"SOMETHING needs to be done at Newcastle ¿ and soon. While I was obviously very happy with West Ham's 3-1 victory last weekend over Newcastle, the club are in trouble especially when you consider how big they are and the large fan base who support the team. I understand that former England boss Terry Venables may come in as interim manager and he would be a good choice. I know Terry fairly well and he is a good football man. But whether the fans accept him is another thing. Right now the Newcastle fans have been calling for the Cockneys to be out. They call them the 'Cockney Mafia' and are referring to owner Mike Ashley's close relationship with those running the club including executive director Dennis Wise ¿ not a popular man at Newcastle in the wake of Kevin Keegan's departure.

So Terry may not be their cup of tea. Keegan meanwhile is a Geordie and loved by Newcastle fans but those fans must realise that Keegan has walked away from many jobs in the game.

After being beaten by West Ham last weekend, Newcastle then lost 2-1 at home to struggling Tottenham in the Carling Cup third round this week and that was the fourth successive loss for the team.

Newcastle can usually rely on the supporters packing out the ground but apparently the stadium was only half full in the match against Spurs. Not a good sign.

But as I said earlier, I was very happy to see West Ham winning last weekend ¿ it was a very good performance and obviously new manager Gianfranco Zola really inspired the players. Also he made good use of fellow Italian and new arrival David Di Michele who scored twice and was making his first start after his arrival on loan from Torino. I question whether former manager Alan Curbishley would have started the Italian but obviously Zola knows him better and knows what he can do.

I think Zola could be just the fellow we need and after the game I got a call from a number of my former teammates at West Ham who had been to the game and they, like me, were very happy and impressed. Let's hope we can continue winning . . . and winning in style.

Hull and Stoke supporters should be pleased with their teams' performances last weekend ¿ both picked up a valuable point. In fact Hull should have made it all three points as they led Everton 2-0 before Everton drew 2-2. And Stoke managed to hold out against Liverpool 0-0 at Anfield. Considering that they lost 8-0 during their last visit there in 2000, they should be happy as it was their first away point of the season.

One Premier team who must be feeling their blows are Portsmouth. Harry Redknapp will have been furious with the players after the last couple of games. Last weekend they were crushed 6-0 by Manchester City and then this week Chelsea beat them 4-0 in the League Cup. Giving up 10 goals in two games is very poor.

Arsenal are, not surprisingly, top the league. They handily won 3-1 at Bolton last weekend with a superb passing performance. And then this week they showed off their new youngsters when they beat Championship side Sheffield United 6-0 in the League Cup. Among the scorers was a teenage Mexican striker who got a hat-trick and Wenger also started a 16-year-old who managed to nick a goal. You have to love that! The average age of the team was 19 years old. Wenger really is the best man in the world to spot young talent.

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SPAIN

If you think Portsmouth had a bad week letting in 10 goals, spare a thought for Sporting Gijon who have been shellshocked over the past two games in Spain. Last weekend they were beaten 6-1 by Barcelona and then during a mid-week match against Real Madrid they were beaten 7-1 with Dutchman Rafael van der Vaart scoring a hat-trick.

Gijon just returned to Spain's top flight this season after a decade's absence and they have let in an incredible 19 goals in four matches. It doesn't look like they will survive on this evidence!

One team in Spain I have been happy to see do well is Atletico Madrid who beat Recreativo Huelva 4-0 last weekend. Atletico, led by Argentina's Sergio Aguero, also beat Getafe 2-1 midweek. After their fine performance last season in the league they are now in the Champions League this season and they could do very well.

Next week will be another round of Champions League games and they are at home to Marseille which should be a lively match.

Rumours now abound that Aguero will be a target of new super-rich club Manchester City. But Atletico would be crazy to sell him.

The 20-year-old's contract buy-out clause is £40million and besides City, Real Madrid, Inter Milan and Chelsea are among the sides who have been linked to him. One of his most passionate fans is none other that Diego Maradona who is often seen at his games. But Maradona also has another interest in Aguero ¿ the lively striker is involved with Maradona's daugher who is said to be pregnant. That is some football genes for you!

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BIG MATCHES

A couple of big matches are on this weekend. In England Liverpool travel to Goodison to take on arch rivals Everton while in Italy AC Milan and Inter Milan meet at their shared ground. AC Milan started off the season with two losses but they won last weekend as well as in mid-week. Ronaldinho has been starting on the bench but I expect he will be in the main line-up soon. Inter, with Mourinho at the helm, lead Serie A right now and look to defend their title but it is a long way to go.