectations of even their most positive supporters on Tyneside, as they finished in fifth place in the top flight.

With European football returning to Newcastle, there is a real buzz around the potential of this team, which has gone through some tough times in recent years, having endured a year in the Championship. Now things are on the up, Gutierrez is looking forward to the Europa League and believes the club deserve to be in the competition, following their exploits from last season.

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PARDEW WANTS EUROPE

Newcastle United manager Alan Pardew has said that he is already looking forward to the next season after inching ever closer to qualifying for the Champions League this season. It has been a great 12 months for Newcastle United, as they have been able to reach closer towards the top four despite losing a number of top players. It was expected during the start of the season that Newcastle will struggle after losing the experience of Kevin Nolan and Joey Barton in addition to the loss of Andy Carroll in January. However, they have made some shrewd signings and the tactics of Alan Pardew has been spot on.

Newcastle continued their winning run during the weekend as well, as they managed a splendid 3-0 win over Stoke City at the St James’s Park. This coupled with the 0-0 draw at both Arsenal and Chelsea meant that Newcastle are now ever closer to finishing in the top four. Their other contender, Tottenham, were also unable to avoid defeat against QPR. There has been a buzz around Newcastle this season, which has translated into the players according to Alan Pardew. He is very much looking forward to playing in the Champions League next season if they qualify. Pardew reckons that it will be much easier to convince players to come to Newcastle once they qualify for the Champions League.

“Football is important in this city. There are a lot of people out of work and, when you look elsewhere, it is a tough environment for businesses and for people to earn money but, when they come to the stadium, they see a team playing like we did today and it just lifts you and they can take that back into the workplace,” Pardew said after the Stoke City match, which has seen Newcastle rise to the fourth position in the table.

SIMPSON WANTS EUROPE

Newcastle United defender Danny Simpson has said that there is a real chance that his club can make it into Europe this season. Newcastle United have been a great story in the Premier league ever since their return to the top flight a few seasons ago. Many expected them to go back straight down to the Championship due to the huge number of financial problems they were having. However, they have managed a great story in the Premier league through some great transfer policies over the last couple of seasons. Even after the departure of many players like Andy Carroll, Newcastle United have kept their position in the top six.

Now, Danny Simpson has said that he wants to make sure that Newcastle qualify for Europe this season. It has been three years since Newcastle United were relegated to the Championship from the top flight, but this spectacular turnaround really surprises Danny Simpson, who arrived on a loan deal from Manchester United. Danny Simpson has said that playing against the likes of Plymouth and Barnsley, it is going to be a different experience playing against the top teams in Europe. Newcastle finished in the 12th position last season, while they are currently in the sixth position ahead of the likes of Liverpool and Everton.

“It would be massive for me to play in Europe. I came here when we were in the Championship. We won that, had a solid season finishing 12th, and to get into Europe in my third season would be fantastic. When you look at the improvement of the team in the last three years, it’s brilliant. If we can make Europe happen now it will be massive for me and the lads – and for everybody at the club,” Simpson told The Chronicle.

PARDEW TARGETTING EUROPE

Newcastle United manager Alan Pardew has said that the club should be targeting a Europa League place in this season. Newcastle United made a fantastic start to the season and were in the top four only until recently. However, a few defeats on the bounce have meant that we have slipped out of their strong position at the start of the season.

Still, it is much better than any Newcastle United fan or owner Mike Ashley would have hoped at the start of the season. This has led manager Alan Pardew to believe that there is no reason for Newcastle United to be not challenging for the European places.

Despite missing a number of key players Newcastle United performed exceptionally well in their latest match against QPR. As a result of the 1-0 win, Newcastle United have moved into the fifth position in the table displacing Liverpool, who could only draw against Stoke city at home. Even better than the result was a fact that Alan Pardew could impart misery on the new manager Mark Hughes, who was just taking over at QPR. Newcastle United were one of the teams expected to struggle in the January and February months due to the loss of key players like Cheick Tiote and top scorer Demba Ba, but they showed incredible strength in depth to beat QPR.

“If we can manage to get a couple more wins when the boys are away and they can come back and give us a boost, who knows what we can achieve. We are sixth and that’s not just the result today but through 21 games. But we will never take our eye off things. We are not that naive,” Pardew said after the 1-0 win that took Newcastle United past Liverpool into the fifth position.