Newcastle United's poor record at the Etihad Stadium was extended by a 3-1 defeat against Manchester City on Saturday night.
The City academy product put his side in front on the quarter-hour mark with a powerful finish from the edge of the area that United goalkeeper Nick Pope got a hand to but couldn’t prevent it nestling inside the far corner of his net. To their credit, Newcastle’s response was a positive one and they got back on level-terms midway through the first half with a deflected effort from Lewis Hall as the left-back racked up his first goal of the season.
However, City secured all three points with an O’Reilly header just five minutes later - although the Magpies came close to snatch a share of the spoils when a late Harvey Barnes effort was tipped around the post by hosts keeper Gianluigi Donnarumma. The result leaves Newcastle in the bottom half of the Premier League table - but there is room for positivity as they still sit just four points shy of the European places as they now turn their focus towards Tuesday’s Champions League play-off round second leg against Azerbaijani champions Qarabag. But where are Newcastle predicted to finish in this season’s Premier League and is a European place a realistic prospect? We take a look the latest predicted final Premier League table provided by the stats experts at Opta.
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Opta’s updated predicted final Premier League table
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta.placeholder image
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta. | Getty Images
1st: Arsenal - 81.62 points
2nd: Manchester City - 75.81 points
3rd: Aston Villa - 69.61 points
4th: Liverpool - 64.32 points
5th: Manchester United - 62.39 points
6th: Chelsea - 61.25 points
7th: Brentford - 55.90 points
8th: Bournemouth - 53.61 points
9th: Newcastle United - 52.68 points
10th: Everton - 51.79 points
11th: Fulham - 51.62 points
12th: Brighton and Hove Albion - 49.88 points
13th: Sunderland - 47.70 points
14th: Crystal Palace - 47.56 points
15th: Leeds United - 45.28 points
16th: Tottenham Hotspur - 43.39 points
17th: Nottingham Forest - 39.65 points
18th: West Ham United - 35.84 points
19th: Burnley - 29.07 points
20th: Wolverhampton Wanderers - 19.52 points
What did Eddie Howe say after Manchester City 2-1 Newcastle United?
Newcastle United's head coach Eddie Howe.placeholder image
Newcastle United's head coach Eddie Howe. | AFP via Getty Images
Speaking in his post-match press conference, the Magpies boss said: "A good effort physically. It's been a tough run of fixtures. I want the players to empty, to give everything in the pursuit of winning. I thought we played with a good plan. The two goals we didn't defend well enough, two errors. But I'm pleased with the effort. The league table isn't what we wanted it to be. In part, it's not based on tonight. We're heading in the right direction. That's the most important thing because it means long-term we're going to be fine. We're trying to win every game, not trying to over-think games. We don't want to lose momentum. The feeling has been strong, togetherness is strong, you see that in the second half. "Overall, the players are all out, doing the best for this football club."
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