Newcastle are in red-hot form going into their crunch clash with Chelsea this weekend

The World Cup takes centre stage after this weekend but I’m expecting the Saturday evening showdown between Newcastle and Chelsea to sign the Premier League action off in style. 

Whatever happens, Eddie Howe’s Magpies are now guaranteed to be in the top four at Christmas — I’m not sure even the most optimistic Newcastle fans would really have expected that!

It’s been a sensational start from them and I’m now starting to think they can keep it up and grab a spot in next season’s Champions League.

Sure, history tells us it’s unlikely. But on what they’ve shown in recent weeks, I don’t see any reason why they will suddenly slow down.

Their style of play isn’t reliant on individual brilliance and it doesn’t feel like their approach or performance levels are unsustainable.

They’ve just found a really effective way of playing, coupled with a culture that all the players are clearly buying into and enjoying. These are special times at St James’ Park.

What also counts in their favour this season is the underperformance of Liverpool.

Previously, I considered Manchester City and the Reds to be shoo-ins for the top four, leaving two spots for everyone else to chase — but that’s not the case any more. 

The door is very much open for Newcastle and a victory against Chelsea would put a nine-point gap between them and the Blues. That’s huge, even at this stage of the season.

Pressure on Potter

It doesn’t take long for the pressure to build at a club like Chelsea and I think Graham Potter may already be feeling the heat a little bit.

Three losses in four outings is the kind of run that sparks concern at an elite level, even if there were encouraging signs in the midweek Manchester City defeat.

Points are the only currency that cut it at the highest level, so I think Potter will be savvy enough not to downplay the importance of this trip to Tyneside.

Being honest, a point would represent a good result for Chelsea.

Joleon Lescott reckons Chelsea boss Graham Potter may already be feeling the heat

That may be a hard reality for some Blues fans to swallow but they’re travelling to face an in-form team high on confidence with an intense atmosphere guaranteed.

I can see things being tricky for the Blues after the World Cup, too.

A large proportion of the Chelsea squad are likely to be involved in Qatar, which is another spanner in the works ahead of the Premier League’s busy festive schedule.

With Potter being such a hands-on coach, I’m sure he’d have loved more time on the training pitch to iron out any issues — but that’s not really going to be possible.

He’s got quality in his ranks, however, and this is when you need those big-game players to stand up and deliver.

Break time

Erling Haaland is one superstar who will not be at this month’s World Cup

I’m sure readers are as buzzing as I am for the World Cup — but it’s a strange period for the Premier League players not involved in the tournament.

If I was in their shoes, I’d be taking the first week or so of the break as a proper holiday, enjoying myself and relaxing with the family.

After that, though, you’ve got to get right back on it and use the opportunity to make sure you’re razor sharp when the domestic action resumes.

I think the break can have a negative or a positive impact on a player. It really does depend on the individual.

Someone like Harry Kane will probably be grateful to keep playing in high-quality games because we’ve seen in recent seasons that he often needs a few outings to hit his stride.

Meanwhile, for someone like Erling Haaland, a bit of time off after a very busy few months should allow him to recharge the batteries — a scary thought for defenders!

Time for my weekend predictions.

Manchester City vs Brentford (Saturday, 12.30pm, BT Sport 1)

The champions left it late to seal victory against Fulham. But given they had 10 men for so long, it was still such a dominant performance from Pep Guardiola’s men.

They’ll hope to have a less stressful time of things against a Brentford team who I think may benefit from the upcoming break — they look a little leggy to me.

Source: Livescore