A look at Newcastle’s bid to break into Premier League’s top four

Newcastle’s bid for Champions League qualification has struck a blow for the Premier League hopefuls battling to break the domination of England’s ‘big six’ sides.

Only once since Everton’s fourth-placed finish in 2004-05 has a club other than Manchester United, Manchester City, Liverpool, Chelsea, Arsenal or Tottenham occupied one of the top-four places at the end of the season, but the Magpies’ 6-1 thumping of Spurs on Sunday put them firmly on course to do just that.

Here, the PA news agency takes a look at some of the facts and figures surrounding what Newcastle will hope is a breakthrough season.

United we stand

Manchester United’s domination of the early Premier League era is borne out by the statistics, with their 13 titles and seven runners-up spots among 25 top-four finishes in the competition’s first 30 campaigns, although their five blanks have all come in the last decade. Arsenal have 21 appearances to their name and Chelsea 19, while six-times champions Manchester City have made the top four in each of the last 12 seasons in the wake of Sheikh Mansour’s massive cash injection. Liverpool’s title success in 2020 was one of 19 entries, while junior partners Tottenham have achieved the feat on seven occasions.

The pretenders

Blackburn strike-partners Alan Shearer (left) and Chris Sutton celebrate the club's title success in 1994-95
Blackburn strike-partners Alan Shearer (left) and Chris Sutton celebrate the club’s title success in 1994-95 (John Giles/PA)

Increasing dominance

Leicester were crowned Premier League champions against the odds in 2016
Leicester were crowned Premier League champions against the odds in 2016 (Nick Potts/PA)

To the point

Magpies back in the big time?

Sir Bobby Robson guided Newcastle to two top-four finishes
Sir Bobby Robson guided Newcastle to two top-four finishes (John Giles/PA)

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