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It would figure that problems of injury and suspension would happen for the Toon because Newcastle United. Unfortunately, I can already tell you how this particular story line is going to end up. Instead of exposing our vellum-thin depth at the position, we will lose one player at a time, manage to wrangle enough results to stay mid-table and our squad will be celebrated as deep enough as we're not any lower in the table than we are currently. It is not my intention to devolve once again into a despondent recitation of my views on our squad depth. Some other time, perhaps.
In the short term, Captain Colo's red card means that he misses the next three matches in the Premier League. Through one of those funny little football rules things, however, there is a bright side. We really are only effectively losing Captain Colo for one match, net total. We haven't necessarily lost a defender in the Premier League... we've gained one for the Europa League. Over the course of the three matches that Coloccini will miss in the league, we will play two of our remaining three Europa League group stage matches. He will be available (and I daresay will play) in the away match v. Brugge on Thursday and then the home leg v. Maritimo two weeks later. Also, barring injury (/knocks on wood furiously), he will return from suspension in time for the league match v. Hoof Stoke City, which will be beneficial tactically and will allow Fabricio traipse by the Stoke bench and give Michael Owen a big hug for defending him on Twitter after receiving the red card.
Ultimately, we're depending on Mike Williamson for 3 league matches instead of for 2 Europa League matches... but that's not important right now. It's certain that a Fabricio Coloccini led back line will position us in as good a position as possible defensively to advance from the group stage of the Europa League, and that's not all bad.