{"id":9781,"date":"2026-05-17T18:54:38","date_gmt":"2026-05-17T18:54:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/?p=9781"},"modified":"2026-05-17T18:54:38","modified_gmt":"2026-05-17T18:54:38","slug":"newcastle-urged-to-play-weakened-team-vs-west-ham-to-remove-tottenham-as-a-premier-league-rival","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/?p=9781","title":{"rendered":"Newcastle urged to play weakened team vs West Ham to remove Tottenham as a Premier League rival"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div id=\"post-396096\">\n<div class=\"article-follow\">\n<div class=\"article-sharing google-follow\">  <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"28\" height=\"28\" src=\"https:\/\/www.spurs-web.com\/wp-content\/themes\/grv-media\/img\/google-discover.svg\" alt=\"\"\/> <span>Add as preferred source on Google<\/span>  <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><strong>Newcastle United have been asked to play their part in ensuring Tottenham Hotspur go down for a very interesting reason by talkSPORT host Angelina Kelly.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The fight for survival has come right down to the wire between Spurs and West Ham, with the two London rivals separated by just two points heading into the final two matches of the season.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-grvmedia-grv-video GRVMultiVideo\"\/>\n<p>The Hammers\u2019 trip to St James Park tomorrow could thus be pivotal in deciding who goes down, with Nuno Espirito Santo\u2019s men having the opportunity to leapfrog Tottenham with a win.<\/p>\n<p>West Ham are the big favourites to go down according to Opta, but the Magpies have now been asked to give the East London side a helping hand.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\">\n<div><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" loading=\"lazy\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 991px) 100vw, 800px\" src=\"https:\/\/www.spurs-web.com\/static\/uploads\/1\/2025\/01\/newcastle3-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"Newcastle United\" class=\"wp-image-312074\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.spurs-web.com\/static\/uploads\/1\/2025\/01\/newcastle3-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.spurs-web.com\/static\/uploads\/1\/2025\/01\/newcastle3-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.spurs-web.com\/static\/uploads\/1\/2025\/01\/newcastle3-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.spurs-web.com\/static\/uploads\/1\/2025\/01\/newcastle3-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.spurs-web.com\/static\/uploads\/1\/2025\/01\/newcastle3-1140x760.jpg 1140w, https:\/\/www.spurs-web.com\/static\/uploads\/1\/2025\/01\/newcastle3-750x500.jpg 750w, https:\/\/www.spurs-web.com\/static\/uploads\/1\/2025\/01\/newcastle3-scaled.jpg 1280w\"\/><\/div><figcaption title=\"(Photo by SpursWeb)\">Photo by SpursWeb<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-newcastle-told-they-will-benefit-from-tottenham-s-relegation\">Newcastle told they will benefit from Tottenham\u2019s relegation<\/h2>\n<p>Angelina Kelly has suggested that Spurs going down would be preferable to Newcastle, as the Lilywhites could challenge them for a European spot next season.<\/p>\n<p>She urged Eddie Howe to play a weakened side on Sunday and do their part to boost West Ham\u2019s chances of survival.<\/p>\n<p>The journalist told talkSPORT: \u201cNewcastle have nothing to play for, even though the fans were thinking they were in a relegation scrap at one point.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey are 13th in the table, and while the fans may want to finish above Sunderland, I don\u2019t think it will help them reclaim any of the dignity they lost by losing twice to their rivals this season anyway. Newcastle will need all the help they can get to bounce back and compete for the top six next year.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSpurs might be in their way because if they stay up, De Zerbi stays and they spend some money in the summer. We saw what Manchester United did this season, climbing from 15th to third. Who is to say Spurs could replicate that? But with their infrastructure, they could fight for a European spot of some sort.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey didn\u2019t win a game in 2026 until the manager came in, and he won two. So, I\u2019m thinking that with a resurgence, and buying replacements in the summer, they could become another team in Newcastle\u2019s way. If West Ham stay up, realistically, I don\u2019t think they are a threat to European places. So, it\u2019s simple\u2026Newcastle, should play a weaker team, let Spurs go down, and get a head start for next season.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-adrian-durham-believes-newcastle-will-be-motivated-to-beat-west-ham\">Adrian Durham believes Newcastle will be motivated to beat West Ham<\/h2>\n<p>However, co-host Adrian Durham insisted that West Ham are more deserving of relegation than their London rivals due to how poorly they have been run.<\/p>\n<p>He also suggested that the Magpies will do everything in their power to ensure they finish above their fierce rivals, Sunderland, after enduring a poor campaign.<\/p>\n<p>Durham responded: \u201cThe only way those Newcastle players can save their season is by finishing above Sunderland. With the Black Cats spending time in League One only five years ago while Newcastle won a trophy and competed in the Champions League, they won\u2019t want to feel the pain of finishing below them.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t understand why people would rather Spurs go down than West Ham. West Ham have been so badly run. That stadium, which they got on the cheap, for them to go down ten years after Karren Brady said they would reach the Champions League?<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think that\u2019s a great reason to want them to go down. I think you\u2019re underestimating how much it means in the north east for Newcastle to finish above Sunderland, it would be unpalatable for them.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><iframe src=\"https:\/\/www.spurs-web.com\/subscribe\/\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<div id=\"article-feedback\">\n<div class=\"info\"> <svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"32\" height=\"32\" viewbox=\"0 0 32 32\"> <path fill=\"#EC1B23\" d=\"M27.167 5.194c.261-.124.444-.325.75-.403-1.331-1.581-3.131-2.651-5.114-3.196-1.88-.517-4.161-.765-6.074-.262-1.756.461-3.144 1.672-4.802 2.352-2.104.862-4.426.657-6.531-.104.48 4.57.969 9.13 1.498 13.651 1.279.743 2.629.96 4.079.712 1.594-.273 3.005-1.037 4.47-1.677 1.684-.737 3.42-1.106 5.263-.953 2.008.167 3.886.889 5.715 1.689 1-1.933.535-4.317.117-6.342-.369-1.788-1.136-4.145.629-5.467.261-.124-.241.181 0 0z\"\/> <path d=\"M8.045 27.831c.098.865.627 3.145-.403 3.11-.497-.016-.622-.631-.692-1.325-.88-8.808-2.006-17.214-2.822-25.862-.043-.456-.205-1.421.519-1.44.665-.017.749 1.267.749 1.267s2.242 20.663 2.649 24.25z\"\/><\/svg> <span>Have something to tell us about this article?<\/span> <span><button class=\"button\" onclick=\"window.location.href=\" http:=\"\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Feedback\">Let us know<\/button><\/span> <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Add as preferred source on Google Newcastle United have been asked to play their part&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":9782,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"pagelayer_contact_templates":[],"_pagelayer_content":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9781","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-chelsea"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9781","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=9781"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9781\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/9782"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=9781"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=9781"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=9781"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}