Newcastle United go into battle for third spot against Crystal Palace tonight and are now in with a great shout of grabbing one of the Premier League’s Champions League places this season.
In the build-up to the Palace clash Sky Sports pundit Jamie Carragher threw Newcastle into contention for second place in the Premier League after he was enthused by the 4-1 win over Man United. Whether Carra genuinely believes that is a possibility or was just adding a little extra spice to the run-in only he can answer.
But Newcastle will be four points behind the Gunners if they beat the Eagles with six games left and a visit to the Emirates Stadium on the fixture list before the end of the campaign. It’s not impossible but Champions League qualification is the goal as fantastic as second place would be.
Carragher told Sky Sports: “They are on a great run of form and playing as good as anybody in the country right now. The intensity and power in midfield is fantastic.
“I think it is almost a guarantee that they will get top five. They have a game in hand against Crystal Palace and if they win it puts them in a great position.
“They will have a little eye on Arsenal in second position. If Arsenal progress to the semi-finals of the Champions League, Newcastle will feel they are in their sights.”
Finishing second was worth around £175m to Arsenal last season when all the merit and TV payments were totted up. And while that was down to their masses of TV appearances, Newcastle would get a big PSR bump if they achieved the runners-up slot.
It’s also happened before! In 1996, blowing a 12-point lead at the top of the Prem meant that nobody was shouting about second place as an achievement.
Yet just 12 months later, the same runners-up spot was being celebrated around the hallowed turf at St James’ Park. Incredibly, on the final day of the 1996/97 season, Kenny Dalglish’s side jumped from fourth into second to qualify for the Champions League for the first time thanks to a 5-0 win over Nottingham Forest.
On that day Liverpool drew with Sheff Wed while Arsenal beat Derby County but Newcastle’s superior goal difference bagged them second spot. Could history repeat itself?
That remains to be seen but it feels like there could be something to play for up until the last game of the season, especially if Arsenal keep dropping points and Newcastle can make it four wins over the Gunners across all competitions this term.
The shrewd ex-Bournemouth boss said: “Oliver has done a brilliant job. They had a difficult start to the season. Their form has been outstanding. We know it will be a really tough game, they are a dangerous side.
“They have only lost two from 15 away from home. We know it will be a tough task and we will have to be at our best. Hopefully we can go out and give our best and put in another great performance.”
Whether that puts Newcastle a step closer to Carra’s shout of second we’ll have to wait and see. As for the bookies, well they still favour Arsenal heavily for second at 1/10 and Newcastle have odds of 11/1 with Unibet, Bet 365 and William Hill.
