Hate to say it, but a great win against my beloved Chelsea
I can't believe how streamlined your graphics are. Impressive, and slick.
Ashley reveals Pardew ultimatum
Newcastle United chairman Mike Ashley has revealed that he threatened manager Alan Pardew with a sacking following last month's 1-0 loss to Southampton.
The chairman admitted to setting the 53-year-old manager a points target, adding that he told Pardew that his seven year contract with the club would be ripped up, should he not meet the amount of points.
"I was becoming very frustrated, not necessarily with Alan, but with the way the team was playing, and the results we were getting, began the billionaire, aged 49.
"Following the Southampton loss, I called Alan in for a meeting and told him about my frustrations. He asked for a little more time, but I was determined for us to put our recent run of poor results behind us, so I warned him that, unless he got nine points from the next five games, I'd have to sack him."
"Alan and the boys dealt magnificently with the pressure I put on them, and I am glad that he reacted in the way he did. Beating Arsenal and Chelsea in the manner which we did was amazing, and Alan's place here is secure for a while to come now."
Following the ultimatum, Pardew led his side to four wins from five, only losing to bottom placed Leicester City.
Ashley announces facility improvements at Newcastle
Newcastle United chairman Mike Ashley has announced that the training and youth facilities at Darsley Park will have some important improvements made to them, as well as installing new technology.
The club can already offer a very high standard of both facilities, but Ashley feels that these improvements will greatly benefit the club in the future.
"We've got good facilities here already, and the players are very happy with them. But we need to be taking that extra step, and I'm prepared to invest in these new facilities to do that. I've been told that it will cost around £8 million for both to be improved. This is like a new signing for the club, it's crucial for us. I've told Alan that I want to start bringing through top talent from the academy in the future, and these improvements will help the development of both the senior squad and the youth squad. This is very exciting news for the club."
As well as improving the facilities, Ashley has spent more money on expanding St James' Park's capacity. While previously it could hold 52,405 fans, Ashley has given the construction team the go-ahead to install around 7,500 seats, taking the stadium's capacity to around 60,000. During the construction, part of the west stand will be closed down for health and safety reasons.
"We're fortunate enough to have a terrific set of fans, and were able to get a few sellouts at St James' last season, so I think this is a good way to get more and more people to come and see the team play."
The expansion is due to be completed in December of this year, while improvements made to the facilities will be finished by late September.
Newcastle duo switch Tyneside for Merseyside with lure of European football
Davide Santon and Morgan Schneiderlin have left Newcastle United to sign for Brendan Rodgers' Liverpool.
A combined fee of £42 million was enough for manager Alan Pardew to sell the duo, who were regulars for Newcastle last season as they finished in eighth place.
Pardew revealed that the budgets set out for him made it difficult to delve into the transfer market, and that sales like these would give him more room to bring in quality players.
Italian fullback Santon, 23, joined Newcastle from Inter Milan in 2011, and is an Italy international, representing them on sixteen occasions. He leaves St James' Park for £22 million, and it is likely that he will start ahead of Jose Enrique at left back, but Santon, who played 31 times for Newcastle last season, can also play at right back, and could be used there, with fans beginning to lose patience with current right back and England international Glen Johnson. At the moment, Newcastle have Massidao Haidara and Marcell Jansen who can replace the highly rated Italian, but Pardew may look to bring in a top quality option instead.
Schneiderlin, who only joined last season from league rivals Southampton in a £10 million deal which saw Vurnon Anita head the other way, was valued at £20 million by Northern Irishman Rodgers, despite a fairly average season. The French international has represented his country just twice, but the former Strasbourg man is rated highly by many Barclays Premier League pundits, and is expected to be introduced into the first team at Anfield more or less immediately, with the departure of Joe Allen to Arsenal causing Rodgers' a few problems.
Congrats on finishing in a very respectable 8th position! Two big sales in Santon & Schneiderlin but a lot of money coming in. Spend it wisely and you can battle for European spots next season! 
Got quite a bit of money from those sales, hopefully you can reinvest the funds into the squad 
Chambers drafted in to fight for right back spot
Newcastle United have announced that English fullback Calum Chambers has signed for the club on a season-long loan from Arsenal.
Chambers signed for Arsene Wenger's side last season from Southampton for a fee of £16m but the 19-year-old found his chances limited, making just ten league appearances for the club, who finished in third place.
Newcastle have drafted Chambers in on loan after selling Davide Santon, naturally a left back to Liverpool last week. Santon was the only player in the Newcastle squad capable of covering for starting right back Daryl Janmaat, and Alan Pardew decided that a backup was needed for the Dutchman, who missed out on eight weeks of last season in total with injury.
Chambers is highly rated in England and has represented his national side at U17, U19 and U21 level.
Arsene Wenger said the following on Chambers' arrival at the club last year:
"He is a player I wanted because I rated his quality and intelligence. He is only 19 and can play at centre-back, right-back and central midfield. I hope he will give us competition for the players in those three positions."
Two free agents join Newcastle United
Newcastle United are delighted to announce the signings of Benoît Costil and Hakim Ziyech on free transfers from Stade Rennais FC and SC Heerenveen respectively.
Benoît Costil, 27, is a French goalkeeper, who has been recognized at youth level for the France national side.
He joined Ligue 1 side Stade Rennais from CS Sedan Ardennes on a free transfer in 2011, and played over ninety times for Phillipe Montanier's side.
During his two year spell with Sedan, he was named as the best goalkeeper in Ligue 2 in the 2010/2011 season.
Costil made 31 first team appearances last season, but was unable to agree to a contract extension with the club, who finished 10th.
The Frenchman is expected to battle with Dutch goalkeeper Tim Krul, 26, who has been with Newcastle since 2006.
Hakim Ziyech is a 21-year-old Moroccan winger who is known for his technique and free kick ability
Since 2012, he has made over 40 appearances for Heerenveen, and has featured in Holland's youth setup, scoring two goals in three games.
Ziyech is expected to be used as cover for Remy Cabella, but it has been rumoured that the youngster could be involved in a loan move, with Alan Pardew likely to want to keep Ziyech in England.
Granada centre-back heads for Newcastle after Yanga-Mbiwa departure
Granada's Jeison Murillo has left La Liga to sign for Barclays Premier League side Newcastle - after 'The Magpies' sold French centre back Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa to division rivals Southampton.
Yanga-Mbiwa commanded a fee of £13 million as he completed his move away from St James' Park, although Southampton will pay just £6 million up front, with the other £7 million being paid over 12 months.
The Frenchman was a regular in Newcastle's lineup last season making 26 league appearances, but Alan Pardew was not too impressed with the 25-year-old defender's performances, and it was only when vice-captain Ron Vlaar picked up an injury that Pardew decided to put the former Montpellier man in the lineup.
Mistakes early on in the season from the defender, capped three times for France, made Pardew unsure of his reliability, and a partnership of Fabricio Colocinni and Ron Vlaar was preferred. When he was brought into the squad, he was a fairly reliable member of the team, but it looks as though Pardew thinks there are better options available to the club.
And an option that he followed through with was Granada's 22-year-old centre back Jeison Murillo.
After making enquiries about the availability of Shakhtar Donetsk defender Yaroslav Rakytskiy and AS Monaco defender Aymen Abdennour, Pardew was unimpressed with the valuation that was set for the defenders. Rakytskiy eventually moved to Monaco for £19 million, while Abdennour made way for the Ukrainian by departing for Tottenham Hotspur for £11 million.
Newcastle had a bid of £11 million accepted from Marseille for Cameroonian centre back Nicolas N'Koulou, but he rejected them, also heading to Monaco.
Jeison Murillo missed just one of Granada's league games last season as they finished in tenth place, and was praised by fans for his strength at the back, nicknamed by some as 'Mr Reliable'.
The Colombian international costs Newcastle a fee of £12 million, and becomes the fourth signing to arrive at St James' Park this summer.
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