Newcastle United: A preview of the club’s April fixtures
By Declan Ryan
April 28th: West Brom (Home)
Ten points separate West Bromwich Albion from West Ham in 17th, and by April 28th relegation will all be but confirmed for ex-Toon manager Alan Pardew’s side.
West Brom have won only one away game all season, conceding 25 goals and scoring eight in those 16 games. To make matters worse they will face both Manchester United and Liverpool before travelling to St. James’ Park, with matches against Burnley and Swansea likely their only hope of avoiding what could be a 12-game losing streak prior to April 28th.
Newcastle currently sit on 32 points with 36 being the favoured benchmark for Premier League survival this season. Provided there are minimal setbacks in the run up to the end of April, safety would be all but assured with a victory over West Brom, and the home crowd will know it too.
Rafa Benitez couldn’t ask for a better fixture to set Toon minds at ease before a May that will see games against Watford and Chelsea, as well as the rescheduled encounter against Spurs (although the date for this fixture is unconfirmed and an April date is possible).
Newcastle will be looking for a much better result than the 2-2 draw in November, where an 83rd-minute Jonny Evans own-goal was the saving grace for an otherwise difficult match at the Hawthorns.
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Complacency must be avoided if the Toon are to make a statement that they deserve to be in the Premier League next season, and many would argue that losing to one of the all-time worst Premier League sides is perhaps a sign that you don’t belong in the top flight.