Eddie Howe afforded his players two days off after they comfortably beat Fulham on a glorious autumn afternoon on the banks of the Thames last Saturday night.
The usually composed Howe even punched the air into front of the travelling Geordie support as he celebrated his biggest away victory as Toon boss since being appointed last November. But now the Magpies must gear up to face a Brentford side who are proving to be difficult to predict.
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Newcastle coasted to a 2-0 away win at Brentford but it all depends which Bees team turns up this weekend. On the one hand, they have dusted off Manchester United 4-0 and Leeds in a 5-2 win, but they have also been poor defensively against Fulham and Arsenal.
Their last result was a rather uninspiring 0-0 draw at AFC Bournemouth with affable Brentford boss Thomas Frank emerging to say afterwards: "The reason why we didn't win was because of the lack quality in the final finish or in the final pass or run."
One concern is that former Newcastle striker Ivan Toney heads back to St James' Park without a goal in his last two matches. Toney missed a big chance on the South Coast last weekend and will be hungry to prove a point again on Tyneside.
Yet Newcastle will feel they have enough to beat Brentford if things can click as well as they did against 10 men last weekend. With or without Allan Saint-Maximin, there is still plenty to trouble Frank's troops.
It is the three-pronged attack which Newcastle fans hang their hat on and Howe has plenty of options even if his French star is only fit enough for a bench role. Howe threw Jacob Murphy a chance last weekend at Fulham and he's probably done enough to keep his spot on the wing.
Murphy linked up brilliantly with Joe Willock and it would be harsh to bench him. Miguel Almiron's sparkling form and two goal haul in London was his best game in a while too.
And with Callum Wilson back in attack, everything suddenly seems possible again in the final third. Get the service right for the number 9 and he will deliver.
Wilson's recent return has lessened the pressure on Alexander Isak's injury. There is no need to rush him back if he's not ready.
The statistics against Fulham were good for Howe and his staff with 19 shots in total peppering the home side's goal. The scary thing is Newcastle are capable of so much more at home.
Howe won't get carried away with the Premier League table but if his side win well they could sneak into the Champions League places. Although, week-on-week progress has to be the aim of the game against the unpredictable Bees.
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