Joe looking for luck after injuries

Dec 11 2008 by Stuart Rayner, The Journal

JOE Kinnear is hoping for more luck as much as more money in January after admitting a spate of injuries in the same position have left his Newcastle United squad exposed.

The Magpies have doubts over Nicky Butt, Danny Guthrie and Damien Duff for Sunday’s trip to Portsmouth. With Joey Barton, Alan Smith and Ignacio González definitely out, they face a major problem at Fratton Park.

While the injuries make Kinnear’s task on the south coast more difficult, it strengthens his case for reinforcements in the January transfer window. “It’s sickening that all the recent injuries have come in midfield,” Kinnear admitted. “We’ve lost Damien Duff, Butt, Barton and now Guthrie and you can’t legislate for that as a manager, not all those players missing at the same time

“Joey has absolutely no chance of playing against Portsmouth, he won’t be back for a few weeks yet, but looking ahead to Sunday we’ll probably have Butt and Guthrie back and maybe, just maybe, Duff as well.”

Guthrie limped off against Stoke City at the weekend with a hip injury, a game Butt missed with a hamstring complaint. Duff has a groin problem. Defender Cláudio Caçapa and winger Jonás Gutiérrez finished Saturday’s game as makeshift central midfielders.

With Mark Viduka only edging back to full fitness after a summer Achilles operation and the St James’s Park treatment room its usual busy self, Kinnear has never had a fully-fit

group of players to select from. It is why he is anxious to add quantity to the quality as soon as he can buy new players.

“We have some quality players in the squad, but we have a small squad and injuries and suspensions hurt us,” added the interim manager. “Hopefully we will be able to address that in January in the transfer market and we’ll get some better luck on the injury front because it’s been cruel to us recently. There will be money available, it’s just a question of how much.

“I’m still very confident we will not be relegated at the end of the season, but we also know it’s going to be tough for us if we do not strengthen the squad and start getting players back from injury.

“If we have everyone fit, our first choice XI would finish in the top half of the table, no problem. On our day, if we have our full team out on the pitch, we are a match for anyone in this league which is why I’m looking forward to the FA Cup.”

United have been drawn away to this season’s surprise Premier League package, Hull City, in the third round of the FA Cup. While it represents the club’s last opportunity to stop their run without a domestic trophy extending to 54 seasons, Kinnear believes it can also help lift their league form.

“We’ve got a tough draw away at Hull, but it’s also a game we will believe we can win,” he explained. “The FA Cup is a magnificent competition, I know all about Newcastle United’s history in it and how much it means to the supporters.

“The league will be our first priority because of the position we are in, but the cup can have a positive impact.”

Bolton Wanderers hope to further undermine Kinnear’s midfield resources by competing with Wigan Athletic for Butt’s signature.

The Trotters were interested in Butt when he left Manchester United in 2004.

United do not want to sell, but with the former England international’s contract due to run out in the summer, the North West clubs will aim to persuade them to let him go for a cut price in January.