My Newcastle United Player Ratings vs Man Utd (A)

Player Ratings

Tim Krul (9) - A superb display of goalkeeping by our young Dutch international. Made some terrific saves and was worthy of walking away with the man of the match in my opinion, for he only made one mistake all game.

Danny Simpson (8.5) – Made that goal saving block on the line at the end and defended with great heart and quality. Although Evra did well going forward I credit Simmo with keeping Ashley Young so quiet and ineffective.

Steven Taylor (8.5) – Was unlucky to be involved in their goal but apart from that he was superb in the air and made one goal saving tackle himself. Another impressive display by a man who cannot be far from the England squad.

Fabricio Coloccini (8.5) – Passed a late fitness test to play in the game and its great that he did for he was a rock at the back. Formed a solid partnership with Taylor throughout despite Hernandez making good runs and led by example.

Ryan Taylor (7.5) – A better performance from the left back. Made some good challenges when needed and deserves a lot of credit especially after his nightmare last week.

Gabriel Obertan (7) – He certainly was very involved in the first half, although his final ball could have been better. For a player who missed the last few games though he did not do too badly.

Yohan Cabaye (7.5) – Put in a good shift and helped us control some good portions of the game. Made some good tackles and showed why the fans have taken too him.

Danny Guthrie (7.5) – Put in a really good shift, considering he hardly trained this week. Broke up a few attacks and looked good in possession. Was unlucky to be taken off as it was purely for fitness reasons and not for the way he played.

Jonas Gutierrez (7) – Worked hard without really getting into many attacking positions. The sending off was possibly more to do with tiredness and not through stupidity.

Hatem Ben Arfa (7) – Kept possession well for us at times when it was needed and of course won us the penalty with a decent run. I’d like him to continue starting as he seems to be getting better with each game.

Demba Ba (7.5) – Had a difficult afternoon playing as the one striker but kept going until the end and took his penalty superbly.

Substitutes

Sammy Ameobi (6) – Was hardly in the game as an attacking sense but tried to help out defensively where he could.

James Perch (6.5) – A small impact by him as he came on for Guthrie and helped us hang on at the end.

Peter Lovenkrands (6) – Do not recall him doing much when coming on towards the end.

Newcastle United Man of the Match – Tim Krul

My Newcastle United Player Ratings vs Man City (A)

Player Ratings

Tim Krul (6) - Never looked like stopping either penalty and won't be happy about conceding three. Did make the odd neat save though.

Danny Simpson (6) - A difficult day for him although he did not do much wrong either.

Steven Taylor (7) - Defended bravely and made some excellent challenges in the first half. It became hard for him once we conceded those two quick goals though.

Fabricio Coloccini (6.5) - Like his partner, defended well at times but had a difficult day marking the likes of Balotelli and Aguero.

Ryan Taylor (4) - He's worst performance of the season. Gave away the penalty, caught out for the second goal and allowed Richards far too much space down his flank.

Sammy Ameobi (7) - For someone starting his first game, he was decent today. Made some good runs and won us some corners although his decision making and passing was lacking a bit. That comes with someone so young but an encouraging performance from him none the less.

Danny Guthrie (6) - Struggled to win us possession and although he fought hard, we missed Tiote massively in our midfield. Seemed to lack fitness towards the end for some reason.

Yohan Cabaye (6) - Another who worked hard but failed to provide us with dominance in central midfield. Will hopefully be better next week.

Jonas Gutierrez (5.5) - Hardly got to the chance to attack and struggled to handle the City players down his flank.

Hatem Ben Arfa (7) - Looked good on the ball and showed more glimpses of his undoubted talent. Was unlucky not to score after a superb run when he hit the post and also showed his vision with a ball that found Ba in space from which he should have scored in the first half. Gave away the 2nd penalty with a clumsy challenge but the game was lost by then in my opinion.

Demba Ba (6) - Had a difficult afternoon but he still had chances to had to his goals tally. Missed a great chance in the first half and could have done better with one or two other chances but he fought right until the end and that showed when he was involved in our goal late on.

Substitutions
Peter Lovenkrands (5) - Was fairly anonymous after coming on.

Dan Gosling (7) - Scored his first goal for the club with a late tap in.

James Perch (7) - Never thought I'd say this but Perch did well in the build up to our goal, as it was a deflection off his pass which saw Ba with a chance which was then parried by the keeper and put in by Gosling.

Newcastle United Man of the Match - Steven Taylor

My Newcastle United Player Ratings vs Everton (H)

Player Ratings

Tim Krul (7) - Hardly had that much to do in all honesty although his handling was top draw.

Danny Simpson (7) - Allowed Rodwell to beat him to the ball for their goal but apart from that he contributed to the win today with some good defending. He also provided the cross which led to the opener.

Steven Taylor (7.5) - Played Saha onside in one moment of poor decision making but won a lot in the air and did well generally.

Fabricio Coloccini (8.5) - Outstanding display by our skipper. He won some vital challenges, dealt calmly with some situations when calmness was required and looked our best player today.

Ryan Taylor (8) - Had a difficult time marking Drenthe although there were times he defended well too. Scored what turned out to be the winner with a superb strike worthy of winning the match.

Sylvain Marveaux (7) - Wasn't in the game that much although he did show some glimpses of what we can expect when he gets a chance in the team. Worked hard and won the ball a few times although unfortunately for him he picked up an injury which could be serious considering he has a history of having groin problems.

Danny Guthrie (8) - I thought he was outstanding in the middle of the park. Kept possession well, got stuck in and kept going right up until the end. Seems to be relishing his chance in the team.

Yohan Cabaye (6.5) - Formed a nice partnership with Guthrie before having to go off injured just after we made it 2-0.

Jonas Gutierrez (7) - In terms of work rate he was excellent again. Helped out the back line on quite a few occasions. Hardly attacked today but I think what today showed is that he should always play on the left.

Demba Ba (7) - Worked hard without really getting many opportunities today. Came deep a few times and again was more effective than Best.

Leon Best (7) - Put in a good shift without getting any opportunities to have a shot at goal. Played his part in unsettling Everton which led to us winning the game in the first half.

Substitutes
Dan Gosling (7) - Did fairly well when coming on considering he has hardly featured at this level for the last 18 months. Made some good challenges although he was fortunate not to be penalised for handling the ball in the box. Will no doubt get better if given more game time.

Sammy Ameobi (7.5) - I enjoyed his cameo. Made some decent runs, helped out defensively and held up the ball with his unique style. Does seem a bit raw still but that's expected of someone his age.

Hatem Ben Arfa (7.5) - Did his job nicely when coming on. Held up the ball, won fouls and played the clock down which was what we needed to clinch the victory.

Newcastle United Man of the Match - Fabricio Coloccini

My Newcastle United Player Ratings vs Stoke City (A)

Player Ratings

Tim Krul (7.5) - Was put under a lot of pressure but handled everything well. Came out to punch some balls, claimed a few corners and stood up to the challenges put to him.

Danny Simpson (7.5) - A performance with lots of passion and commitment from the rightback. Prevented Etherington from putting many balls into the box.

Steven Taylor (8) - Considering he was playing with a mask after his broken nose, he came through the game with flying colours. A really courageous performance.

Fabricio Coloccini (8.5) - Kept Crouch quiet and led from the front. Assured and intelligent defending from our captain for virtually the entire game.

Ryan Taylor (8) - Dealt with the the threat of Pennant and did not allow him to provide any sort of cross which could harm our defence. He also took some blows but carried on which is a sign of the spirit within the team.

Gabriel Obertan (7.5) - Provided Ba with a cross of a true quality in the opener and always looked dangerous, particularly in the first half. Wasn't in the game as much in the second half but a promising performance from our speedy winger.

Yohan Cabaye (7) - Put himself about without really stealing any headlines. Did play some good long balls for Ba and Obertan to run onto, which Stoke at times were unable to handle.

Danny Guthrie (8) - For someone who was starting his first Premier League game of the season he was quite impressive. Kept the ball nicely and won some tackles in midfield. I'd tie him down to a new contract as he seems willing and able to come into our central midfield if needed.

Jonas Gutierrez (8) - The amount of defensive work Jonas did yesterday was unbelievable. He helped Ryan Taylor quite a bit and played a big part in our win last night, without really attacking that much.

Leon Best (7.5) - Caused Stoke quite a bit of trouble and its no wonder as he was involved in the build up to all three of our goals. Just needs to find the net himself now as that's the only thing lacking.

Demba Ba (9.5) - There's not much I need to say about his performance last night. The performance spoke for itself. What I will say though is he silenced the Britannia Stadium with clinical finishing and he always looked a threat. Deserved the hat trick and the match ball which came with it.

Substitutes
James Perch (6) - Made one decent tackle but otherwise I really did not see the need to give him game time ahead of Santon.

Dan Gosling (N/A) - Don't think he touched the ball in the few minutes he was on for.

Sammy Ameobi (N/A) - Only had a few touches in his brief cameo.

Newcastle United Man of the Match - Demba Ba