Slaven Bilic has given an impassioned speech and told Michael Owen why Newcastle United are a 'massive club'. The former Premier League manager and striker were on analysis duty as the Magpies ground out victory against Brighton in their last outing.
First-half goals from Ryan Fraser and Fabian Schar extended Newcastle's unbeaten top-flight run to eight matches with a 2-1 win, and lifted Eddie Howe's side seven points clear of the relegation zone. Former West Ham and West Brom boss Bilic explained why the Premier League would benefit from the Magpies securing survival.
He told Premier League Productions: "The Premier League is different with or without Newcastle. Newcastle is a massive club, let's be honest. In the Premier League or the Championship, every club is big. In England, every club is a big club because of its tradition, history, success, whatever... 50 years ago. But not every club is Newcastle. Newcastle is a massive club."
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Newcastle's resurgence has seen them leapfrog Brentford, Everton, and Leeds United and create a sizeable cushion over the bottom three. Owen labelled their form as 'staggering', and believes the club are riding the wave of an 'unstoppable' momentum in the city.
The former Magpies striker said: "They've got lots of momentum at the moment. Their record over the last eight games is quite staggering. All of a sudden, they're a team you're not talking about in terms of relegation. How has that happened?! We were saying can they get out of it a month ago.
"It just shows you, a couple of players through the door, a new manager, a bit of hope. The mood we spoke about before...that place, when it's on fire, it's absolutely bouncing. When it's going wrong, it can snowball as well. It is a one-club city, so the mood swings of that place are huge. But if it is going well, wow, it's almost unstoppable."
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