Souness And His Mickey Mouse Watch

The Newcastle boss blasted Jermaine Jenas for travelling to the States last May with the England squad, and many feel that is the major reason JJ wants a move away from the club.

The Magpies tackle West Ham in their first home match of the Premiership campaign on Saturday, and Souness is not happy with the way his team are preparing.

"Part of me is angry about the timing of these games," Souness told Newcastle's club website. "They are Mickey Mouse friendly games, and I've got six or seven players away for them.

"Right across the board you will not find a manager who thinks it is a good idea to play these games a week into the new season. I cannot get my head around it.

"The players are still finding their feet in the Premiership, then they're taken away from their clubs for a meaningless game. It's not fair on the paying customer, not just at Newcastle but right up and down the country. The players return to the club on Friday and have a day to prepare for a Premiership game. And what can we do in terms of preparation without six or seven players who will be involved at the weekend? It's not right, no way is it right."