Alan Shearer has slammed Newcastle United ahead of Leicester City’s trip to the north east.
Ruud van Nistelrooy has already overseen a mini revival at Leicester after picking up four points from two games, including the Foxes’ 2-2 draw against Brighton.
For Newcastle, Eddie Howe’s men have won just two of their last 11 Premier League games and are in the bottom half of the table, like Leicester, although the return of Joe Willock may boost the Magpies’ hopes.
While many expected Van Nistelrooy’s squad to be involved in a relegation battle, Newcastle’s squad boasts a plethora of talent that should be performing a lot better than they are currently showing.
Leicester will eye Saturday’s fixture as a chance to register a second win of the season away from home and judging by Shearer’s comments, his boyhood club will have to step their game up.
Alan Shearer compares current Newcastle form to Mike Ashley days
Shearer hasn’t had to be negative about Newcastle very often since the Mike Ashley days, but even this current run of form has left him somewhat concerned.
Writing in his The Athletic column, Shearer admitted that there was a “stale” feel about Newcastle at present.
Newcastle United players at the end of the match during the Premier League match between Brentford FC and Newcastle United FC at Brentford Communit...
Photo by Stephanie Meek – CameraSport via Getty Images
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He said: “Newcastle United are drifting.
“As a team, they’ve gone stale and as a club, they’ve stalled, robbing them of the extraordinary momentum that was fuel for a couple of years.
“It does feel like the great, post-takeover “project” has reached a crossroads.
“Drift, stale, stalled; those words were synonymous with the tail-end of Mike Ashley’s ownership. Twelfth in the Premier League was Newcastle’s finishing position in 2020-21, the last full season before Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) controversially bought the club and promised to make them “number one” and it is where they sit now.
Leicester City’s next two games could provide huge survival boost
It’s fair to say that the next two games are very big in Leicester’s quest for survival.
A trip to Newcastle is no mean feat, but they are beatable. West Ham United, who Leicester beat in Van Nistelrooy’s first game in charge, won 2-0 at St James’ Park in November.
Beating the Magpies would also bring Leicester to within three points of their opponents too – which would be a huge statement.
Coming up after that is a game against Wolverhampton Wanderers, who may or may not have a new manager in place.
Gary O’Neil is under intense pressure at Molineux as Wolves sit second from bottom with nine points and only two wins all season.
Against a relegation rival, extending the gap even further only strengthens the Foxes’ position in the battle to avoid the drop and pile the pressure on those around them.