Hughton Preparing To Offer That No 9 Shirt

Leon Best got himself in hot water this week telling a Midlands newspaper he had turned down the No 9 Toon shirt, when in fact Chris Hughton insisted "he was not GIVEN it!" The Newcastle boss was quick to say: "That shirt is an institution on Tyneside and the owner must be worthy". So NO player has it this season, but the potential successor to Alan Shearer (well . Oba Martins to be honest with you) could be Andy Carroll. Chris Hughton: "Potentially, he is number nine material. He's a player who leads the line. "In some ways, he's an old-fashioned centre-forward who has a prowess in the air, but he's still developing his game and he has to continue to do that. "He has good football skills for a big man, but what he has to add to his game is goals, and he was able to do that tonight." "There have been some really good performances - I think you can take as much out of Sheffield United away 1-0 as you can tonight. "But from a footballing point of view, this is the most pleasing."

Source: FOOTYMAD