Newcastle 0-0 Leicester: Dean Smith’s side need ‘mad final day’ to stay up
Leicester City’s Premier League fate is now out of their own hands
A goalless draw at St James’ Park secured Newcastle’s return to Champions League football for the first time in 20 years but left the Foxes in the drop zone with one game to go, and knowing even victory at home to West Ham might not preserve their top-flight status.
Leicester manager Dean Smith said: “We’re going to need help. I think there’s going to be a lot of anxiety everywhere between the three teams that are in it.
“First and foremost, we have a really tough job against West Ham, to try and win that game. But I’m sure with our supporters behind us [we can do that], they saw how hard the players worked today.
“And then it is out of our hands. If Everton win… we obviously will give it our best shot and as long as we can say that we have fought tooth and nail, all we can do is put pressure on them.”
An Everton win at home to Bournemouth on Sunday will condemn the 2016 Premier League champions to the Championship for the first time since 2014.
However, a Leicester victory and anything else from the Toffees will send Sean Dyche’s side down and keep the Foxes up – with them possibly surviving on goal difference.
Leicester are on -18 and Everton on -24, so the point and clean sheet on Tyneside may yet prove crucial at full-time on the weekend. Leeds were the other team fighting for survival, level on points with Leicester but with a significantly worse goal difference.
Former Manchester United defender Gary Neville said: “They are looking for a mad final day and hoping that something crazy happens at Goodison Park, it is all on Everton.”
