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How good are Newcastle?
- Updated: November 17, 2016
Newcastle are top of the Sky Bet Championship but just how good are Rafael Benitez’s side? Whoscored.com dig into the stats ahead of Sunday’s clash with Leeds United live on Sky Sports…
The return of the Championship is bookended by the two biggest matches of the weekend, with the Sky cameras pitching up at the Amex Stadium for Brighton’s clash with Aston Villa on Friday night before Newcastle’s clash with Leeds at Elland Road on Sunday.
High-flying Brighton are unbeaten in 10 games and host a resurgent Villa side who are yet to lose under new boss Steve Bruce. It’s not an easy game, but it represents a chance for Chris Hughton’s charges to move level on points with the team to beat at the top of the table.
In the summer the bookies priced up Newcastle as the strongest favourites ever to win the Championship, such was the support behind a club that invested heavily in the transfer market and, crucially, kept hold of a manager whose CV is unrivalled at this level.
Rafael Benitez’s decision to stay on at St. James’ Park despite last season’s relegation from the Premier League was arguably the biggest factor behind the Magpies’ early billing as the second tier’s best ever side.
Optimism was dampened after they lost their opening two matches to Fulham and Huddersfield at the start of the campaign, but having acclimatised to their new surroundings and bedded in a large number of summer arrivals, they are once again being touted as overwhelming favourites, despite Brighton’s close proximity in the table.A look at WhoScored.com’s statistical team ratings actually suggests the Seagulls have been the stronger side over the course of the season. Their score of 7.02 is the highest in the league ahead of Newcastle’s 6.98, though both figures rank highly in relation to previous promoted sides.
In fact, the only two teams to have gone up in the last two seasons with a higher rating than either of this season’s top two are Leicester (7.00), in their title-winning …
