After two defeats in their last two in the Premier League, the pressure is mounting on Newcastle United, and things aren’t looking good after the international break either.
Disappointing defeats to Brentford and West Ham have seen Newcastle United stumble down the Premier League table to 14th place.
That’s obviously a million miles away from where Eddie Howe and the Magpies want to be. PIF believe Newcastle can still finish in the top six this season, but it’ll take some doing to turn things around from here.
While Howe and some of his players work on key things during the international break and others jet off to represent their country, what lies beyond this break is pretty daunting indeed.
Sven Botman playing for Newcastle United in the Champions League.
Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images
What we can expect from Newcastle United’s next six Premier League games
When league action resumes, Newcastle face one of the toughest tests of the season as Manchester City ride into Tyneside. City are unbeaten in 12 league games against Newcastle in a run stretching back to 2019, and it’s hard to see Pep Guardiola’s side coming undone this time.
After that, it’s a trip to Merseyside and the new Hill Dickinson Stadium for the Magpies. Everton might be just as inconsistent as Newcastle right now, but they’ve only lost one home game since moving to their new ground, and they’ll be looking to protect that record.
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Interestingly, the start of December does present Newcastle with a couple of good opportunities to pick up points. Two home games, against a Tottenham Hotspur side that have lost their last four meetings with the Magpies, and a clash with relegation candidates Burnley, will have Toon fans hoping for six points.
Following that, Newcastle have perhaps their biggest game of the season so far, with the first league meeting against fierce rivals Sunderland since 2016. After mocking Sunderland earlier this season, Newcastle will be hoping that doesn’t come back to bite them given how well the Mackems have started the campaign.
Newcastle finish for Christmas with a big game against Chelsea at St. James’ Park. Three points would be the perfect gift for the Magpies fans, but the Blues are looking mighty impressive this season and will pose a massive challenge for Howe’s men.
Obviously, there are Champions League ties against Marseille and Leverkusen away from home to slot into that schedule, plus a Carabao Cup quarter-final against Fulham which should be a surefire win given the Cottagers’ form.
That busy period could well be make or break for Newcastle. There’s only really the Burnley game that you’d class as a near-certainty, and if the Magpies do only pick up the three points from those six games, Eddie Howe will be under even more pressure.
Newcastle United v Brentford - Carabao Cup Quarter Final
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We will know more about Newcastle United by January 17th
Right now, Newcastle are six points worse off than they were at this stage last season. Opta supercomputer predictions have Newcastle lined up for a 12th place finish, which would be a big disappointment, of course.
But, there is still plenty of time to prove those predictions wrong. Indeed, just after Christmas, the Magpies have some golden opportunities to get a lot more points on the board.
Manchester United away on Boxing Day will be a tough test, as will a meeting with Crystal Palace just after the New Year.
However, another clash with Burnley, plus games against Leeds United and Wolves offer up nine points for the taking, surely.
If Newcastle are serious about getting away from the bottom half of the table, they simply have to be beating teams like those three.