Where are Newcastle United predicted to finish in this season’s Premier League table?
The fixture will round off a potentially decisive weekend in the race for a place amongst the elite of European football that gets underway with two big fixtures on Friday night as Aston Villa and Chelsea can move level on points with the Magpies with home wins against Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United respectively. Prior to Newcastle’s visit to the Emirates Stadium on Sunday, seventh placed Nottingham Forest can move within a point of the Magpies and keep their slim top five hopes alive if they can secure a win at struggling West Ham United.
With Liverpool already crowned as this season’s Premier League champions and Leicester City, Ipswich Town and Southampton already condemned to an immediate return to the Championship, the focus over the next ten days will remain firmly on the battle for places in Europe - and Newcastle know they will compete on the continent next season no matter what happens in their final two games of a historic season.
The Carabao Cup final win against Liverpool means United will at least compete in the Europa Conference League - but the Magpies have their eyes of loftier and more lucrative opposition as they seek to secure a spot in the Champions League for the second time in Howe’s reign at St James Park.
So, with Sunday’s visit to Arsenal followed by a season-ending home clash with Everton seven days later, where are the Magpies predicted to finish in this season’s Premier League table? We take a look at a predicted table compiled by the stats experts at Opta.
Opta’s predicted final Premier League table
20th: Southampton - 13 points 19th: Leicester City - 24 points 18th: Ipswich Town - 24 points 17th: Tottenham Hotspur - 40 points 16th: Manchester United - 41 points 15th: West Ham United - 43 points 14th: Wolverhampton Wanderers - 43 points 13th: Everton - 45 points 12th: Crystal Palace - 52 points 11th: Fulham - 53 points 10th: Bournemouth - 64 points 9th: Brighton and Hove Albion - 57 points 8th: Brentford - 58 points 7th: Nottingham Forest - 65 points 6th: Chelsea - 66 points 5th: Aston Villa - 67 points **4th:**Manchester City - 69 points 3rd: Newcastle United - 69 points 2nd: Arsenal - 72 points 1st: Liverpool - 87 points
What has Eddie Howe said about the battle for the Champions League places?
Eddie Howe embraces Mikel Arteta prior to the Premier League match between Newcastle United and Arsenal (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)Eddie Howe embraces Mikel Arteta prior to the Premier League match between Newcastle United and Arsenal (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)
Eddie Howe embraces Mikel Arteta prior to the Premier League match between Newcastle United and Arsenal (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Speaking at his pre-match press conference on Friday, Howe said: “It's not done yet. The picture can change game-to-game and I think we've got to be really focused on our next game and trying to win it. Our preparation has been good and the focus is there from the players. Nothing is achieved until it's achieved. We have to be single-minded in that, and not get distracted."
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