The list of problems at Newcastle right now is a long one: despite any increases in possession (clearly not against Swansea), and the fight that everyone seems to be imagining in the team, tactics, inspiration, creation and flair are all a problem. But the single biggest problem at Newcastle - the one that could gloss over a lot of the issues under Pardew - is the lack of goals. Astonishingly of the current squad only three players have more than a single goal, with Papiss Cisse on 6 goals, Yoann Gouffran on 5 and Moussa Sissoko on 3. That goes some way to explaining some of Newcastle's issues, and why of the ever present Premier League teams of the year, they have amassed the least number of points and scored the least goals. If Papiss Cisse has indeed turned a corner and is back on the scoring track - and his goal rate of once every 37 minutes so far suggests positive steps - then that is good news for Newcastle. But more players in other positions need to chip in with more goals if Newcastle are to fire themselves up the league. It is plainly obvious that the defence at the minute has some issues, with Fabricio Coloccini suffering a dramatic drop in form and the alternatives either unthinkable or unavailable, so scoring goals is going to be a major factor in where Newcastle finish, as long as Alan Pardew continues as manager. The fact that Cisse seems to be supportive of Pardew's cause is good news for the under-pressure manager, but the long term solution is to bring in a manager who will be able to bring goals from the rest of the team. Quite whether that will ever happen remains to be seen.
