Newcastle's fixture swing - Five defining games in our 2026/27 season

After a tough week, which saw United lose to a deeply uninspiring Everton side twice with little to no fight, desire or tactical nous on display, the next five fixtures are potentially defining for our 2026/27 season.

It’s safe to say that the much-vaunted (from the executive structure, at least) “2.0” version of United has got off to a rocky start, and things are far from rosy in Matthias Jaissle’s Newcastle United garden, with knives starting to sharpen when it comes to the German’s time in the dugout.

So, let’s look at those upcoming five fixtures and try to gauge where United will stand at the end of them:

Fulham (A)

An obvious test of our ability to respond and show resilience. Fulham are beatable, but after they almost schooled Aston Villa last time out (a Villa side who comfortably swept us aside), they are improving under Arbeloa.

We’re not helped by our generally up-and-down record at Craven Cottage, but even if we were to lose this game, Jaissle could buy himself a little time if he shows a willingness to change and we see an actual game plan.

It could also be argued that, with the upcoming international break, it would be the best time to dispense with his services, with a new manager appointed quickly and given a chance to work with the remnants of the squad.

But it feels very early to let him go either way, and I wonder if the executives at the club would be willing to lose so much face this early into his tenure regardless.

Arsenal (H)

It has the potential to be a bloodbath or, perhaps, we’ll be carried on the crest of a wave of emotion, much like the Liverpool game, with the return of Bruno.

I think the Brazilian may be in for a shock at how he is received, with many fans having seen through his extremely thinly veiled attempts to “not do an Isak” in the summer.

But beyond that, it’s difficult to see United getting anything from this game, given the gulf in class between the two sides. It’s a huge shame, as the game against these in May 2022, in which United swept the Gunners aside 2-0, yawned with myriad possibilities that things were about to change significantly for both teams’ outlooks. In the end, they did, just not in the way Newcastle fans would have hoped.

Brighton (A)

A fixture that fills me with more dread than the Arsenal game. We’re dreadful at the Amex, full stop, and Brighton’s style of play, with its midfield movements and passing structure through the lines (along with their form in general), has the potential to rip us to shreds.

There’s been a lot of talk from the higher-ups at United about “doing a Brighton” or “being the next Brighton”, and the appointment of Jaissle felt very Brighton-coded – trying to pluck an unknown European manager from nowhere, have him work with a young squad and hope it all just clicks.

But on the pitch, the two clubs couldn’t be more diametrically opposed right now. Brighton play an exciting brand of football which can beat the best sides in the division when it’s executed properly, let alone our ragtag bunch.

We simply don’t seem to play anything other than hoofball, and I can’t remember the last time we turned up and won a game we were expected to lose. Could be another ugly one.

Man Utd (H)

Considering much better versions of Newcastle have lost to much better versions of Man Utd, and vice versa, this is genuinely a tough one to call.

Carrick appears to be on a hiding to nothing at Old Trafford but seems to have bought himself time with a comeback win against Roma in midweek (comeback wins, remember them? No, me neither…).

They’re probably a better side on paper than us, but this one could come down to whichever set of players who don’t want to play for their respective managers actually turns up on the day and wants it slightly more.

If we were to lose, the noises at St James’ Park could be akin to a death knell if Jaissle has even made it this far.

Mackems (H)

The ultimate test of any United squad and manager. Considering our record is shocking against our traditional rivals, a defeat would be calamitous for Jaissle.

Even a win would probably only be papering over the cracks, given Sunderland are such a poor side, but it would certainly be welcome, even if it was only to arrest the awful record against them.

Depending on what’s happened before, it could also potentially be a new manager’s first game in charge and, for schadenfreude’s sake, it would be funny to potentially get that over them alone.

Usually, you fall into one of two camps when it comes to derbies: you either love them or hate them. But if Jaissle were to only win one of the next five games and was somehow still in charge, a win here would be welcome, but the bells would be tolling loudly on his time at SJP, and I wouldn’t expect him to last much longer beyond this game.