Discuss? I think it did - where would he be had he joined YBR's Barcelona? You lot?

-- Anonymous, October 24, 2000

Answers

I think that the obvious affects of not sleeping for the last 48 hours have made you blurt out uncerimonious truths. Of course it ruined his career, but he ended up playing for his boyhood heroes, his home club. There are many great players that never won anything and never achieved half of what shearer has.

-- Anonymous, October 24, 2000

Or manchester united for that matter.....

is it important? not for me it isn't.....surely it's what everyone of us has dreamed of doing? playing for your hometown club just for the pride of it......

Of course I'd like him to have won some medals...but only because it'd mean that the club had done well.......

-- Anonymous, October 24, 2000

C'mon Dougal. How can anyone possibly tell with such a 'what if' scenario? Anyway, I suspect more good, or potentially good players have been ruined at mega clubs than at Newcastle or it's equivalents.

-- Anonymous, October 24, 2000

Total Tosh Dougal .. he's hardly a broken man is he , get real man , the Fa and NUFC are grooming him as a manager ... hes a man of honour a hero and worshipped in his home town , and not a jot of attitude . I believe going to NUFC has done him the world of GOOD . U talk some sh1te sometimes but this is top of the pile , sorry .

-- Anonymous, October 24, 2000

I'll humour you pet.

If shearer's career is to be measured purely on medals won then Newcastle has been a disaster. He was injured in a Newcastle shirt, and that hasn't helped.

He could have taken is second big move to a team more likely to win things, and then he could have been more medal "successful".

He couldn't have won any more caps as he was always picked.

At 16/17 he went to Southampton as a good means of getting away from home, learning his trade, always with the longer term knowledge he could move on. I think the move to Newcastle was a long term view. A footballer's career can end at 33/34, or it can be the start of something which will go on until you're 67+. I think Shearer has a long term view, he's ruthlessly ambitious and wishes to carry on to the top as a coach/manager. He is such a single minded bastard that he'll succeed.

If if he was 33 and at Barca, or Man U where would he get help to move into coaching ? How would he get back to the north east ? Just as we saw with Bobby Robson the Newcastle job doesn't always come along when you want it, you have to be there ready.

-- Anonymous, October 24, 2000

Dougal asks: where would he be had he joined YBR's Barcelona?. Well, geography wasn't my strongest subject at scholl (neither was spelling, and yes, it was a long time ago before anybody comments) but I'd hazzard a guess at Spain.

If you're suggesting that NUFC joining NUFC was a bad thing for Shearer, then I'd have to disagree. He's had a glittering career. Idolised in his homeland, captained his national team, and on the way to (perhaps) becomming the first Newcastle and/or England manager to win something this century!

Just suppose he had gone to Barca (or ManUre or anywhere else). And just suppose he'd had an even worse injury than he suffered with us and that put him out of soccer - both as a player and as a coach. I think that would have ended his career. You cn't go making "if only" type statements. You make decisions in you life and you have to accept the consequences. The lad ain't done bad out of returning to Newcastle. I bet he wouldn't swap with me!

-- Anonymous, October 24, 2000

I echo Macbeth. He could have won more medals elsewhere but at least playing for us never damaged his international career (unlike another former England captain who joined us). He has also been, let us not forget, extremely well paid for his services. For many a footballer these days this seems the only significant measure of 'success'.

Personally: the no.9 shirt, the captains armband, and the honour of playing for the finest club in the world, I'd call that success, but then I'm sentimental.

-- Anonymous, October 24, 2000

Before you all get too carried away - let's remember it was Dougal who asked this rhetorical question, not Alan Shearer himself.
Is it just me, or is any excuse to have a dig at AS a good enough one?

The answer to Dougal's question will depend on how Alan himself will view "career success" at the end of it all. My guess is that right now he feels somewhat unfilled.
He has something like 60 England caps, captained his country in a good many of those, and scored 30 goals. Not at all shabby, but in truth England have won nowt. Unfulfilled.
He won a PL Championship medal with Blackburn - his ONLY tangible success to date. Fantastic achievement at an unfashionable Club.
He is the top PL scorer by far, and has an unbelievable goals per game and goals per season ratio. Canny.
He is worth something like B#20 million. Lubbly jubbly.
He 'came home' to captain his local team at the peak of his career when he could have gone anywhere. Smashing: proud as punch.
His goals kept the Toon in the PL for three successive, miserable seasons. Relieved: pleased to do it.
His goals took the Toon to Wembley in the FAC in three successive seasons, but we lose all three. Sh*t, if only...
At the end of it all, he may well have only one PL medal to show for it all - plus a big pile of dosh, that frankly he could have earned anywhere.
As well as that, all he's got to look back on is being pilloried in the Press and around the country for his commitment and effort as England captain, and constant pissing & moaning about his performances for the Toon.
Unless Bobby Robson can work a true miracle over the next two seasons, I'm afraid that at the end of Alan's career I suspect he's going to look back from a position of financial security, indeed wealth, at what overall is an unfulfilled career. A career that stood still from the moment he followed his emotions rather than his head, and signed for NUFC in preference to any number of other Clubs who were in a better position to give him the platform his talents so richly deserved.
These will,of course, remain private thoughts because he's not a whinger, and deep down he's proud to be a Geordie - above all else he's really just one of us.

-- Anonymous, October 24, 2000

Subject: Joining NUFC ruined Shearer's career?

Two things have set Al's career back. His career is manifestly not "ruined" and he has appeared in 2 cup finals and several internationals since. The most important setback was the injury at Goodison Park. He has never been the same player since (although he still has a great deal to offer). The second disaster was the appointment of his old mate TSM as Toon manager. TSM is not a man to organise a team around a player's strengths. (Speed at left midfield was awful, Pistone at RB likewise, Tino as a lone target man was a criminal waste of a sublime talent for which TSM should have been jailed or possibly executed.) Shearer was wasted as the target man in a 9-0-1 formation constantly playing facing the wrong way.

What if he had gone to NH or Barca? Who can say? History would be different and who knows if Heath would have had the same successes? He might have had a terrible injury earlier than he did.

Newcastle United was not to blame. He signed for a club on the verge of a title whose luck has mirrored his own and been appalling ever since.

-- Anonymous, October 24, 2000

Ruud Gullit didn't help, either.

-- Anonymous, October 24, 2000

Sting, firstly, please don't be so rude. Secondly, had you read my question, you would see that my question was about his footballing career, not whether he is a local hero and proud to be so. They are two different things entirely.

-- Anonymous, October 24, 2000

He's not finished just yet.....

I would imagine there's still the small matter of a League and a Cup [add plural if you're an optimist] to win before he retires.

He's only just turned 30 and if he's unfulfilled, it's in one area - the same reason he joined NUFC - he wants to win things as a Newcastle player. He'll do it as well.

-- Anonymous, October 24, 2000

Depends what your definition of carreer is , but im not trying to be a pedant . As has been less 'rudely ' put , his life/carreer/ambition/success has not been ruined by joining NUFC . What makes you ask the question anyway , would you have preferred to see him winning a hatful of trophies elsewhere so you could come on here and say ... if only Alan Shearer had joined NUFC we wouldnt be in this mess . Pride , success and carreer are judged by different people in different ways . I wasnt being rude merely telling you what i thought of your statement/question . I feel very passionately about Alan Shearer , and its got me in trouble before ; - )

-- Anonymous, October 25, 2000

I feel very passionately about Alan Shearer , and its got me in trouble before ; - )

I bet that lass in Newcastle Crown Court recently had similar feelings about a crisp seller - allegedly.

-- Anonymous, October 25, 2000

Sting, I asked the question because we had a discussion in the pub after the game where we concluded that the only reason Shearer says, when surrounded by such "useless knackas" is that he's local which does beg the question whether he would, in terms of baubles, have done better elsewhere. And, I don't think you can avoid the conclusion that he would. No, I wouldn't have preferred to see him elsewhere and I'm one of his few constant defenders on here as I think he's the dogs' bollox and I love the fact that he's a Geordie. I do think that we let oursel;ves get carried away on the "bleeds black and white" thing, though. Firstly, he sported a Liverpool strip as a kid (and there is photograph evidence of this). Secondly, he has admitted that had Gullit stayed, to keep his England place, he'd have left the Toon. Thirdly, he constantly says that it wasn't sentiment that brought him back, it was KK's promise that we were building a world class youth academy, rebuilding the stadium and on the point of winning trophies that would see us shattering Man United's dominance of English football. Do you honestly think he'd have come to us at the peak of his career had we been back in the first division? None of this is criticism of him - I think he's a wonderful lad and he'll be a Geordie icon forever for coming to us and staying with us when he could have gone anywhere. And I hope for him as well as us that gets to pick up some silverware in the famous black and white stripes. Sting, "you talk some shite" is hardly polite! Anyway, good on yer for being passionate Shearer: I've split up with a boyfriend over his loathing for Shearer (he was actually considering taking up a bet with mates that he wouldn't dare invade the pitch and tw*t Big Al) so I've every sympathy for you.

-- Anonymous, October 25, 2000

Aw Doug - you're just a big softie aren't you. ManUre fan?? They're aal the same.

-- Anonymous, October 25, 2000

I wish i didnt love him , but then ive felt like that about the black and whites in general all me life . Its a love affair that will never end , and thats the best thing about it ; - ) Now who's being soft ?

-- Anonymous, October 25, 2000

>>>>we had a discussion in the pub after the game where we concluded that the only reason Shearer stays, when surrounded by such "useless knackas"

Obviously this discussion took place after I left or it could not have reached this conclusion! We have an excellent squad and if we aren't challenging for honours then Shearer shoulders the blame for this in equal measure to the other members of the team.

Shearer is not a lone star in a journeyman team. IMHO he is a player who at various times in the past 2 seasons should have been dropped or "rested" on occasion to give others a chance and to sometimes buck his own ideas up.

The fact remains, since he signed for us, the Toon's record WITHOUT him is better than with him in the team. With that record, it's VERY tough to argue the case for "useless knackas" when the evidence points to the contrary.

-- Anonymous, October 25, 2000

Jonno, I think you'll find that statistic took a battering last season. I also wasn't necessarily referring to the current players either when I referred to useless knackas. However, presumably no one on here would describe Andersson, Guivarc'h and Ketsbaia as anything else and they are the sort of strike partners Shearer has had.

-- Anonymous, October 25, 2000

PS. Jonno, I agree that Shearer should, at times, have rested. Like last season when he had flu, groin strain and a knee injury for about thre games but was still having to be played because the other player on 40K a week was unavailable. While his attitude under Gullit may have been a bit suspect, I think he more than made up for it last season.

-- Anonymous, October 25, 2000

I agree Jonno. He's not the most important person in the side, in footballing terms. And who's to say that if he'd moved to a huge club with 3-4 star strikers that he wouldn't have sunk without a trace and lost his confidence. At least at Newcastle, in general, the side's have played to his strengths. He probably wouldn't have had that luxury elsewhere, and lack of appearances could have easily led to him falling out of the picture at international level too. It's all so hypothetical and indeed negative.

-- Anonymous, October 25, 2000

Played to his strengths? No offence but did you see him playing under Kenny Dalglish and Ruud Gullit? Whatever you could accuse those sides of, it certainly wasn't playing to Shearer's strengths.

-- Anonymous, October 25, 2000

I don't think the statistic changed much last season - I'd ask Softie for the numbers off his database but I don't want him dropping a soiled nappy on that nice new computer of his. (-;

Andersson, Guivarc'h and Ketsbaia

Shearer wasn't "surrounded" by Guivarc'h very long so that's neither here nor there. Once again someone takes a swipe at Kets. Kets was excellent for us (apart from the latter part of his final season) and scored several priceless and wonderful goals plus the odd assist as well, notably for Shearer vs Everton in the cup.

Let's look at Shearer. He was bought for 15m and is paid (I guess) 2m pa. So his annual cost to us is FIVE million. For that to be a justifiable cost there should have been a greater return. Of course, the fact that there hasn't been is due in the main, to the 2 reasons I outlined earlier, 1. Serious injury, 2. His good mate TSM.

Similar disasters could have befallen him wherever he went after Blackburn, and if he had stayed at Blackburn, well .... - in some respects we might well have done him a huge favour.

-- Anonymous, October 25, 2000

Dougal, I think the Dalglish/Shearer relationship was a bit more complicated. They formed a pretty tight partnership, with Shearer having a lot of influence. He was involved heavily in the choice of strike partnerships for example. It was obvious that they both pampered to each others ego's and Shearer managed 10 goals in 14 games Dalglish took over. Then he got injured big time, after a close season supposedly tweaking the side with him as figure head. This 'what if' scenario can be applied to lots of things, not least had he not been injured. It's not inconceivable that the Dalglish era would have brough success of some sort, as unpalatable as that may seem to us now, having to still deal with the legacy of dross players.

-- Anonymous, October 25, 2000

While are on the subject, Shearer is quoted by Charvet as saying that Manchester in the best City in the UK to live in. Shearer, however, was apparently backed up by Warren Barton whose only view of Manchester must have been from the pitch at OT. "We also wanted somewhere where the traffic was not as bad. After living in London, we wanted a bit of tranquility" (Charvet). Hmmm.

-- Anonymous, October 25, 2000

For those who still take any opportunity to snipe at AS and undervalue his contribution to the Toon - let me say yet again that but for his goals over each of the last three seasons we would have been in the Nationwide, without any shadow of doubt.

-- Anonymous, October 28, 2000

Can I just say that he was awesome against West Ham. Fantastic game.

-- Anonymous, October 30, 2000