Rob Lee: "Nothing surprises me in football, but that (Alan Shearer appointed as Toon boss) would.
"I think he would love to do it, I think he would still love to be involved in football management.
"But when they have come out with the statement they want experience, it's probably the only thing he hasn't got.
"Martin O'Neill, for me, would be a great appointment, but at Aston Villa he had a bit of a bust-up with his chairman because he didn't get enough money to spend - and I think he gave him £100million.
"Would he come and manage Newcastle with no money? I don't think so.
"His track record at Leicester and Celtic and even at Aston Villa was brilliant, so I would have thought the fans would be very pleased with him.
"But in my opinion, I can't see him coming to Newcastle without any money. If he is promised a lot of money to spend on the club, then maybe it would be a different scenario.
"I remember we had the same scenario when Kevin [Keegan] left.
"We didn't see Kevin leaving for the first time, it just came totally out of the blue after an FA Cup game.
"The players are all brought together and told what's happening as quickly as possible.
"Yes, training will probably be a bit sombre this morning, but players get over it very, very quickly and if someone comes in and gets the place buzzing again and they get a couple of wins, then unfortunately that's football.
"Players forget very, very easily."