Soccer-Pardew slams struggling Newcastle after Spurs romp

Feb 13 (Reuters) - Newcastle United manager Alan Pardew admits his players lack confidence and appear to not know what they are doing following Wednesday's 4-0 home rout at the hands of Tottenham Hotspur. Two goals from revitalised striker Emmanuel Adebayor, and one each from midfielders Paulinho and Nacer Chadli consigned Newcastle to their third consecutive Premier League defeat and ensured Spurs kept pace with fourth-placed Liverpool. While Newcastle were unfortunate to come up against an inspired performance from Spurs goalkeeper Hugo Lloris, they never looked capable of overcoming their opponents as they failed to score for a fourth consecutive match. "I made my views clear in the dressing room and it will stay there," Pardew, whose side's slump in form has coincided with playmaker Yohan Cabaye's departure for Paris St Germain in the January transfer window, told reporters after the match. "The message to the fans is that wasn't good enough. For the first time we looked unconfident. Not sure what we were doing. Lacked energy in certain areas. Of course I am not happy," he added. "You expect life and limb on the football pitch, no matter what the scenario or scoreline. The players better get the message because they will be getting it loud and clear this week. "I don't want to take my 150th game and watch a performance like that. I don't care how good Spurs were." Newcastle, who sit ninth in the standings and are in little danger of being dragged into a relegation scrap, were loudly jeered by their fans at St James' Park after their fourth straight home defeat. Forward Yoan Gouffran, who was playing for the first time in a month following a groin injury, said the side should not be searching for excuses for a woeful performance. "We are really disappointed, downbeat and feel very ashamed, especially for the fans," he told the club website (www.nufc.co.uk). "We have got injuries and suspensions but we don't want to use that as an excuse," he added. "Everything went wrong. From the first minute we just couldn't get into the match and then we conceded pretty soon after. We paid for that and couldn't get going. "Lloris made three or four good saves at 2-0 and if we had scored, then maybe we would have had a chance to get back into the game and change the outcome. But that wasn't to be and we wouldn't have deserved it." (Reporting By Josh Reich; Editing by John O'Brien)