Can Shearer Save the Toon?
April 24th, 2009 by Bob
With only five games left to play; has Shearer left it too late to save Newcastle from the drop?
Although mathematically Newcastle can survive, Shearer is going to find it a difficult task, even with the improvements they’ve made on the field in the last couple of weeks.
Looking at the Premier League table there are teams above them which could be dragged back into the relegation zone; but do Newcastle have enough to claw back some much needed points?
| P | GD | PTS | |
| Sunderland | 33 | -12 | 35 |
| Hull | 33 | -20 | 34 |
| Blackburn | 33 | -20 | 34 |
| Middlesbrough | 33 | -22 | 31 |
| Newcastle | 33 | -16 | 30 |
| West Brom | 33 | -33 | 25 |
The Toon are 4 points behind Blackburn and Hull with only fifteen points left to play for so Shearer needs to act now to save his beloved football club!
Looking at Newcastle’s remaining football fixtures:
Newcastle v Portsmouth
Liverpool v Newcastle
Newcastle v Middlesbrough
Newcastle v Fulham
Aston Villa v Newcastle
Newcastle need to win all of their remaining home games to stay up. I think they will struggle away at Liverpool and Villa, so their home games are key to survival. If they can take all nine points at home and maybe a point from Villa or Liverpool; King Shearer may save the day! The homes games won’t be easy though; especially the local derby against Boro who are also fighting the drop.
I hope Shearer does it as it would be a shame to see Newcastle go down but they need to start winning games now! Dropping any points this weekend would be a disaster for Newcastle and a poor start to Shearers managerial career (relegation in his first season will still look bad on the old CV, even though the job was practically impossible to start with).
If Newcastle do win this weekend though, Blackburn and Hull will be looking over their shoulders with dread; I think Blackburn should be safe though as their run-in looks much better than Hulls:
Blackburn’s remaining fixtures:
Blackburn v Wigan
Man City v Blackburn
Blackburn v Portsmouth
Chelsea v Blackburn
Blackburn v West Brom
Hulls remaining fixtures:
Hull v Liverpool
Aston Villa v Hull
Hull v Stoke
Bolton v Hull
Hull v Man Utd
I wouldn’t want to play Liverpool, Villa and Man Unt in my last five football games; Big Sam should be happy with his remaining fixtures which should see them safe.
Hull may struggle and could give Newcastle a much needed lifeline but a couple of wins could see them safe. Bolton and Stoke are must win games for Hull and I think two wins may be enough.
My prediction is for West Brom, Newcastle and Middlesborough to go down; but if Shearer surprises me and pulls it out of the hat then Hull could find themselves back in the Championship after an incredible start to the season.
Do you think Newcastle can beat the drop?
April 28th, 2009 at 1:27 pm
Newcastle failed to get any points in their first home test against Portsmouth. The 0-0 draw moves them to third from bottom (above Boro on Goal Difference) but Shearer’s team are still 3 points from safety. It will be a tough game against Liverpool on Saturday and I can’t see where the goals will come from at the moment.
Newcastle still have it all to do!
May 5th, 2009 at 1:24 pm
Newcastle stay in the bottom 3 after a poor result at Liverpool. I don’t think anyone expected them to get anything from this game though.
Next week is a must win game for Newcastle and a good result could see them out of the bottom 3 (if Stoke do them a favour by beating Hull). It is do or die time for Shearer and a bad result next week against Boro could be the end of their survival hopes!
May 12th, 2009 at 1:35 pm
Has Newcastle’s poor run of form ended with last nights win against Boro? They are now out of the bottom three on Goal Difference and many Newcastle fans will already be thinking King Shearer has led them to safety!
Last night was a big step closer to safety but they need to follow it up with a win against Fulham at the weekend; another good win could see them safe.
I think this year’s relegation battle will go right to the wire.