Paul Merson has had his say ahead of a decisive fixture between Newcastle and Chelsea this weekend.
Champions League qualification hangs in the balance as the Magpies head into their penultimate home fixture in fourth place, level on 63 points with Enzo Maresca’s side who have hit a good run of form recently.
Last weekend’s victory over Premier League champions Liverpool was an indicator that the Blues are game for the scrap in the tightly-bunched third to seventh spots, with Cole Palmer gaining some confidence after breaking his goalscoring duck with a late penalty.
In his weekly column for Sportskeeda, Paul Merson expects the atmosphere to be the difference as he backs Newcastle to edge past Chelsea at St. James’ Park.
This is the most important game of our league campaign this season and may well be the difference-maker once all is said is done. We have to avenge our defeat at Stamford Bridge in October and get three points from the Blues, especially after Aston Villa went level on points with us yesterday after a 1-0 win at Bournemouth.
Merson would be “shocked” if Chelsea got a result after a poor recent record on Tyneside, believing they won’t be able to build on their 3- 1 win over Liverpool last weekend:
> _“What an exciting football match. Chelsea have hit a bit of form lately so this is a hard one to call. But I still have to go with Newcastle here. I just think home advantage will be a massive factor in this game. St James’ Park will be rocking and when you look at it, Newcastle are flying at home, winning each of their last four games._
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> _“Romeo Lavia and Moises Caicedo playing as the double pivot against Liverpool added some bite to Chelsea’s midfield. I know Liverpool were not at their best after the title celebrations, but that was still a good performance from the Chelsea duo. Cole Palmer tucking away the penalty in the end will also be a huge psychological boost for him._
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> _“If I’m not mistaken, Chelsea haven’t won at this ground for three or four years now! I’d be shocked if Chelsea got anything from this game. If Aston Villa fail to win this weekend, Chelsea wouldn’t mind losing against Newcastle._
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> _“I wouldn’t be surprised if Newcastle make a late push to finish second either. I don’t expect Arsenal to beat Liverpool and if Newcastle can win this game and beat the Gunners next week, they can go above Mikel Arteta’s men!”_
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> _**Merson’s prediction: Newcastle 2-1 Chelsea**_
Merson raised the point that Newcastle can still finish second should Arsenal lose to Liverpool this weekend, and then we take three points back from the Emirates after beating Chelsea.
Manchester City are in the FA Cup final next weekend and only picked up a point at Southampton yesterday, so second really will be in our hands if results go our way tomorrow.
Win our last three games – a big ask! – and see Liverpool beat Arsenal in tomorrow’s 4.30pm kick-off and we’ll be guaranteed to end the 2024/25 season in second.
I doubt it’s really something on the mind of Eddie Howe or the Newcastle United squad right now with full focus on beating Chelsea first and boosting our top-five hopes significantly. However, it would add higher stakes coming into the Arsenal game and add more pressure on the Gunners should we have the possibility of leapfrogging them next Sunday.