Newcastle United Officially In Crisis

Pardew is doing his best to look and sound calm, but the good ship Newcastle has hit an iceberg in a force nine gale and three torpedoes are closing in on the starboard side. The defeat at home to Everton was not a disaster in itself - Moyes' side are genuine Champions League contenders this season - but on the back of recent results, it confirms that the Barcodes are, for the time being at least, engaged in a relegation battle.

Meanwhile the loss of Ba is a huge blow. Big Chief Broken Knee may be one challenge away from a career ending injury, but £7m is not enough to replace him and the Wee Little Club in the North don't seem to be flush with transfer funds at the moment. There's talk of Loic Remy but he is damaged goods himself and his price has been inflated ridiculously with no proof that he will cut it in the Prem. And Maiga? If Newcastle expect him to save them, then these are desperate times indeed.

And changing the manager isn't going to be easy, given that incredible contract Pardew was awarded. How much compensation would he be owed exactly? Even when Newcastle were flying that contract seemed slightly mad; now they are bumping along the bottom, it seems absolutely bloody crazy.

Of course, the crisis could be over by the end of January. Two or three good results could see Newcastle pull away from those in trouble at the bottom. This side is, after all, too good to go down, isn't it?

But then, we've heard that before, haven't we?