In the race for Champions League football, performing and earning results is only half the battle.

An element of luck is also needed, with the teams around you dropping points sometimes being just as valuable as winning three points, and with how tight the race for the five Champions League spots is this season, some fortune in our favour is very welcome.

And for Newcastle this weekend, luck has certainly gone their way without even having to kick a ball until Monday night.

European rivals drop points

With the exception of Aston Villa, who themselves beat Nottingham Forest on Saturday, and Fulham who beat Champions-elect Liverpool, Newcastle may have been the big winner from this weekend’s action in the Premier League.

Both Chelsea and Manchester City, who sit marginally above the Magpies in the table, were consigned to 0-0 draws on Sunday afternoon, with the Blues leaving Brentford with a point and City involved in a drab stalemate at Man Utd.

High-flying Bournemouth and Brighton were also left to rue missed chances as each of them dropped points too, with the Seagulls losing to Crystal Palace in a tense game at Selhurst Park.

Bournemouth’s 2-2 draw at West Ham leaves them five behind Newcastle having played two games more, which is a theme across the top 10 as we head into tonight’s trip to Leicester.

What does this mean for Newcastle?

The current table, as of Sunday night, sees Newcastle sit in 7th place on 50 points, trailing just behind Aston Villa (51), Manchester City (52) and Chelsea (53) in the race for top five.

The most important number though is 29: the number of games Newcastle have played this season, two less than everyone else in the top half of the table.

With these two games in hand, Eddie Howe’s side now has an excellent opportunity to overtake their European rivals and even put themselves within one point of Nottingham Forest in third.

Leicester awaits

Whilst a trip to the King Power Stadium to play 19th place Leicester seems like a routine win for the in-form Toon on paper, the gravity of the situation has made this game even bigger and more must-win.

A win would send us joint fourth and behind Chelsea on goal difference with a game in hand. Considering the form of Ruud Van Nistelrooy’s side since the Dutchman’s appointment, we really should be taking all three points.

Though Howe may look at this fixture as an opportunity to rest key players ahead of the Manchester United at St James’ Park next Sunday, Newcastle can hopefully replicate their performance against Leicester in the reverse fixture and truly cement themselves as the favourite to bring Champions League football back to Tyneside for next season.