"With hindsight, I’m sure the Newcastle owners wish they had replaced Steve McClaren a month earlier because Rafa Benitez has really turned things around and is getting results. Sadly for them Premier League safety still isn’t in their hands and might not be after Norwich and Sunderland play their games in hand.
I fancy Sunderland to get out of it. I don’t think Chelsea will be as up for the fight as they were against Tottenham. Their mission was to stop Spurs winning the title and they’ve achieved that. They were celebrating as much as Leicester City were. Sunderland’s intensity will cause Chelsea problems. Then they have very winnable games against Everton and Watford. Combined with a safety net of superior goal difference I think the Black Cats will stay up.
You would assume Newcastle will beat Villa but in their final game they might face a Spurs side still desperate to finish above Arsenal and overturn the shock defeat they suffered against the Magpies at the Lane earlier this season with Harry Kane on the hunt for a Golden Boot. All that could equate to a very difficult last day for Newcastle.
But it’s not all doom and gloom for Newcastle. Andros Townsend has been a breath of fresh air going forward and he will be desperate to get one over his former employers. What a story that would be if his contribution on the final day were to keep them up! Sadly, if Newcastle do go down I don’t think they’ll be able to keep hold of their manager for next season."
Danny Mills was talking to correspondent Mark Godfrey.