Pardew Grasps At Straws To Defend His Skipper!

Alan Pardew has insisted the full meaning of an open letter from Fabricio Coloccini to Argentinian club San Lorenzo may have been lost in translation.

Alan Pardew: "When you interpret one language from another, while the words can look the same, the interpretation can be slightly different and I think the interpretation of that was slightly lost, if I'm honest.

"It's his home-town club, of course, and he's got friends and family there, and I think he just wanted to say, 'Thanks for your offer of help if I needed it'.

"Unfortunately for them, it hasn't happened; fortunately for us, he remains our captain and committed to the cause, make no mistake about that."

Source: Newcastle United Mad