Given: Hoping for happier times
Newcastle goalkeeper Shay Given has described the current state of affairs at St James' Park as 'ultimate turmoil'.
The Magpies are up for sale as owner Mike Ashley looks for a buyer, while the club has employed Joe Kinnear as an interim manager.
Given, who moved to Tyneside in 1997 from Blackburn, has seen his fair share of trauma in the North East, but he believes the present situation is a low.
"I have been there (Newcastle) a long time now and I would class it as my home," said Given. "I have been there 11 and a half years or something, so it's a big part of my life.
"At times like this, it's difficult. Because I've been there so long, I feel a little bit how the fans feel. It's been so frustrating.
"I've been through rough times at Newcastle, but this time with the club up for sale and the management up in the air, it just seems like the ultimate turmoil.
"As a player, it is easy to turn around and say, 'I want to leave, I want to do this or that'.
"But I would love to see Newcastle really turn the corner. Hopefully, this is as low as it's going to get and we will turn the corner and things will pick up, the club will get sold and the right people will come in to invest in the team.
"I think someone was quoted as saying things can turn bad quickly, but they can turn really good quickly as well at Newcastle.
"It can go on a bit of a rollercoaster and hopefully that will be the case, and I would like to be part of that.
"I would like to win some things at Newcastle. I know at the minute we are miles off that, but you look at the investors at Manchester City and you know the money they are talking about there.
"If we had someone similar, someone who is going to put money into the team, then things can change in the blink of an eye."
| Time | Fixture |
|---|---|
| Sunday 8th November | |
| Barclays Premier League | |
| 16:00 | Chelsea vs Man Utd |
| Monday 9th November | |
| Barclays Premier League | |
| 20:00 | Liverpool vs Birmingham |
| Saturday 21st November | |
| Barclays Premier League | |
| 12:45 | Liverpool vs Man City |
| 15:00 | Birmingham vs Fulham |
| 15:00 | Burnley vs Aston Villa |
| 15:00 | Chelsea vs Wolverhampton |
| 15:00 | Hull vs West Ham |
| 15:00 | Sunderland vs Arsenal |
| 17:30 | Man Utd vs Everton |
| Sunday 22nd November | |
| Barclays Premier League | |
| 13:30 | Bolton vs Blackburn |
| 15:00 | Tottenham vs Wigan |
| 16:00 | Stoke vs Portsmouth |
| Wednesday 25th November | |
| Barclays Premier League | |
| 19:45 | Hull vs Everton |
| 20:00 | Fulham vs Blackburn |
| Saturday 28th November | |
| Barclays Premier League | |
| 15:00 | Blackburn vs Stoke |
| 15:00 | Fulham vs Bolton |
| 15:00 | Man City vs Hull |
| 15:00 | Portsmouth vs Man Utd |
| 15:00 | West Ham vs Burnley |
| 15:00 | Wigan vs Sunderland |
| Time | Result |
|---|---|
| Sunday 8th November | |
| Barclays Premier League | |
| West Ham 1 - 2 Everton | |
| Wigan 1 - 1 Fulham | |
| Hull 2 - 1 Stoke | |
| Saturday 7th November | |
| Barclays Premier League | |
| Wolverhampton 1 - 4 Arsenal | |
| Man City 3 - 3 Burnley | |
| Tottenham 2 - 0 Sunderland | |
| Blackburn 3 - 1 Portsmouth | |
| Aston Villa 5 - 1 Bolton | |
| Wednesday 4th November | |
| Barclays Premier League | |
| West Ham 2 - 1 Aston Villa | |
| Sunday 1st November | |
| Barclays Premier League | |
| Birmingham 0 - 0 Man City | |
| Saturday 31st October | |
| Barclays Premier League | |
| Man Utd 2 - 0 Blackburn | |
| Sunderland 2 - 2 West Ham | |
| Portsmouth 4 - 0 Wigan | |
| Bolton 0 - 4 Chelsea | |
| Stoke 2 - 2 Wolverhampton | |
| Fulham 3 - 1 Liverpool | |
| Burnley 2 - 0 Hull | |
| Everton 1 - 1 Aston Villa | |
| Arsenal 3 - 0 Tottenham | |
| Sunday 25th October | |
| Barclays Premier League | |
| West Ham 2 - 2 Arsenal | |
| Pos | Team | P | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chelsea | 11 | 27 |
| 2 | Arsenal | 11 | 25 |
| 3 | Manchester United | 11 | 25 |
| 4 | Tottenham Hotspur | 12 | 22 |
| 5 | Aston Villa | 12 | 21 |
| 6 | Manchester City | 11 | 20 |
| 7 | Liverpool | 11 | 18 |
| 8 | Sunderland | 12 | 17 |
| 9 | Stoke City | 11 | 16 |
| 10 | Burnley | 12 | 16 |
| 11 | Fulham | 10 | 14 |
| 12 | Wigan Athletic | 11 | 13 |
| 13 | Blackburn Rovers | 11 | 13 |
| 14 | Everton | 10 | 12 |
| 15 | Birmingham City | 11 | 11 |
| 16 | Bolton Wanderers | 11 | 11 |
| 17 | West Ham United | 11 | 10 |
| 18 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 12 | 10 |
| 19 | Hull City | 11 | 8 |
| 20 | Portsmouth | 12 | 7 |
Sunderland fan Lucinda Gittins was strutting her stuff in the Soccer AM studios this week.
With Didier Drogba in frightening form, Paul Merson expects Chelsea to beat Man Utd on Sunday.
Hull came from behind to beat Stoke 2-1 at the KC Stadium to ease the pressure on Phil Brown.
Patrice Evra has admitted that he wants to beat Chelsea more than any other team in the Premier League.
Fulham stayed strong and held firm at Wigan to keep the Latics at bay and come away with a hard-earned point.
Birmingham's Scott Dann believes Liverpool will be a tough nut to crack despite their dip in form.
Everton claimed their first league win in five attempts with a hard-fought 2-1 success at West Ham.