With Tim Krul and Rob Elliot both out injured and third-choice goalkeeper Jan Alnwick also a fitness concern after damaging his shoulder during a 4-0 defeat to Tottenham yesterday evening, Newcastle could be forced to request an emergency loan from the Premier League ahead of the Tyne-Wear derby on Sunday.
Currently, Alan Pardew is left with teenage shot-stopper Freddie Woodman, but the Magpies boss has already stressed his concerns about throwing a 17 year-old into the most important fixture on both the Toon and Black Cats’ calendars.
Resultantly, it’s believed Newcastle are considering an emergency loan move – which can be granted by the FA if a club only has one fit professional goalkeeper – but there’s not much time to consider the options.
Thus, being the ever helpful bunch we are at Football Fancast, here’s FIVE for Pards to mull over.
MARK SCHWARZER
Boasting arguably the strongest goalkeeping department in world football through Thibaut Courtois, Petr Cech and Mark Schwarzer, parting with the experienced Aussie for a few games certainly wouldn’t impact Chelsea’s first team plans too much.
Yet to make an appearance in any competition this season, ring rust could be an issue for the 42 year-old.
But he performed well towards the end of last season when called upon to step in for Petr Cech, particularly against Atletico Madrid in the Champions League semi-final, maintaining the impeccable consistency shown throughout his 19 seasons in English football.
With 508 Premier League appearances under his belt, Schwarzer certainly won’t be overawed by the intensity of the Tyne-Wear derby. Here’s a clip of the veteran ‘keeper in action:
Chelsea rejected a loan offer from former club Fulham for the 6 foot 5 Australian back in October. But with Petr Cech confirming that he’ll say on at Stamford Bridge until the summer and Schwarzer’s loan spell likely to consist of just a handful of fixtures, the Blues may be more accommodating to the Magpies’ unique situation.
JACK BUTLAND
Jack Butland is currently Stoke City’s second-choice goalkeeper but the England prodigy will be keen to get some more Premier League experience under his belt, even if it’s just the one outing against Sunderland.
Indeed, the Potters snapped up the 21 year-old for £3.5million in January 2013 following his incredible form at Birmingham City. But he’s gone on to make just three appearances in the top flight, continually stuck behind Bosnian international Asmir Begovic in the pecking order.
He’s undoubtedly talented however, making England’s Euro 2012 squad when he was still a teenager and already amassing over 100 appearances in the Football League. Here’s a clip of Butland in action:
Mark Hughes was happy enough to let Butland join Derby County for a month-long loan spell earlier this season, calling upon 38 year-old veteran Thomas Sorensen to fill his void on the bench. That suggests Stoke could part with the young goalie for a few games without significantly damaging their squad depth.
The Tyne-Wear derby will constitute one of the biggest occasions of Butland’s career thus far however, so it remains to be seen if he’ll thrive or crumble under the pressure.
MICHEL VORM
Another second-choice keeper in desperate need of game-time, Michel Vorm can’t be happy with his current situation at Tottenham Hotspur.
The Netherlands international more than proved his quality at Premier League level with Swansea City, amassing 89 appearances as the Welsh club’s No.1 before moving to White Hart Lane this summer. Here’s a clip of the 31 year-old in action:
The assumption at the time was that the Lilywhites would be forced to sell Hugo Lloris, but the French No.1 stayed on, leaving Vorm still waiting on his Premier League debut for the north London side.
He has however, amassed five outings in the Europa League and League Cup combined this season, bagging two clean sheets.
A short stint with the Magpies would help Vorm keep of the ring-rust and Tottenham player-coach Brad Fridel is a more acceptable stand-in.
The Dutchman’s a dab hand at saving penalties too – which could make all the difference in the Tyne-Wear derby:
Shay Given
Who better to rescue Newcastle in their desperate time of need than an club icon Shay Given?
The Republic of Ireland centurion made 354 Premier League appearances for the Magpies during his twelve years at St. James’ Park before leaving for Manchester City in 2009, twice making it into the PFA Team of the Year. Some of his performances for Newcastle, as shown in the video below, verged upon world-class:
The 38 year-old may no longer possess the talismanic shot-stopping abilities of his younger years but he’s still going strong, currently serving as Brad Guzan’s deputy at Aston Villa.
Whether Paul Lambert would be prepared to weaken his bench remains to be seen, considering third-choice goalie Benjamin Siegrist has only ever made three appearances at club level, from a loan stint with then-Conference side Cambridge United.
But the Villains would benefit from strengthening Newcastle on Sunday – they’re currently just three points above Sunderland in the Premier League table and will likely be jostling with the Black Cats for final league standings come the end of May.
Ben Amos
A forgotten man at Manchester United, Ben Amos would give anything for a bit of Premier League action right now.
The 24 year-old fell afoul of Louis van Gaal on the Red Devils’ preseason tour for his involvement – or rather, lack of – in this 60-yard lob from Roma’s Miralem Pjanic:
The 24 year-old’s shown more positive glimpses of his potential before however, enjoying productive loan stays with Oldham Athletic, Carlisle United and Hull City in the Football League.
This athletic save from a Leandro Castan bicycle kick, in the same friendly as Pjanic’s lob, wasn’t too bad either:
A decent record with the Junior Lions, boasting 17 caps for England from U16 to U21 level, further underlines Amos’ pedigree.
Throwing him into the Tyne-Wear derby would be a real case of sink or swim however, so Alan Pardew may prefer a less risky option.
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