With three straight wins, all in different competitions against Benfica, Fulham and Tottenham Hotspur, the Magpies visited the London Stadium full of confidence.
By contrast, their hosts were sat second bottom of the table and without a home win since February. So, what could possibly go wrong?
All was going to plan when Jacob Murphy fired Newcastle in front just four minutes in. But what unfolded was a dire performance even head coach Eddie Howe couldn’t defend.
Lucas Paqueta beat Nick Pope from distance to equalise before Sven Botman turned Aaron Wan-Bissaka’s cross into his own net on the brink of half-time.
Furious with what he had seen in the first half, Howe hooked Anthony Gordon, Emil Krafth and Nick Woltemade at half-time, though admitted it could have been almost anyone.
Coupled with some strong words, Howe hoped for a reaction in the second-half but that did not transpire. United barely laid a glove on the Hammers, who added a third goal in stoppage time through Tomas Soucek.
The search for a first Premier League away win since April goes on and based on that evidence, there is a lot of work to do to end that barren run.
Following the opening 10 matches, Howe’s side sit 13th in the table, five points off the relegation zone but also five points off the top six. Will Newcastle turnaround their season, or could be it be a year of mediocre?
In a world where statistics dominate the football agenda, British gurus Opta emerged as the leading stat geeks in an increasingly crowded field. An official Premier League partnership - as well as the internet explosion - saw them become a trusted source for everything you never needed to know about the beautiful game.
Now, an Opta-powered supercomputer has predicted the outcome of the 2025-26 table - here’s where Newcastle are predicted to finish:
1. Wolverhampton Wanderers (20th) - 27 points
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2. West Ham United (19th) - 36 points
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3. Nottingham Forest (18th) - 37 points
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4. Burnley (17th) - 38 points
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