Arsenal clash comes at worst possible time

I KNEW from the moment that I sent my copy to the editor last week, stating I expected us to win against Newcastle, that I had jinxed the game and ensured that three points would slip through our fingers.

That said, the scoreline does not tell the whole story of the match. The Geordies only managed 30% of possession and I’d wager that the majority of that could be attributed to Shay Given as he continually held on to the ball attempting to waste time from as early as the 25th minute. You could also look at the shots — 33 to two (both of theirs off-target) — or corners eight to one to give you an indication of what Kinnear and his men came to do.

Kinnear described it as their best performance of the season, their fans cheered liked they had just won the FA Cup, lottery and a date with a Miss World contestant and their players pumped their fists in celebration. All this from a team who barely made it out of their own half and had come to simply not concede, and made no attempt at scoring whatsoever.