Since Alan Pardew replaced Chris Hughton as Newcastle manager, he has put one task at the top of his list: to sign players to long-term contracts. In recent weeks Steven Taylor, Mike Williamson and Nile Ranger have all signed new contracts, and at the weekend they were joined by starlet Haris Vuckic who signed a new five-and-a-half year deal to keep him at St James’ Park until 2016. This is an admirable move by Pardew as now these players won’t be lost on the cheap, but will any of these starlets make their mark at Newcastle United?
Let’s start with Steven Taylor. Taylor has been around for quite a while, but he’s still only 24 and should have a long future in football at the top level ahead of him. Those inspiring performances for the England U21s can still be repeated, and don’t forget he played an important part in Newcastle’s promotion winning season before he got injured. This could be the one thing that holds Taylor back: injuries. They seem to have blighted his career, but now he’s fit and raring to go (as long as the injury he suffered against West Ham isn’t serious) and has been given a starting berth by Pardew. A fit and firing Taylor should really be on the fringes of the England squad, so can he become a rock in the Newcastle defence and even long term captain? Absolutely.
With Alan Pardew selecting Steven Taylor as Fabricio Coloccini’s central defensive partner for the meantime, it has meant that Mike Williamson has had to make way. Williamson has been immense since he joined around one year ago, and looked pretty solid alongside Colo at the heart of the Newcastle defence. Aged 27, Williamson should be coming into his peak and his towering presence at the back could be invaluable for Newcastle. However, if Pardew doesn’t really like the look of him, which is what it seems from the outside, then maybe he’ll have to rely on another Taylor injury to get his place back. If he has the bad luck that saw Stevenage’s opener deflect in off him on Saturday for the rest of his Newcastle career, then maybe it won’t be such a fruitful one despite early promise.
Another player that seems to be getting on the wrong side of Pardew is Nile Ranger. Ranger is one of the most exciting prospects at Newcastle right now. He has most of the attributes to be a top striker: pace and power especially, but maybe he’s lacking a couple of the most important facets needed to be a Premier League hotshot. His finishing still leaves much to be desired, something demonstrated against West Ham, but maybe more worrying is his attitude off the pitch. He infamously had personal problems at Southampton, but it was thought he’d left them behind at St James’. However, Pardew has already commented about a lack of professionalism, something he can still rectify at the age of 19. Ranger can be as good as he wants to be, it really is up to him…
Finally we have Haris Vuckic. Every Newcastle fan will know just how much hype there is surrounding the 18 year old Slovenian international. Let’s face it; hype is all it is at the moment. Unless you’re a regular watcher of the Newcastle reserves all you will have seen of Vuckic is a few senior appearances in which he’s played well, but hasn’t really made you stand up and take notice. The talk surrounding Vuckic is all promising, with Pardew saying that “Haris is a player with real potential who we believe could have an exciting future here at Newcastle.” As long as Newcastle can fight off any potential interest and give him the game time he needs to develop, Vuckic’s contract could be the most important deal of the four.
Steven Taylor, Mike Williamson, Nile Ranger and Haris Vuckic. Four players who have all signed new long-term deals at Newcastle. In my eyes Taylor is a potential captain and Vuckic could be the spark they need in years to come, whereas Williamson will only ever be a squad player and Ranger will flatter to deceive. But what do you think? How will these four fare in years to come in a black and white shirt?
