Newcastle United Football Club

• Nickname:Magpies
• Founded:1881
• Manager:Alan Pardew

• Ground:St James' Park
• Capacity:52193

Kev: We've silenced critics

05 Apr 2008 - 08:06:45

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Newcastle United boss Kevin Keegan believes his players have answered their critics following their recent revival.

The resurgent Magpies are aiming for a third Premier League victory in a row when they host Reading at St James' Park on Saturday.

Back-to-back wins over Fulham and Tottenham have eased relegation fears on Tyneside and Keegan - who had to wait until his tenth game back at the club to secure his first victory - believes his players have now confounded their critics.

"We always said we could answer any critics and any people who were having a go at us on a football field and that's what we did," he claimed.

"That's pleasing. It is no good me standing here getting annoyed at people who have written stuff that isn't true or is wide of the mark.

"We just kept quiet and said: 'Let us do something about it, let us write the stories, let us make the headlines'.

"We have done that in the last couple of weeks in the only way you can at a football club, and that is on the field, by playing well and getting results.

"These players have started to show me – and more importantly themselves - that there is a lot of ability at this football club.

"I am as optimistic as I have always been."