The contract talks between Newcastle and Owen look likely to be at an end after he rejected Dunhill's latest offer, if nothing can agreed soon then Michael Owen may leave the club for free at the end of his contract (June 2009).

Dunhill remarked "whilst Owen would like to stay at St James' we are not prepared to meet his wage demands, this is a big blow for the club, but we wish Michael the very best in the future no matter where he chooses to go."

Owen attended a press interview earlier today (above) and stated "I don't want to leave this club, the atmosphere within St James' is outstanding even when we are struggling, the fans are some of the loyalest fans in the world. But in football things always change and although it looks like my career here is over I will never forget my time at this club, it has been an outstanding experience."

Manchester United and Liverpool are reported to be interested in signing the striker and are expected to approach his agent in January to agree a contract.

According to a local newspaper Newcastle have been looking into a possible a move for Barcelona's star defender Carles Puyol.

Newcastle are reported to be willing to offer around the £7 million mark for the 30 year old Spanish International when the transfer window opens in January.

Puyol begain his professional career in the Barcalona B team back in 1996/1997 and has since made over 350 league appearences for the club.

Among his many honours Poyul was the UEFA Club Best Defender in 2006 and was named in FIFPro World XI in 2007 and 2008.

Well, I hope that my investment in the club will help move us forward and get up back into the top 6 of the table where we should be competing every season.

What made it possible for you to buy the club, and was it always an inspiration of yours?

Earlier today Michael Owen attended the first of his meetings with manager James Dunhill, although no decision has yet been made reguarding his contract (which expires June 2009) another meeting has been scheduled for 4:30pm tomorrow afternoon (13/12/2008).

Both Owen and Dunhill will be hoping that a new contract can be agreed as soon as possible.

We will inform you when any more information is released to the public after tomorrows meeting.

Chairman,

geordie_god

Shay Given has been sidelined for around 5 days after suffering a groin strain in training earlier today, Given will be out for the match against Portsmouth on Sunday, but he is expected to return against Tottenham the following week.

Steve Harper is expected to take Givens place during Sundays Match with youngster Fraser Forster on the bench.

Xisco has been granted leave of absence to go and see his family abroad, Xisco will head back to Spain tomorrow morning and will be there over Christmas.

Xisco will return to Newcastle on the 28th December 2008.

Dunhill was reported as saying "Xisco hasn't had chance to prove himself here at Newcastle since he joined, the reason we believe has caused this lack of confidence is that he is homesick, he has asked for leave of absense to be granted over Christmas and we have agreed to his request."

Hopefully when Xisco returns to newcastle on the 28th he can start training again and maybe get some chances to prove his worth in the first team.

James Dunhill supervised his first training session as the Magpie boss this morning with the squad of the first team.

 Dunhill and his assitant coach De Alvarez talked to the players before starting warm up's followed up by a training match which enables the new coaching duo to assess their new players perfectly.

De Alvarez called for a tactical session where he discussed the new tactical changes the team may encounter in their next game against Portsmouth in 4 days. 

This morning James Dunhill attended a press conference,  there were various journalists there throwing all kinds of questions at him.

James Dunhill: Ok, I'm the new manager here at St James' Park, I'm happy to answer your questions.

Don Parkinson (Radio 5 Live): Hi James, Newcastle have been struggling in recent weeks, how do you think you can turn this bad form around?

James Dunhill: I intend to speak to all the players both individually and as a team so that I can pinpoint where the team has been going wrong, once the weak links have been identified I will aim to either fix them or remove them from the game.

Don Parkinson (Radio 5 Live): But what if these weak links are players, surely you're not going to just get rid of them are you?

James Dunhill: As I said, I intend to try to fix any problems first, if they can't be fixed they will be removed. Simple.

Peter Harrison (The Sun): Are there any plans in place for the January transfer market?

James Dunhill: There are a few players on my list from my years at Manchester United, and every football fan has players which he idolises, so yes,  I do have a list that I am putting together.

Wayne Reed (The Daily Sport): The recent managers haven't hung around long at the club, how long do you think it will be until you are forced out of the club?

James Dunhill: Well, I know about the recent history of Newcastle managers, who doesn't? But the fact is that there is now a new chairman, this is a new era for the club and I am here for the long term.

Gordon White (The Daily Mirror): The chairman has already announced new plans for expanding the stadium, what do you think of these plans?

James Dunhill: Well, as everyone knows Newcastle have the best fans in the premiership, maybe even in the world, they already have one of the best stadiums in the world, but to keep it that way we need to keep expanding and moving forward.

geordie_god: Ok, thanks for your time, we hope James has answreed any questions which you may have had, cya again soon. 

New Chairman geordie_god has announced plans to expand St James' Park, the £20 million investment in the stadium will see the capacity of St James' raised from 52,387 to 57,050.

There are also 4 Aftershock Sound Barrier 3000's being installed in the roof of St James' Park to improve the atmosphere around the stadium even more.

Work on the expansion of the stadium is expected to be complete on 19/12/2008. 

The club wishes to announce that Joe Kinnear is no longer the manager of Newcastle United, and James Dunhill will be his replacement. The annoucement was made by the club's Sporting Director, TheDangerZolo." We felt that Dunhill is the right man for the job, I know we will not be dissapointed" Thedangerzolo commented during the announcing press conference. James Dunhill, (45 years old) is a former Manchester United assistant coach and also a former player of the English Football team. Dunhill is known for his tactical maturity and knowledge of the game.

TheDangerZolo,

Sporting Director