Newcastle United have been told to expect an incredibly difficult Premier League opening day clash against Nottingham Forest.
Steve Cooper and his staff now know that they will kick-off their top-flight campaign on August 6 with a trip north to St James' Park. But the Magpies, managed by Eddie Howe, have been sent a direct warning about Forest, with Ben Foster advising them that the Reds will be no walkovers on the opening day of the season.
The eight-time England international is currently a free agent having spent the past four years at Watford, and the 39-year-old made the comments about Forest on his 'The Fozcast' podcast.
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He said: "The reason why we look at the fixtures is because we look at the first three of four games. You always want to get off to a good start right. I'll tell you one thing, you never want to get a newly-promoted side on the first day of the season.
"You never want them because that first game back in the Premier League is like their cup final, like their Wembley. They will have energy to burn and give everything they've got. No matter who you are, you will always find it difficult against a team who have been newly-promoted."
The Reds' trip to the North East is set for August 6, and, currently, a 3pm kick-off. Their first home game of the season will be a week later when they welcome West Ham United to the City Ground in what looks, on paper, a difficult opening to the season.
A trip to Everton follows that before hosting Tottenham Hotspur and travelling to the North West again on the final day of August to face reigning champions Manchester City in the first midweek fixture of the season. After that, the relative strength of opponents eases somewhat in September - Bournemouth (h), Leeds United (a), Fulham (h) - before a trip to East Midlands rivals Leicester City kicks off October straight after the first international break of the season.
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