CHN Links: Tuesday Edition

Good morning, Toon Army. For whatever reason, the vast majority of this morning's stories have to do with the back line. 4 more days until match day!






Chris Hughton wants a contract extension. Yes, please.

In addition to Nacim Boukhelifa, whom we told you about yesterday, Hughton is said to be going after Barcelona's 18-year old defensive midfielder Oriol Romeu.

Bob Moncur breaks down Chris Hughton's options at center back. A very fascinating read. More on this later on in the week.

Sol Campbell is expected to play in the reserve game tonight against Liverpool. It is believed that he will try to go for 60-70 minutes to test his fitness.

Lee Ryder of The Chronicle is reporting that neither Steven Taylor nor Danny Guthrie will be available this weekend. Guthrie is expected to be out another two weeks, while Taylor's targeted return date is sometime in mid-October.

In an interview with Scott Wilson of The Northern Echo, Ryan Taylor stated his desire to win a starting job at right back. Taylor says all the right things here and you can't fault him for wanting some playing time, but I'm not sure his chance is going to come anytime soon. The back 4 have been playing solid defense, and Mike Williamson and James Perch have each held their own, with Perch especially forming chemistry with Wayne Routledge. Let's not forget that Chris Hughton will most likely give the benefit of the doubt to 35 year-old Sol Campbell over 19 year-old Taylor.

Tamas Kadar is hoping to be called up to the first team. I don't remember his name being called that often in the Accrington Stanley match, but apparently Hughton has been impressed enough with him to block a loan to a Championship side, so there's hope for him yet.