Newcastle Toons
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Three reasons why Newcastle United are far from relegation

By Durim Halimi

NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE, ENGLAND - MARCH 31: Fans of Newcastle United unvail a giant flag in the stand during the Premier League match between Newcastle United and Huddersfield Town at St. James Park on March 31, 2018 in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. (Photo by Tony Marshall/Getty Images)
NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE, ENGLAND - MARCH 31: Fans of Newcastle United unvail a giant flag in the stand during the Premier League match between Newcastle United and Huddersfield Town at St. James Park on March 31, 2018 in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. (Photo by Tony Marshall/Getty Images) /
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Newcastle United are currently 18th in the table, but they are far from being relegation favorites this season.

With one point from four matches to start the season, Newcastle United find themselves among the bottom three as they sit 18th in the table. Joining them in the relegation zone early on are Burnley (19th, one point) and West Ham (20th, zero points).

To most neutral viewers of the Premier League, the assumption is that Newcastle are a weak side that will not recover from this poor run of form (0-1-3). However, that is far from the truth. The Magpies have 34 matches left on the schedule and they will transform into a competitive mid-table side in the near future for these three reasons.

Rough Start Almost Over

Having to face five of the best teams in the Premier League in the first eight matches is not an easy task for any club, regardless of their quality and status. Newcastle got the bad end of the stick when the 2018-19 schedule was released, but the difficult start is almost over.

This poor run of form was expected and Newcastle played well against Tottenham and decent against Chelsea and Manchester City despite Rafa Benitez’s defensive approach. The only two giants left on the schedule for now are Arsenal and Manchester United.

Lenient Schedule for Two Months

After Newcastle faces Manchester United on October 6th,  the schedule will become more lenient for the Magpies. In fact, the majority of Newcastle’s opponents will be mid-table and bottom-half sides. Points will not be hard to come by between October and December for Newcastle, especially when the Magpies host several mediocre sides at St. James’ Park.

Here are some of the clubs that Newcastle will face during this time period:

  • Brighton
  • Southampton
  • Burnley
  • West Ham
  • Wolverhampton
  • Huddersfield Town
  • Fulham

Rafa Benitez

The third reason why Newcastle will avoid relegation this season is centered on their manager. Rafa Benitez is a tactical expert who knows how to get results against a wide range of opponents. Even during this rough start, Benitez has shown that he can make Newcastle competitive against standard members of the top six as his side has only lost by one goal margins.

Last season, Benitez instilled composure among his roster when Newcastle suffered from a win-less streak of nine matches. This season, Newcastle are fortunate to get their most challenging matches out of the way early on. The Spaniard will not have trouble motivating his side once the schedule opens up in his team’s favor over the next few weeks.