Sam Allardyce has admitted that Newcastle's battling 1-1 draw with Premier League leaders Arsenal has lifted the pressure on him.
Newcastle fought back from a goal down to thwart Arsene Wenger's unbeaten side, who had to be content with stretching their lead over their nearest rivals Manchester United to four points.
Newcastle still have much rebuilding to do after claiming only their second point in six games thanks to Steven Taylor's second-half equalizer.
But manager Allardyce was understandably keen to accentuate the positive and said: "It was a huge result and under the circumstances, it's a weight lifted off us all. I don't want to see a crisis ever again, if that was a crisis okay, but I never called it one. I'm always relieved when I get a result and the players have done all they can for me."
After issuing a public vote of confidence in Allardyce earlier this week, Newcastle's players backed their words with deeds in a bid to quell fears the manager was at loggerheads with his squad over tactics, team selection and his unpopular plans to take them away for a four-day bonding break over Christmas.
"Whispers leak out when things aren't going so well and they get written into massive headlines, it's a fact of life at this club," Allardyce said. "They showed great commitment to get the fans behind them, that was there for all to see. We've got to make sure we build from this now starting with Birmingham on Saturday [tomorrow], make sure things don't turn again."
Newcastle fought back after a stunning early striker from Emmanuel Adebayor put Arsenal in command and Allardyce added: "At the start I'd have settled for a draw but in the end I thought we didn't get what we deserved."
"It's not often you get Arsenal on the back foot for so long, they were hanging on at the end. I love to hear the fans behind us like they were, that's what I took the job for and it's what you want to hear every week," he said.
Arsenal remain unbeaten in the league since April and Wenger was unsurprised by the battle his side faced as they ground out another point in their attempts to wrest the title from United's grasp.
The Frenchman -- who admitted he is unlikely to see his lengthy injury list reduced before the weekend -- said: "I could feel there was a crisis at Newcastle and because of that I'd anticipated it'd be very difficult."
"I don't know about the differences within the club, but it looked like their players made a union to stick together and they fought like mad," he said.
Wenger reiterated his offer to the Football Association to tap into his expertise in their efforts to fill the vacant England manager's job, but revealed he is yet to meet FA chief executive Brian Barwick.
The Frenchman remains keen for an Englishman to replace Steve McClaren.
"I'll leave it to Brian Barwick to inform you of who he sees," he said. "I'm like a doctor, I have a confidentiality clause. I've not met him yet but if he wants to I will give him my opinion. I've said many times that it has to be an Englishman. I'm more nationalistic than many English people who want to give it to Mourinho or Capello. I'm the only one who goes for an Englishman."
Bayer 04 Leverkusen go into today’s match at TSG 1899 Hoffenheim stung from their first league defeat in 16 months. Leverkusen were beaten 3-2 at home by RB Leipzig before the international break, the first loss since May last year for the reigning league and cup champions. While any defeat, particularly against a likely title rival, would have disappointed coach Xabi Alonso, the way in which it happened would be most concerning. Just as they did in the Supercup against VfB Stuttgart and in the league opener to Borussia Moenchengladbach, Leverkusen scored first, but were pegged back. However, while Leverkusen rallied late to
The lights dimmed and the crowd hushed as Karoline Kristensen entered for her performance. However, this was no ordinary Dutch theater: The temperature was 80°C and the audience naked apart from a towel. Dressed in a swimsuit and to the tune of emotional music, the 21-year-old Kristensen started her routine, performed inside a large sauna, with a bed of hot rocks in the middle. For a week this month, a group of wellness practitioners, called “sauna masters,” are gathering at a picturesque health resort in the Netherlands to compete in this year’s Aufguss world sauna championships. The practice takes its name from a
Japanese players are moving to English soccer in record numbers and more look set to follow with clubs attracted by their quality, strong work ethic and value for money. Kaoru Mitoma is the standout talent of five Japanese players in the English Premier League, with eight more in the Championship and two in League One. Liverpool midfielder Wataru Endo, the captain of Japan, believes his compatriots are “being held in higher esteem” by English clubs compared with the past. “The staff at Liverpool ask me about lots of Japanese players, not necessarily with a view to a transfer, but just saying this or
Taiwan yesterday survived Bosnia and Herzegovina to win their Davis Cup World Group I tie at the Taipei Tennis Center. The tight series started on Saturday with world No. 123 Jason Tseng losing 3-6, 7-5, 6-4 to Mirza Basic in the opening singles matchup. However, teammate Tony Wu kept the tie even, dominating world No. 86 Damir Dzumhur 6-2, 6-1. Yesterday, 24-year-old Ray Ho and partner 25-year-old Hsu Yu-hsiou kept up the momentum, making short work of Basic and Nerman Fatic, winning 6-3, 6-4. Tseng then suffered another defeat, losing 6-4, 2-6, 6-2 to Dzumhur in a brutal match that lasted more than two