Source: Telegraph
Xisco kid lifts the lid on Newcastle chaos
Having made only five league appearances last season, Xisco certainly has a point to prove when he faces England at Gothenburg's Ullevi Stadium on Thursday in the Uefa Under-21 Championship.
The £7 million recruit from Deportivo La Coruna has come to represent the naivety, tension and lack of planning of the Mike Ashley era.
Xisco is understood to have been the signing of two Ashley allies, Tony Jimenez and Dennis Wise, whose involvement in transfers antagonised the manager at the time, Kevin Keegan.
Xisco fell victim to the politics of St James' Park, being ignored by Keegan, then Joe Kinnear and finally Alan Shearer. He has four years left on a lucrative contract, will learn next season's Championship schedule when the fixtures come out on Wednesday and is incredibly frustrated.
"This last year has been hard, very hard," Xisco said yesterday. "When I signed from Coruna I knew Newcastle were a historic team, great fans, great players and a lot of money.
"But there were many problems. First it was like a small snowball, then the problems rolled and rolled, got bigger and bigger and then when it was time to wake up it was too late. We did not have time to recover.
"I knew the story that Keegan was not the one who wanted to sign me. We never spoke much. I would say 'hello'. That was about it.
"When Kinnear came... for me nothing. On that first Monday I knew I would not be playing. There was no communication with Kinnear. I was very angry. For a player the most important thing is respect. I felt they didn't care if I trained well or trained badly. It was 'You stay here and train one or two hours and then go home'.
"The first game when Kinnear left [became ill] I played 10 minutes against West Brom and this day was like 'wow, I play again!' Next reserve game I played against Manchester City and I get an injury with my toe. I was out for 2½ months.
"At the beginning it improved when Shearer came in. But I understand his situation. He had to use players who had played all season. He had only eight games to change it around. That was too short. But no one thought Newcastle would go down."
Xisco paints a picture of a club in paralysis, waiting for Ashley to sell up, leaving players in limbo, although all are available for sale barring the likes of Sebastien Bassong and Steven Taylor.
"They don't know what they want," added Xisco of the board. "I don't know what I will do. Newcastle don't know what will happen with the manager, who is the manager, nothing.
"I have to wait for a call to see if they want me there or if they want me to go on loan. I cannot afford another year like it.
"I need to play. If I can't play at Newcastle I have to find another team. I love England and Newcastle is a nice city to live in.
"I was surprised because I had heard many legends about England. About the weather, the food and the time when everything closes – 5pm!
"In Spain it is not like this! But I was together with [Fabricio] Coloccini and Jonas [Gutierrez] and life in the city was good. Beautiful people, always friendly.
"I am sad for everyone because Newcastle fans are amazing. I remember my first game when I came. It was: 'Wow, what a team, what fans.'
"It has all been very sad for the club and the city. When we win or when we lose the mood of the city changes."
A regular with Spain's Under-21s despite his travails at Newcastle, Xisco cannot wait for Thursday.
"I have to show to the Newcastle fans what I can do. I have given many tips to my team-mates about England. They have a strong team of very good, quick, quality players. We know their principal dangers: [Theo] Walcott and [Gabriel] Agbonlahor. I like the right-back [Micah] Richards too."
The Manchester City defender insisted yesterday that he would be fit to face Xisco after jarring a knee during Monday's 2-1 win over Finland. Nedum Onuoha trained yesterday and replaces the suspended Michael Mancienne alongside Richards.
Just as Xisco wants to show people his worth, Richards views the tournament as an opportunity to remind Fabio Capello, the England manager, of his ability. "My aim is to get back into the seniors," said Richards. "I have not spoken to Fabio. I am just trying to get my performances back up to my standard then hopefully I will be in with a shout."
Richards, Onuoha and the rest of Stuart Pearce's players are spending their spare time "chilling out watching films", according to Richards, along with bouts of Wii combat.
"Theo wins hands down every time,"Richards added.
