Newcastle United have only won one of their last four games in the Championship, but the Magpies still boast a six-point advantage over third-place Reading entering the final three matches of the 2016-17 campaign.
The Magpies, bar a late collapse from Brighton & Hove Albion, are not going to win the Championship title this season, but failing to make it out of the second tier would have to go down as a very disappointing season for Rafael Benitez’s team.
After drawing 1-1 with Leeds United on Friday night, Newcastle suffered a 3-1 defeat away to Ipswich Town on Monday afternoon, with that result giving the chasing pack some hope that the Magpies could be caught in second position.
In all likelihood, Newcastle will still join Brighton in the Premier League next season, although another disappointing result at home to Preston North End on April 24 would lead to more panic with the club’s supporters.
Benitez has been widely praised for his work at St James’ Park this season, but the Spaniard faced criticism for his team selection following the surprise defeat away to Ipswich, who scored twice in the final 21 minutes to beat the Championship giants.
Football supporters in general are guilty of knee-jerk reactions when their team loses, but it appears that discontent with Newcastle’s form has been growing for some time, which led to an outpour of criticism on Monday afternoon…
