Former Newcastle United defender Robbie Elliott believes that Eddie Howe’s side possess more quality than fellow strugglers Watford and Burnley.
In their rearranged Premier League clash, the Magpies’ relegation rivals squared off against one and other at Turf Moor last night.
In Roy Hodgson’s first game in charge of the Hornets, the game finished 0-0. A win for Sean Dyche’s side would have seen the Clarets come off the bottom of the table and leapfrog Newcastle on goal difference.
A win for Watford would have taken them out of the relegation zone and above Norwich City into 17th place.
With it being FA Cup fourth-round weekend, the bottom-of-the-table clash was the only Premier League game to take place.
The game did little to captivate former Toon Army left-back Elliott who couldn’t help but speak his mind on Twitter about the lack of quality on display.
The 48-year-old is absolutely right – PIF and Howe don’t have any excuses after a fruitful January transfer window in comparison to their relegation rivals.
Even before the Saudi-led consortium took over from Mike Ashley, we had the likes of Allan Saint-Maximin and Callum Wilson who can win games single-handedly.
Yes, Watford possess Emmanuel Dennis and Ismaïla Sarr, and Burnley have Maxwel Cornet, but after prizing Chris Wood away from the Clarets, as well as bringing in Kieran Trippier, Dan Burn, Matt Targett and Bruno Guimaraes, Newcastle have significantly strengthened compared to their rivals.
Following the winter break, Howe’s men have got to build on the momentum from beating Leeds United last time out with a big performance against a rejuvenated Everton side at St James’ Park on Tuesday night.
Both Watford and Burnley play on the same night, the Hornets travel to West Ham and the Clarets host Manchester United.
If we beat Frank Lampard’s Toffees and results go our way then we could climb out of the relegation zone for at least 24 hours before an in-form Norwich City host Crystal Palace.
Robbie Elliott is right, Newcastle have flexed their muscles in the January transfer window and it’s time to do the same on the pitch.
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