😨 Newcastle United's biggest league game of the season?

Shields Gazette

Joe Buck previews Newcastle United's clash with Chelsea and why their 'biggest Premier League game of the season' could have long lasting consequences.

Transcript

00:00So, you don't need me to tell you just how big of a game Newcastle United face on Sunday.

00:06Now, they welcome Chelsea to St James' Park and not necessarily Champions League qualification on the line,

00:11but of course it's a massive game against Enzo Mareska's side.

00:14If Newcastle can win that, they'll go three points above the Blues in the Premier League table

00:18and be nearly there towards Champions League qualification.

00:22There are some set of circumstances this weekend which involve Newcastle winning,

00:26Nutt and Forrest and Aston Villa both losing. They could see them actually qualify for the Champions League

00:31before they even kick a ball again. But that and then, as I said, involves results this weekend

00:36and then on Friday, next Friday, before they kick off against Arsenal on Sunday.

00:40But Newcastle, though, it's in their hands and it's a good thing to have in their hands, of course,

00:44to beat Chelsea or St James' Park back in the Cowbell Cup earlier this season.

00:50Now, they did get beat at Stamford Bridge and we're in a really disappointing afternoon for them.

00:53But yes, Newcastle will want to get that win against Chelsea and the one St James' Park crowd

00:58will be afraid. 12 o'clock on a Sunday is not the best time, but if Newcastle need their 12th man

01:03at any point, it's going to be on Sunday. And obviously, Champions League qualification,

01:08we all know how much that will benefit Newcastle on a European stage, of course.

01:13They want to be in the best competitions and they want to keep all their best players.

01:16They want to be in the best competitions financially. It'll boost the club as well.

01:19But also, when they're heading to the summer market, they want to be able to show these players

01:23that they are a Champions League team and that they're going to make a better fist of it

01:26than they did last time. Now, they don't have to have Champions League football

01:30set by some of their best players. Arguably, their best transfer windows have come

01:34without Champions League football. You know, if you look back to the very first one

01:37under the new owners or the one in that summer after where they signed the likes

01:40of Alexander Rizak. But of course, if you want to attract players, players like Brian

01:45Mbwemo, Christian Norgon, his captain, has said that he's pretty certain Mbwemo will leave

01:50this summer. Now, if you want to attract players like him, you don't necessarily have

01:54a Champions League football, but it's a big help. And we all know Liverpool are interested

01:57in him and there'll be other teams around Europe that'll be interested in Mbwemo. He's

02:00been brilliant for Brentford this year. Newcastle will be among them teams and they'll hope

02:04that they're being able to show players like him that they can have Champions League football

02:08will be enough to, you know, to sign him. Now, Mbwemo, just on him, he has been fantastic

02:13in the games you guys have played against him this year, particularly at the JTEC back

02:16in December. He was brilliant. He scored a goal there and he was just, you know, relentless

02:23at him. He's just a perfect player for Eddie Howe's system, I think, on that right wing.

02:27Jacob Murphy's been really good this year, but to have another option and to be able to

02:31rotate, you know, and someone who's Premier League quality, proven Premier League quality

02:36and hit the ground running, £60 billion is a lot, you know, he'd be then the second highest,

02:40you know, second biggest fanning gas I've ever spent on a player would be for Mbwemo.

02:45If it was £60 million, of course, that record currently stands for Isak at £63 million,

02:49but he will be the perfect player. And yeah, you know, you think about the summer and all

02:53this Champions League qualification, whether they need to sign him, well, that all comes

02:56down to Sunday, really. So it's not, it's hard to really lower the magnitude of this game.

03:00It's not their biggest game of the season, of course, that came at Wembley and then maybe

03:03even the Carabao 7-4 that, but it's certainly their biggest league game of the season.

03:07And if they can get a win, the whole outlook on the season changes. If they get a win on

03:10Sunday, they only need one more win to guarantee it because they're superior goal difference

03:14and they'll, of course, have two chances to do that. Lose on Sunday, that then evaporates

03:19out of their hands. So yeah, it's a huge game. I think Eddie, Eddie Howell will obviously

03:23know that and have that message for his players, but obviously they want to treat it like any

03:26other game. You guys are at the best when they're, you know, going at opposition, doesn't

03:31matter on the opposition, they're going at them in their faces and they want St. James's

03:34Park and his team to do that on Sunday. So he had a huge game on Sunday, one that could

03:38have ramifications down the line, as I said, you know, with potential transfers going forward.

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