And if he wasn't good enough for relegated Charlton, who waved the option of buying him, I get the feeling we're wasting our time writing this article.
Stick this story in the "seen it - load of bollox" box.
Don't Read Too Much Into Chinese Takaway
And if he wasn't good enough for relegated Charlton, who waved the option of buying him, I get the feeling we're wasting our time writing this article.
Stick this story in the "seen it - load of bollox" box.
MATCH REPORT BELOW:
Sunday March 18th 2007CHARLTON 2 NEWCASTLE UTD 0
CHARLTON: Carson, Young, El Karkouri, Diawara, Hreidarsson,Zheng, Holland, Song Billong (Faye 40), Thomas,Darren Bent (Lisbie 83), Marcus Bent (Rommedahl 46).
Subs Not Used: Randolph, Bougherra.
NEWCASTLE: Given, Solano, Onyewu, Moore, Duff,Dyer (N'Zogbia 76), Parker, Emre, Milner, Martins, Sibierski.
Subs Not Used: Harper, Bramble, Huntington, Carroll.
On the morning of this game I received an e-mail from a gentleman saying the comments on the site are "too negative", and that Newcastle "can still qualify for the UEFA Cup because we are still a top class team". I'll tell you now, I know for a fact that gentleman wasn't in Holland on Thursday, but I only hope he was at the Valley on Sunday to see for himself our plight. If that team qualifies for the UEFA Cup I'll show my arse in Fenwick's window!
That is no disrespect for the team I love ... just a pure simple fact of life.
Before the game we heard Scott Parker say the match would be difficult, but that only because United made it harder than it should have been. Charlton were shocking. No shape, no purpose, just a group of individuals banging away hoping - by hook or by crook - to get something in the way of a goal for their endeavour. As it happens, they found the suckers who would grant them their wish.
For 54 minutes United matched Charlton for "nothingness", apart from Oba Martins missing the chance of a lifetime. But then Zheng Zhi used his head to dramatically improve Charlton's chances of staying in the Premiership. A league they simply aren't good enough to be in!
But they scored and showed some fight after it. Newcastle on the other hand, handed them three points on a plate. To be honest, if this was the last game of the season and Charlton needed those points to stay up ... there would have been an enquiry. Heads went down, no-one gave a toss, and they lay down and died.
The Chinese international midfielder headed a 54th-minute goal and won an 88th-minute penalty which Jerome Thomas converted to give the Addicks' a glimmer of hope.
Zheng, on loan for the rest of the season from Shandong Luneng, was on the spot to coolly head into an empty net after Darren Bent's clever free-kick had bounced down off the bar nine minutes after half-time.
Then Zheng went down in the box after a nudge by Nobby Solano and Thomas ended it all from the spot.
It means Charlton are now just four points behind 17th-placed Sheffield United, having picked up seven points from their last three games.
With Sheffield United and Wigan to play in south London before the end of the campaign, boss Alan Pardew will believe he can get his new team out of jail,
but they will put up a tougher fight than Newcastle ... I'm sure. Zheng could have easily scored two more goals - but he shot over after Bent's header came back off a post and then saw another effort blocked by Newcastle's Craig Moore, playing for the first time in 26 matches after a hamstring injury.