The first article/video of this small 3 part series did very well so I thank you all for getting involved and watching and reading my stuff. The video version of this article will be out in a day or two. I’ll post it on our Facebook page if and when it drops. Again I challenge the rest on NFTV to do their own versions of this article/ video.
So, If you read my 1st article of the series I concluded that Jonas’s magical moment on the last day of the 2014/2015 season when he came back from cancer to saving Newcastle United from relegation was the best goal I had seen 150 matches I had seen NUFC in the flesh.
Now for the best NUFC player I have seen live. This is one I actually found really difficult. As the best player could go into a variety of positions.
Now don’t rip into me too much on this but I am going on the games I have seen in person and the best players over that period. I am also going to judge this on players I’ve seen play more than 5 times. I seen Shearer play in an Intertoto cup game against Deportivo La Coronea, As it happens that game was the reason we signed Albert Luque for 8 million pounds in a 2-1 defeat……
Its mental when I think back on that.
The first player to me deserves an honourable mention. Definitely meets the criteria of more than 5 games but the player I wanted to mention Is Jamaal Lascelles. I myself am more defensively minded when I play football or whatever it may be. As a youngster we all want to be the number nine but as I’ve grew up I’ve appreciated the defensive side of the game more and more. I also appreciate the leadership side of his game.
You reading will know this. But Newcastle United between the years 2006 to 2016 had 1 good centre back in that time period. Which was Colo. But he couldn’t lead a herd of thirsty camels to water. In that regard he was utterly awful. When Lascelles burst on the scene He was only a young lad and not really fancied by Mclaren, I even remember him getting sent off against Everton.......
But this lad has got much much better. And in essence we as supporters have watched him grow in to the leader and captain we have today. When Lascelles plays well. We don’t concede goals. Look at Swansea away in late 2017. Was unbelievable that day. He’s my type of defender. Built like a brick shit house and doesn’t take anyone’s shit. A true leader, Can play and link up with any other defenders, Gets the best out of whoever he plays alongside. Our best captain since Kevin Nolan in my opinion, who also wore his heart on his sleeve and gave everything. Lascelles is in that same bracket. He’s not the finished article yet by any means but I think he’ll be a legend here when his career is all said and done.
Now onto the gravy of this article. The Newcastle best player I have seen in the 150 games I have attended; under the criteria I have had to meet within this article. The winner for me has got to be Yohan Cabaye. This lad in the middle with the late great Tiote was really quite special. His passing range was unbelievable. He knew how to just control games like he did was just absolutely breath-taking. An example of this was 26th December 2013, Boxing day vs Stoke City. One of my favourite all time favourite games I’ve been to.
What a master class. He just made the Stoke midfield look like Sunday league rejects as we ran away 5-1 winners that day. His passing, His ability to unlock a defence like he could. And you’ve got to remember Stoke we’re known at the time for being defensively strong. And Cabaye just carved them open like it wasn’t an effort.
Still breaks me Cabaye left the club. But with the way the club is run. You can’t blame players like him for taking the chance with clubs to be ambitious. It didn’t work out for him at PSG, but in Newcastle colours you won’t find a more gifted midfielder since the likes of the late great Gary Speed and the likes of Rob Lee in the early noughties. The little Frenchman was Magnifique!
I hope you are enjoying my series so far. Let me know what your best moments, players, wins you’ve seen in the games you’ve attended.