Newcastle United will clinch top-six finish on one ‘big’ condition – pundit
Newcastle United “have the squad” to clinch a top-six Premier League finish – but they need to stop being inconsistent.
Speaking exclusively to Football Insider, former Rangers and Aston Villa defender Alan Hutton was adamant that the Magpies need to string together a run of wins and build momentum if they want a chance of climbing the table.
Injuries to key stars across the season, including Joelinton, Alexander Isak, Callum Wilson and Nick Pope, have piled pressure on Eddie Howe and forced him to field significantly weakened starting line-ups.
Despite dropping points against lesser opposition, including in their 1-1 draw against Everton on Tuesday (2 April) and draws against Bournemouth and Luton in February, eighth-place Newcastle sit just two points behind sixth-place Man United.
Newcastle face ‘big question mark’ regarding top-six finish
Hutton was surprised to see Newcastle still within touching distance of the top six considering some of their results and looked forward to an “interesting” final seven games for the Northerners.
“I think top six would be a successful season for Newcastle,” he told Football Insider.
“Having looked at the table, they’re very close considering they’ve had a very inconsistent season.
“They’re not far off, so I don’t see why not.
“But they need to start putting victories together and go on a run.
“They need to put two or three together – can they do that?
“That’s the big question mark because they have been inconsistent.
“They have the players to do it.
“I think they can get there.
“It will be an interesting end to the season for them.”
In other news, Newcastle could be forced to accept offer for star – sources.
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