What Paul Merson Has Got Wrong About Newcastle United Fans

The list of things that Paul Merson has got wrong as a football pundit is worryingly long for someone who continues to be in full-time employment for an outlet as big as Sky Sports, but at least he's consistently entertaining, which is more than can be said about Alan Shearer. Hilariously, Merson is usually the go-to guy for Sky Sports' weekly predictions column, despite the fact that his predictions are generally off the mark. This week, he has suggested that there is more disappointment coming for Newcastle United as Alan Pardew continues to look for his first league win this season: for Merson, it won't be coming tomorrow. Here's his assessment, having predicted a 2-2 draw:

€œThis is one of those games where the Newcastle fans will turn up expecting to win. They drew their last game with Swansea, which was a bit of a bonus because a lot of people didn€™t expect them to get anything there, but the expectations will be different here because they€™re at home to a promoted side.€ €œI know Leicester are doing great, but the pressure will be on the home players. I think it€™s a hard game because Leicester will fancy their chances. Newcastle will bomb forward and they could get caught on the break by the pace of Jamie Vardy €“ so this could be a wide-open and gung-ho game. A draw is no good for Newcastle, but I see that happening.€

None of the assessment of the game is particularly wrong: Newcastle would be wrong to underestimate Nigel Pearson's side, who clearly are on form, and the pressure will undoubtedly be on the home side. But the thing that annoys is that Merson continues to follow the usual spin that Newcastle fans will expect to win: as if every member of the Toon Army goes into games with that infamous "arrogance" that Roy Keane accused us all of. The reality is that it is hope of a victory that drives us, we don't expect to win any game - mostly at the minute because we haven't done so - but we do want to win every single one of them. To once more hold that up as an indirect, under-hand criticism of the fans, by implying that unrealistic expectations are a danger to the team is just plain wrong. Incidentally, his assessment that Newcastle will "bomb forward" proves how little he knows of Newcastle under Alan Pardew: no matter how much attacking goes on, the problem for Newcastle is that the defence simply does not catch up with the rest of the advancing team - and that usually includes one defensive midfielder at least - so there is a massive No Man's Land open between the four or five attackers and the five or six defenders more often than not. Newcastle are rarely caught on the break, because Pardew doesn't take those kind of gambles, but equally sitting too deep and welcoming pressure rather than pressing high up the pitch is pretty fatal as it gives the opposition time to build an attacking wave and pace. But then that's what happens when both of your centre-halves have heavy legs and limited pace between them.