What Pardew should do against Stoke City

Following the 2-0 defeat against Southampton on Sunday, anything I could possibly say about the midweek matchday against Stoke City has already been said many times before.

I would prefer Pardew not once again stuck with 4-4-2 formation while playing away from home against a team playing with five in midfield and with our midfield containing two lightweights, Ferguson and Anita.

Newcastle need to be far more solid while playing against Stoke City, that means Cisse needs to left out with Ba playing up front on his own, according to sportsbook review here.

In my honest opinion, continuing to play 4-4-2 using Ba & Cisse up front is extremely unlikely to prove any more successful than it has this season to date.

I’d pack the midfield with the most experience possible given the injury situation. If Steven Taylor had been fit I’d have considered playing him, Williamson and Colo, with Colo sitting in front of the back four. Unfortunately, we don’t now have that luxury. So, I’d go for 4-5-1 with something like:

Krul
Simpson – Williamson – Colo – Santon
Tiote – Perch
Marveaux – Anita – Jonas
Ba