Newcastle United v Bolton Wanderers

It is a miracle of biblical proportions that this match finished 1-1.  Anyone who watched the action for any extended period of time would have expected a 5-5 goal-fest.  Johann Elmander was on the right wing again, a decision many people are questioning, but he ended up getting a Newcastle player sent off and actually had a pretty good match overall.

Once again though, all eyes were drawn to Daniel Sturridge.  This kid is an absolute beast.  Four goals in four for Bolton, and he does everything well.  Incredible skill on the ball, power, a good shot with both feet, creates chances for his teammates, and whenever he gets the ball I feel like the entire stadium comes to their feet, almost in expectation that something spectacular is going to happen.

Brilliant!

Bolton Wanderers are showing themselves a force to be reckoned with in the Premier League.  The dismantling of Newcastle on Saturday was just phenomenal to watch.  So what has changed in the past month or so to move Owen Coyle's men up the table.

Most notable change, consistency throughout the match.  Early on in the season, Bolton would look good in the first half, but terrible in the second, or vice versa.  Sometimes it was even more severe, a dominating 15 minute spell followed by a mistake-filled 20 minutes.  Things slowly improved, but poor spells were still leading to goals, and often these goals left us with draws instead of wins.

In the case of the Liverpool match, we lost after being the better team for about 85 minutes of the 90.  I think that is when things changed.  We were held without a goal for only the third time this season.  That is when the identity of this team became clear.  We have to be a dynamic, attacking team.  Instead of trying to hold our opponents scoreless, we need to score more than them.  Spurs came to town, we steamrolled them 4-2, and haven't looked back.

But enough analysis, for the next few days, I just want to enjoy it.

The League Table

I have a rule about the league table.  I don't look at it until after my birthday (November 9).  Given that, after yesterday's draw between Bolton and Everton at Goodison Park (heartbreaking to give up such a late equalizer, but a draw at either side of Stanley Park is a good result) I went to Sky Sports website and took a look.

I was right about a few things.  I thought Wolves would be relegation fodder and they are.  Some of the clubs I thought would be establishing themselves mid-table are struggling (such as Wigan and West Ham), but I still think they have time to pull out of it.  I appear to have been dead wrong about Newcastle, but let's just wait and see about that.

As for my beloved Bolton Wanderers, they find themselves in a lofty position not seen since the days of Sam Allardyce.  Sixth in the table with 16 points from 12 matches and a positive goal differential.  They are unlikely to remain there, I don't have any delusions of grandeur, and the defense needs to tighten up or a slide down the table could come quickly, but it looks as though a top half finish is not out of the question.  Considering the mess Gary Megson left behind, and recent financial news out of the Reebok, a top half finish would be a stunning achievement for Owen Coyle this season.

Newcastle United

I said this about some clubs last week, and I say it about the Geordies this week; Don't get carried away. They were absolutely destroyed at Old Trafford in week 1, and they have that shiny 6-0 scoreline to show off after week 2. The truth probably lies somewhere in the middle. Newcastle are not as bad as they looked against Manchester United, nor are they as good as the score would indicate against Aston Villa.

In fact, the score against Villa is very deceiving. Villa missed a penalty and had a seemingly good goal disallowed. Newcastle then padded the goal tally with a couple of late scores. And it must be said some of their goals were of the dubious variety.

Long story short, Newcastle supporters, be happy with the result, but don't fool yourselves, the club is still going to be involved in the relegation scrap.

Relegation Fodder (Newcastle United)

Newcastle is a big club in many ways. They have a lot of money and a large, rabid fan base. They have also been hopelessly mismanaged over the last several years. Unrealistic expectations on the part of supporters as well as ownership groups has led this club to opt for big names past their primes and frequent manager firings instead of systematic team-building.

Newcastle came right back up after one season in the second division of English soccer. They did so with several of the same players who had been relegated the season before. And that is a problem. Kevin Nolan, Danny Guthrie, Fabricio Coloccini, Jonas Gutierrez, Steven Taylor, Steve Harper, Jose Enrique, Andy Carroll, Alan Smith,

and the like are just barely good enough to finish 17th. Unfortunately, that list is very close to what Chris Hughton will run out as his starting XI every week.

I actually like most of those players, and they are not without talent. But the hard truth is, they are complementary players on good teams, and squad players at best on top level clubs. Take Kevin Nolan for example. I love Nolan, and he was a great servant to Bolton Wanderers when he was with them. When Nolan was surrounded by the likes of Jay-Jay Okocha, Ivan Campo, Gary Speed, and Nicolas Anelka he looked great. He had a well-defined job on the pitch involving tasks he was well-suited to complete, and he did so with aplomb. But when those players left and he was asked to lead the club on and off the pitch, his flaws were exposed. Nolan had a great season in the Championship, scoring 17 goals, starting every week, and leading the Geordies to promotion. But it is ill-advised to expect him to do the same thing on a much higher level.

Do I think Newcastle will go right back down? Probably not, but I have a hard time seeing them finishing higher than 15th. Especially considering they have a very inexperienced manager whom a large portion of the support do not have any faith in. St. James Park will be packed to the gills every week, and a few big home wins in the latter stages of the season (they host Everton in March, Wolves in April, plus Birmingham and West Brom in May), should lift them into the 40 point range and keep them safe for another season.