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Fan power and common sense wins the day. Finally we can have a new chairman with his own man. Bring on Shearer!
— Soboe, rivals.net/forum

Well done, Mike Ashley. You had to sack him so the next guy has a chance of buying the players that can take you forward.
— w11ons, boards.footymad.net

It’s getting boring, folks. “Ferguson took time, blah, blah, blah.” How come you never talk about giving another few years to Mike Walker, Ron Atkinson, Graeme Souness or anyone else?
— keeganhappydays, bbc.co.uk/dna/606

Expert View

If Ashley cannot parade Allardyce’s successor in time for the match with Manchester United on Saturday, this is amateur night at the Roxy

Martin Samuel

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BACKGROUND

• Newcastle forced to fight for Redknapp

• Redknapp: 'I am happy down on South Coast'

• Allardyce ‘not bitter’ as he takes break

• Why Newcastle is nothing more than a slog

BACKGROUND

• Harry Redknapp is favourite for Newcastle madhouse

• Ashley must dig his club out of another mess

• Allardyce will be looking back in anger

• Alan Shearer is the man for the fans

BACKGROUND

• Wilkinson angry over managerial departures

• Talk of move for Redknapp has familiar ring

• Martin Jol ideally placed to step in

• Newcastle madhouse: what the fans say

Multimedia

• Vote: Who should be the next Newcastle manager?

• Vote: Were Newcastle right to sack Allardyce?

• Video: Watch Harry having a ball during training

Again I find myself devastated by this club. Big Sam is a top-class manager and we don’t give him time to do his thing. I said when he got the job he needed at least three years to get it right. Typical of Newcastle jumping the gun.
— Dub, thefootballnetwork.net/boards

Why would any top manager want to join Newcastle, given the unrealistic expectations of their fans and board? For the good of Newcastle, it needs to be Shearer — who will no doubt fail abysmally — but at least they will lose this idea that some sort of Geordie managerial messiah is going to take them to Premiership glory.
— Yorkshireknight, bbc.co.uk/dna/606

Knowing our luck we’ll hire Steve McClaren in return for an endless supply of comedy ginger toupees, to cut costs thanks to the billion we owe Sam’s backroom staff.
— zippyintoon, forum.football365.com

The Toon job is the poisoned chalice of football. What sane manager is going to be interested?
— Gallowgate Luke, thefootballnetwork.net/boards

There is only one man for the job — Kevin Keegan. He got us promoted, he nearly led us to the title, he established us as a top-six team.
— martins, boards.footymad.net

Oh dear. Will the penny ever drop at Newcastle? The Everton team of today is a product of years of slow planning, not firing someone at the first sign of something not going right.
— Himsworth, newcastleunited.rivals.net

We need stability and, love him or loathe him, he should have been given until the end of the season. And if any of you think Shearer is our long-term saviour, dream on. Laughing stock of British football yet again.
— toonexile64, boards.footymad.net

Shearer has passion and all that, but how do we know he can manage?
— Moocowman, rivals.net/forum/

You lot who wanted him gone better pray we get someone decent. Time to down a few bevvies and pray we don’t get relegated now.
— PaulfromGatesheed, forums.chroniclelive.co.uk