Premier League: Newcastle United will be fighting for those Champions League places, says Rio Ferdinand

Former Manchester United and England defender Rio Ferdinand has said that Newcastle United will definitely be fighting for the Champions League spots. Manchester City beat Newcastle 1-0 at the Etihad Stadium in their second match of the 2023/24 Premier League.

Speaking to TNT Sports, Ferdinand said he’s really excited about Newcastle, adding that their business in the transfer market has been really good. Newcastle have brought in Sandro Tonali, Harvey Barnes and Tino Livramento in this transfer window.

“I’m really excited about Newcastle. They’ve got a fantastic manager in Eddie Howe, who many doubted when he came in, and they’ve got a really, really, really good team. Their business in the transfer market has been really good. They’ve been efficient. They’ve been quick with what they’ve done,” said Ferdinand.

The former centre-back said Newcastle will definitely be fighting for the Champions League places in the Premier League. Newcastle finished last season in fourth place after being taken over by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund.

“I think they’re going to be there or thereabouts. They’re definitely going to be fighting for those Champions League places,” Ferdinand added.

Julian Alvarez was the star of the evening when his fantastic goal enabled Manchester City to seize a 1-0 victory over Newcastle United in their first home game of the new season.

It was a match largely commandeered by the host team as they secured control over the ball for the initial thirty minutes. The deciding moment came 31 minutes into the game when Phil Foden targeted Alvarez, located at the perimeter of the box, who delivered a robust strike that curved around Nick Pope and found the back of the net.

Newcastle retaliated by escalating their game in the subsequent half. However, it became evident that Manchester City had the upper hand when it came to creating scoring opportunities. Erling Haaland had an unremarkable night as he could not convert the chances created by Foden into goals.

Newcastle initiated a comeback by ramping up the pressure in the conclusive quarter of an hour. However, even though their offensive game had improved somewhat, they found it difficult to generate shots on target. Consequently, Manchester City hung on, succeeding in claiming consecutive premier league victories as they began their season.