Marlon Harewood will get goals says Hughton

Oct 20 2009 by Mark Douglas, The Journal

CHRIS Hughton is adamant Marlon Harewood can bring goals to Newcastle – despite his arrival coinciding with a barren run for United.

The Aston Villa loanee came in for fierce criticism following the Nottingham Forest defeat for a lacklustre performance which saw him contribute little and fall out with some of his team-mates.

Despite a strong start – which included rising from the bench to notch a crucial leveller against QPR – his promotion to the starting line-up has also seen a previously free-scoring United go two games without scoring.

However, Hughton, who had to persuade the club’s owner Mike Ashley to bankroll the striker’s £25,000-a-week wages, will stick with the bruising forward and resist calls to drop him at Scunthorpe tonight. He said: “I will persevere with him.

“He is a player who has been brought in – he missed a fair chunk of pre-season, which we are aware of, and I am quite sure Marlon will get stronger and better with every game,” he said.

Meanwhile, Hughton is hopeful of having Argentina defender Fabricio Coloccini available for the Doncaster game on Saturday – and fellow centre-back Steven Taylor fit again in a fortnight.

He added: “There is no chance of Taylor or Coloccini being fit for the Scunthorpe game.

“We are very hopeful over Colo for Saturday – he trained today and, provided he does not break down, we expect him to be involved against Doncaster.

“For Steven Taylor, we are very optimistic for Sheffield United.”