Self-doubt has not been a feeling that John Carver has been accustomed to in recent months, despite Newcastle United's horrendous form - and it seems that reality may have final dawned on the Magpies boss. Newcastle sit just two points and a solitary position above 18th-placed Hull City heading into Sunday's clash with West Ham United - and they have lost nine out of their last 10 matches, winning none. Carver, who made a tongue-in-cheek comment that he was the "best coach in the Premier League" a couple of weeks, says the pressure is finally getting to him as he searches for that solitary win that would secure Newcastle's top-flight future. The Magpies interim head coach has revealed the situation has left him struggling to sleep on an evening as he worries about the game on Sunday. During his pre-match press conference on Wednesday, Carver said:
"I'm only sleeping about four or four-and-a-half hours a night. "I've thought about turning my phone off. You get so many messages - good messages, but it can wear you down. Mentally you've got to be bright and ready."
Relegation rivals Sunderland travel to Arsenal on Wednesday night, where a point will secure the Black Cats top-flight future, but Carver will prevent his players from watching the match at the Emirates. He has told the squad they can watch "anything else they like" though, including the wrestling, as he wants their footballing focus to solely be on Sundays game at St James' Park - one he describes as the Magpies' "biggest game in six years". Carver continued:
"If you have a Twitter account and someone starts giving you abuse on that it can affect your mental status. "I've had a chat with the guys to say keep off the internet and social media and watch wrestling on television - not football because that can fatigue you mentally. Stay away from TV as much as you can. "There's an awful lot of good local people who've been here a long time and a lot of their friends lost their jobs here last time "That's one of the reasons I brought all of the staff into the meeting with the players. Sometimes that can be a motivation for players. "I gave the players an opportunity if they didn't fancy it to leave the room and nobody left the room - that tells me they're up for the fight. There's going to be pressure on them, they've got to play the game not the occasion. They've got to stay composed, as I have, and not fear wanting to get on the ball and play. If we do that I'm fairly confident."
NUFC editor for WhatCulture.com/NUFC. History graduate (University of Edinburgh) and NCTJ-trained journalist. I love sports, hopelessly following Newcastle United and Newcastle Falcons. My pastimes include watching and attending sports matches religiously, reading spy books and sampling ales.
