Does Your Heart Bleed For Diouf?

Last updated : 27 December 2006 By Footy Mad - Editor

Apparently his boss, Sam Allardyce, accused Newcastle's young defence of kicking him about the Reebok Stadium. And the Senegalese frontman was substituted late on because of the treatment.

Sam Allardyce: "Diouf terrorised the opposition and got some very, very heavy challenges indeed that were not protected enough for such a quality player.

"We got the free-kicks, but there were far too many given against him. They tried physically to abuse him today and they did not get away with it. He did not react and he helped us win a very important game.

"It was important today that the players reacted the right way when we went 1-0 down. A few games, we have done that and come storming back in the second half to take the victory. We are reaping the rewards of a goalscorer at long last and he (Anelka) popped up in the right area for a tap-in.

"We have not seen that type of goal from him yet. We have seen a lot of quality runs and skill and finishing. Today we saw a goalscorer's goal when he popped up at the far post and tapped it in.

"He got us going even more again in the second half to keep continuing pressing Newcastle and we could have had maybe a goal or two more, but we did not quite find the right final ball or the right shot.

"But it was a great victory having gone 1-0 down and having to claw our way back in the first half on what was a poor performance by us."