Titus promises improvement

Last updated : 08 August 2003 By Martyn Elliott

The youngster admits that many of his performances in his first season weren’t good enough and he is now looking to develop greater consistency.

"I made mistakes last season and I know that. I played well in spells, but then had rough patches as well,” Titus told The Journal.

“When I was playing well I felt comfortable, but when I made mistakes it affected my confidence and I lost form.

"That isn't good enough at a club like Newcastle who are challenging for the title and in the Champions League and I have been quick to realise that.

"I perhaps had the same problem at Ipswich on occasions, but as I get older it is a part of my game I am concentrating on improving. I will not become the player I want to be without being able to produce the same high standards week in, week out.

"If you look at players like Tony Adams or Martin Keown, they got better the older and wiser they got. A lot comes from experience and the more games I play the better I will get.

"I think there are certain similarities between my situation at Newcastle and Rio Ferdinand's at Manchester United. He went there as one of the best defenders in the World Cup, but wasn't as consistent as he would have liked for them.

"The test is how you cope with that, both of us will want to prove how good we are by getting a greater level of consistency."

It is good to hear that Titus is well aware of the deficiencies in his game, but it remains to be seen if he is capable of doing anything about them.

The really frustrating thing about Titus’ errors (apart from they cost us goals) is that he is a decent player. When bad players give away goals it is understandable, but when good players suffer costly lapses in concentration it drives fans mad.

Also good to note that someone is prepared to say Rio Ferdinand wasn’t very good last season, as the press seemed to have a season-long love-in with him despite his poor form.