Joey Barton: “This is a football team which sort of thrives when our backs are against the wall.
“There has been a lot of water under the bridge this week, more than any other.
"Newcastle is a high intensity football environment and there is no escaping the media spotlight.
"All we can do is do what we do best – play football.
“We had a little bit of a ropey 15 or 20 minutes at the start but we got back into the game and showed an enormous amount of character and team spirit to win at a very tough place to come.”
“I’m aware of what has gone on this week, but I’m not aware of anything about the manager.
“In my opinion, it’s ridiculous if there has been any speculation about his future. It’s the industry we are in, unfortunately.
“The job Chris has done in taking the club from the point of oblivion to where we are now shows how farcical the speculation can be at times.
“There was never any pressure felt inside the camp. We were all pulling in the same direction.
“We have a massive team spirit, the likes of which I’ve never experienced at a football club before and that shows on the pitch.
“We have gone 1-0 down away from home and I think the statistics show, 80 per cent of the time that happens you either lose or draw.
“We gave Wigan a two-goal start last week and clawed it back and we’ve given West Ham a goal and beaten them.
“It is frustrating we keep giving goals away, but it just strengthens the spirit when we come back.
“We have that togetherness and that camaraderie.
“Everything that has gone on this week, that little bit of pressure that was created, it didn’t matter.
“The person responsible shall go nameless, but I’m not one to comment. I’ve been guilty of it in the past."