Newcastle United and their fans were jubilant this weekend after securing a comfortable 2-0 win over Huddersfield in the Premier League, but they must be careful not to get carried away.
The Toon dominated the match, in part thanks to the sending off of Terriers defender Tommy Smith just 22 minutes into the game.
However Newcastle had shown plenty of guile and ability before that.
They arguably played their best football this season, creating 29 shots at goal. On another day, the score line could have been very flattering to The Mags.
In fact, the Toon hit the woodwork an agonising four times during the game, two of them coming before the sending off.
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Naturally some supporters have become incredibly excited by what they’ve seen.
But the reality is the win only just keeps Newcastle above the drop zone.
And given Huddersfield’s stats, the Toon aren’t likely to get an easier game all season.
The worst team in Europe?
Out of every league in Europe, Huddersfield are one of the worst performing teams on the continent.
In terms of overall points accumulated (11), only four teams have worse totals elsewhere.
Karabukspor in the Turkish second division are the worst team in Europe, with no wins in 23 matches.
They are followed by Vereya in the Bulgarian first division, Chievo in Serie A and Apollo Sirmins in the Greek Super League.
In Europe’s top five leagues, only Chievo can claim a worse record than Huddersfield.
Huddersfield also have the fewest goals scored in Europe’s top five leagues, with a very low total of 14.
The Terriers have scored just two goals in their last seven matches, and one of those was a gifted own goal from Arsenal.
It’s concerning when you consider Newcastle played this struggling Huddersfield side with a man advantage for over 67 minutes.
But it took them 30 minutes of that just to break the deadlock.
Admittedly the Toon were unlucky to hit the post so many times, but are any other teams going to allow them to dominate so much?
The next few games are likely to provide sterner and more accurate analysis of Newcastle’s current ability.
Burnley: A more important match
While Huddersfield was a must-win game, it would have taken a disaster not to snatch three points from them.
The Terriers are in freefall at this point, and have very little to play for. It won’t be long till safety is a mathematically impossibe.
Newcastle’s next opponent Burnley however, are a stark opposite.
Although Newcastle have looked like a different team since the turn of the year, Burnley have been something else.
In a startling statistic, Sean Dyche’s side have not lost a match since December the 26th.
They are undefeated in eight matches, matches which have included Manchester United and Spurs.
If Newcastle can get a result against such an in-form side who are also trying to beat the drop, it will be a great indicator of what is to come.
A win against The Clarets would help Rafa Benitez’s side reach peak confidence and put safety in sight.
