· 15 May 2025, 20:00
**Newcastle United take on Arsenal at The Emirates on Sunday at 4:30pm live on Sky Sports, in a massive clash that will have a huge bearing on the final Premier League standings.**
Should Arsenal win on Sunday, they will guarantee their status as Premier League runners-up; however, should they lose, Newcastle will take second spot going into the final game of the season.
We'd say the pressure is mostly on Arsenal, having held on to second place for much of the season, only to blow it at the end of the season; that's got to be weighing on them.
Newcastle will be happy enough with a top-five finish and Champions League qualification to go along with their Carabao Cup victory. Anything else is just gravy. And to be honest, while it would be disappointing, qualifying for the Europa League would still be an upgrade from the Europa Conference League, for which we have already qualified and wouldn't be the end of the world.
Paul Merson had a little extra sugar on his corn flakes this morning
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So, not only can Newcastle go into this game knowing the pressure is mostly on Arsenal, but having beaten the Gunners three times already this season will also swing the pendulum in the Magpies' favour. Somebody should really tell Paul Merson, though, as he's letting his Arsenal bias shine with the power of a thousand suns in his prediction for [Sportskeeda](https://www.sportskeeda.com/football/news-paul-merson-predicts-chelsea-vs-manchester-united).
> "Newcastle will be in trouble here. I don't see anything but an Arsenal win. Looking back at last week, Arsenal were 2-0 down and still got a result against Liverpool at Anfield. Considering the disappointment in the Champions League, Arsenal will want to ensure they don't give up on second-place in the table."If Newcastle lose this game, that puts them in a tricky position. Out of all the other teams fighting to secure Champions League football, Newcastle have the toughest match on the final day of the season in my opinion. Chelsea vs Forest is a virtual shootout, Aston Villa will face Manchester United after the Europa League final and Manchester City Fulham. Newcastle host Everton and that will be a tricky game."The only advantage Newcastle have is their goal difference compared to the others and they will be hoping not to hurt that too much against Arsenal.
>
> "**Prediction**: Arsenal 3-1 Newcastle United"
Let's look at this logically, shall we?
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We're not saying Newcastle are going to walk this one by any means, we're not even saying we're expecting a Newcastle United win, but a 3-1 Arsenal win? Howay man!
Arsenal did have a good result against Liverpool last week, yes, but if their result against Chelsea has told us anything, it's that Liverpool are already on the beach. Also, Chelsea beat Liverpool, and we beat them. Arsenal struggled to draw with Liverpool, so that doesn't bode well for them, does it?
I know what you regular readers are thinking - Ash, mate, stop being confident, it always backfires, and you're right, that's why I'm not saying we WILL win, but I can be confident in saying that it won't be as easy as Merson is suggesting. I can say that, right?