Home comfort for Newcastle
Newcastle welcome West Ham to St James' Park in a matchup that sees 2 lower half table teams go head to head in a bid to distance themselves from the ongoing relegation scrap.
Newcastle's positive run of form
Newcastle moved on from their disappointing FA Cup exit against Manchester City in emphatic fashion when they beat Bournemouth with 4-1 away from home.
Steve Bruce's men are currently on a 5 game streak without defeat (3 wins, 2 draws) and have racked up the goal difference of 9-2 in said period which is highly impressive for a coach that was, not so long ago, condemned for playing very boring, defensive football.
Strong at home
Newcastle are now unbeaten in 13 of their last 15 fixtures at St James' Park which is an inspiring feat for any team and is the reason why the Magpies can currently be found at the warmth and safety of a 13th place. There is however still time for a top half finish with Tottenham found only 3 points above at 9th however, if Newcastle get everything right, a Europa League finish is still not yet out of the equation.
West Ham's unusual upset
The Hammers produced a freak performance that saw them absolutely stun their posh city rivals in blue with 3-2 thus hindering them from overtaking Leicester in third place.
Show of character
David Moyes men twice came from behind and followed that up with a last-gasp injury time winner courtesy of Ukraine international Andriy Yarmolenko. The victory gave West Ham a crucial buffer of 3 points down to the relegation zone and could prove to be the deciding factor whether they survive or get relegated come the end of the season.
Worrying away stats
A big worry for the Londoners is the fact that they have lost a whopping 10 of their 16 away fixtures (+ 3 wins and 3 draws) with the embarrassing goal difference of 12-26 which is only marginally worse than their home stats of 5-3-8 and goal difference of 26-30 . Given West Ham's issues on enemy soil, this game will really test their resolve and will be an indicator on whether or not West Ham have what it takes to avoid the drop.
Betting tip
Newcastle are very solid on their own turf whilst West Ham have been nothing short of shambolic at times, at home but especially away leaving me to believe that Newcastle will edge it. I will therefor be backing a Newcastle win at 2.70 with Betway.
