Robbie Savage has predicted Newcastle United to finish 14th in the Premier League in the upcoming season.
The BT Sports pundit shared that Rafa Benitez achieved an incredible feat by leading the Magpies to a 10th place finished last season and that the club were once again relying on him to defy expectations.
Savage shared that a difficult start to the 2018/19 campaign could put them under pressure before advising Magpies supporters to fasten their seat-belts as they could be in for a bumpy ride.
“To finish in the top 10 last season, with what was essentially a squad of Championship players, was an incredible achievement by boss Rafa Benitez,” wrote Savage in his column for the Daily Mirror.
“Although they have brought in Salomon Rondon and Federico Fernandez, Newcastle are again relying on the Rafa effect to keep them up.
“A difficult start could put them under pressure. Fasten your seatbelts, this might get bumpy.
“Prediction 14th.”
OPINION
While Savage is predicting the Magpies to finish lower in the league then they did in their 2017/18 campaign, given the club’s disappointing summer transfer window then a prediction of 14th seems quite cheery. There will no doubt be several pundits who will tear the Magpies apart ahead of the game against Tottenham on Saturday by predicting that Benitez’s side will suffer relegation. This will no doubt be a result of the club’s less than stellar window where they avoided splashing the cash unlike several other teams in the Premier League. While there are still a few ares of Benitez’s squad that look weak, especially if first-choice options suffer injuries, the current squad should be able to secure a comfortable finish in England’s top-flight. Savage’s prediction of 14th seems reasonable and if everyone stays fit, as well as the right players are recruited in January, then there’s no need to suggest that the Magpies can’t defy the pundits expectations of them.
