Guthrie : No Further Punishment

Newcastle United have received a welcome boost with the news that Danny Guthrie will receive no further punishment on top of his three-game ban despite breaking Craig Fagan's leg.

Guthrie was sent off in the latter stages of the Magpies' 2-1 defeat to Hull City at St James' Park on Saturday after a wild challenge on Fagan. The Tigers forward has since been told he faces three months on the sidelines after scans revealed a broken leg. But the Football Association has revealed that it does not have the power to extend Guthrie's automatic three-game suspension.

"Every sending off carries an automatic sanction under the current regulations. The FA doesn't have the power to extend automatic suspensions. The only circumstances in which we could take any further action would be to issue an additional charge against a player. This occurs only in exceptional cases, such as Ben Thatcher's challenge on Pedro Mendes in 2006."

Thatcher received an eight-match ban with a further 15 games suspended for two years after the FA took action over the then Manchester City defender's elbow on Portsmouth's Mendes in a Premier League game in August 2006.

Will Ashley Stays or £480m is Worth to Buy

Mike Ashley may have inadvertently extended his ownership of Newcastle United by placing an astonishing price tag on the troubled club which is said to be in the region of £480m. Ashley is the current target of abuse from Newcastle supporters after disappointing signings and managerial decisions since he took over the club and, in a 16,000 word statement released at the weekend, has signaled his intent to listen to the fans and sell up.

However, with figures such as those quoted in the press attached to the club, it remains to be seen who, and in indeed why, anyone would want to buy into Newcastle.

"That price is just too much for this club, but we will see what happens and what offer can be made," a United source said, as quoted in The Telegraph.

"In reality, Newcastle have been up for sale for the last six months. If there had been interest from Dubai or Abu Dhabi it would already have surfaced."

Ashley is currently in Dubai, along with Dennis Wise, trying to find a suitor for the club. Ashley has given a detailed dossier on the club to a whole host of rich and influential figures in the region, including Dubai ruler C bin Rashid Al Maktoum.

It is believed that Ashley would be willing to lower his price to around £250m after negotiating, but £480m was quoted in the dossiers.

Sheikh Mohammed was part of the consortium that tried to buy Liverpool in 2006 and is said to be worth £8bn. However, Ashley must be mad in thinking that someone of his stature would want to pump this much money into the most poorly run club in England.

One of the main problems lies in the fact that the fans have too high an opinion of both the team and themselves for anyone to be given any sort of chance at the club. This means that instability is bred from the terraces as much as it is from the board room.

It looks as if Ashley will remain at the helm for sometime if he continues to attach unrealistic price tags on the club. But, if truth be told, he could slash prices like he does in Sports Direct and it is unlikely that he would find a buyer anytime soon.

Is Bilic a Option :West Ham

Slaven Bilic has distanced himself from the vacant managerial position at Upton Park, but has hinted that he would like to manage the club in the future.

The Croatia boss, who will meet England in the 2010 World Cup qualifying campaign later this month, gathered even more admirers following a solid showing at Euro 2008 and is considered a world class manager in the making.

"I always said that, if I come back to English football, I want it to be as manager of West Ham," He said yesterday, as reported in The Guardian.

But, as always, there is a small matter of a contract that he is tied to.

"I have a contract with Croatia until 2010 and intend to honour it." I’ve no doubt that Bilic will one day manage West Ham but there is no way that he will walk out of this Croatia job to take over at Upton Park. In 2010 perhaps, but he would be even madder than I remember if he took over at West Ham now.

The club have no money, the manager no longer makes the decisions; if Curbishley walked out through fear of damaging his reputation, then why would one of the hottest talents in the managerial world risk his by taking over the reigns. He doesn’t understand the world of Premier League management and would certainly want a summer transfer window and pre-season in order to get accustomed to the modern English game. And despite him spending many years in England, Kevin Keegan is just the latest case study of somebody who thought that they could return as if nothing has changed.

Naturally, Harry Redknapp has been linked with the job and, naturally, he has distanced himself from it. Is it a problem at West Ham that they never stray too far from the beaten track when it comes to managers? Will the next appointment be out of left field? Who would the fans like to see take over?

Is Bilic a realistic option at this point?

Harry Redknapp says NO WAY

Portsmouth manager Harry Redknapp insists there is "no way" he would return to West Ham United to replace Alan Curbishley. Curbishley ended his two-year reign at Upton Park on Wednesday after citing a lack of control over the club's direction in the the transfer market.

Former Hammers boss Redknapp has emerged alongside Croatia coach and fellow former player Slaven Bilic as an early frontrunner for the post, but the current Pompey chief has no interest in returning to the east London club. Redknapp spent seven years in the Upton Park hot-seat before being sacked in 2001, told The Sun.

"Alan Curbishley may have gone as West Ham boss - but there's no way I'll replace him. Curbs quit because he feels he has been undermined and shown a lack of trust by the owner. I take my hat off to him for sticking to his principles. Don't get me wrong, West Ham is a fantastic club with fantastic fans and - having gone there aged 15 - it has a special place in my heart. But I love it at Portsmouth and I have one big advantage over a lot of Premier League bosses these days: I've got an owner who lets the manager manage."

Meanwhile, Redknapp was warned that the growing influence of billionaire club owners and European-style sporting directors is setting a worrying trend. The 61-year-old is alarmed that both Curbishley and Kevin Keegan at Newcastle United have reportedly been unsettled by interference in their transfer plans in recent weeks.

He continued: "The days of managing as I know it are coming to end. You will basically be given players and told to get on with it. West Ham sold players and it was nothing to do with Alan - but that will happen more and more. Let's face it, the way it's going, every Premier League club will be owned by a foreign billionaire. They all want to win the title, they all want to be in the Champions League and if they don't get it they'll be changing managers like we change socks. It will be a revolving door that never stops turning.”

Should West Ham scrap the Sporting Director role at West Ham and has it been the root of all problems at Upton Park and dare I say St James' aswell?