Pulling out the stops?

The football returns this weekend after a two week absence and Newcastle finally have the chance to put the memory of that 4-0 defeat against Stoke behind them.

They will have to pull out all the stops though if they are to beat a Wolves team who have been resurgent in recent fixtures and avoid being dragged deeper into the relegation scrap. If the boys in black and white can manage that then it would mean a lot of fans can breathe a bit easier, but pulling out the stops in one game won't completely dispel any lingering relegation fears.

To do that, Newcastle must pull out all the stops (you must bee seeing the theme here) until we are mathematically assured of being safe. Once we are safe, this stop pulling malarkey must continue.

Because once we are safe the club will have to pull out all the stops to try and keep hold of players like Jose Enrique and Joey Barton. As was discussed yesterday, neither of those players are irreplaceable, but it would make life a lot easier and would save us time, effort and money searching for replacements for them.

So what would be the best way to persuade these two players that they can achieve their goals here at Newcastle? Well, ahem, by pulling out all the stops in the summer transfer market and improving the overall quality of the squad. We have money to spend, and as long as we survive we will be a pretty stable club with regard to the financial side of things so there is no reason for us not to invest in the summer. It will be closely watched I'm sure....

So you see, there is an awful lot of effort that will have to be put in before we even kick a ball next season. Only time will tell if the everything is going to plan, but if it does we could have an exciting summer ahead and, hopefully, a season where we can look at not being dragged into the relegation mix next season.

To do that though we must clear the first hurdle in all of this - Wolves. I wouldn't say it's do or die as I believe that we could get away with a draw, but in an ideal world a win would keep us further away from trouble and would give the lads a confidence boost that is desperately needed.

My money is on six points being needed to ensure survival this season - 42 points. I think that will be enough, but the quicker we get them on board the quicker we can start to look forward to the summer and the quicker everything in this article can be put to the test.

Until then though, we're in limbo.