Newcastle travel to Aston Villa after the international break in confident mood, but the same cannot be said for their hosts, who have lost their last three Premier League games.
While Newcastle are recovering from a woeful start to the season, Villa’s fortunes have not gone as well as they had hoped, having spent a lot of money on signings in the summer.
Having been backed to such an extent, manager Dean Smith could soon find himself under pressure, should results not start to improve.
The Newcastle game will be seen as a benchmark for Aston Villa, and could determine where expectations will lie for the rest of the season ahead.
Having spent an eye-watering £144.5 million on new signings, an instant relegation could be a financial disaster for the Birmingham club, with the owner likely to take all measures necessary to avoid the drop.
Bruce will hope to get last laugh over former club
Steve Bruce will certainly not be getting a good reception in front of the Sky Sports cameras in 12 days’ time, but should he mastermind a win for Newcastle at his former club, it could be Smith who is taking the brunt of the boos on the final whistle.
Villa fans are rightly concerned at the form of their side, particularly with them currently sitting fourth bottom of the table, just three points above the relegation places.
Many supporters want Smith to abandon the 4-3-3 formation he has been using, and adapt to different tactics to turnaround the club’s fortunes, with fans openly voicing their frustrations on social media.
Here are a few of their comments on Twitter:
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