Newcastle United are back in action on Sunday afternoon, as they travel to Selhurst Park to play Crystal Palace. The Magpies have won 14 of these fixtures against the Eagles in the Premier League era.
But the last time they made the trip to face Palace, it was a bruising day out in the South-East of London for the travelling Geordies.
Toon low on confidence
Newcastle's form wasn't great ahead of the game against Palace back in April, with only two wins from their March league run, then a knockout defeat to Manchester City in the FA Cup, and an even more gut-wrenching away loss to Barcelona at the Camp Nou in the Champions League.
Then, to add the cherry on top, Newcastle lost to their rivals across the river, Sunderland. The result was especially painful given the Magpies had the lead. It was a timid display which summed up exactly how the club was performing at the time under Eddie Howe.
That derby day result consolidated Newcastle’s status as the side who had conceded the most points from winning positions, in the Premier League a worrying statistic that dominated the build-up to their game against Palace.
A bruising defeat at the Palace
It turned out to be yet another brutal away game for Newcastle, despite William Osula firing Newcastle into the lead on the stroke of half-time. As was so often the case, Howe and his men failed to see out the game.
Palace struck back when Daniel Munoz broke forward on the right. His cross was hooked back into the box by Tyrik Mitchell, with Jean Phillipe Mateta meeting the ball and heading it past Nick Pope into the net.
Despite the level scoreline, Newcastle again brought uninvited pressure on themselves as Palace found momentum courtesy of Jefferson Lerma rattling the crossbar. Then, in stoppage time, Sven Botman conceded a penalty, and Mateta scored from the spot. The Magpies were on for a potential three points, but they left with nothing.
A familiar situation for the Magpies
Much like when they played the Eagles in April, Newcastle head into their game at Selhurst Park o poor form, having won only two league games this season and coming off back-to-back defeats.
The Magpies' attack and defence aren't in great shape either: they have the League'ssecond-worst defence, having conceded 14 goals so far and have recorded only one clean sheet. The attack has only registered 8.1 xG, putting them in the lower echelon of the division.
But Palace are actually worse off, particularly defensively, having conceded 17 goals so far this season and managed only two wins in the League.
You'd think for Newcastle it should an opportunity to rectify that painful defeat earlier this year, but recent form suggests it could be a long afternoon or an exciting one, given the atrocities of both defences.
But for the sake of the travelling Magpies, there will be high hopes they can avoid a third straight defeat.
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