John Carver Gives NUFC 4 Point Survival Target

John Carver has insisted Newcastle United must "stop the rot" against Leicester City - and start picking up some of the four points he believes will be enough for Premier League survival. The Magpies have lost seven games on the spin for the first time in their Premier League history and head to the King Power Stadium to face a Foxes side who, although they were beaten 3-1 by Chelsea in midweek, won four straight matches before that - and Carver thinks one win and one draw, or four draws, will be enough for Newcastle to remain in the division. Newcastle have 35 points, four more than Nigel Pearson's Leicester and five clear of third-bottom Sunderland, and Carver thinks another four will be enough to ensure they retain their top-flight status for next season. Speaking in his pre-match press conference on Thursday, Carver said:

"Four weeks ago Leicester were dead and buried but Nigel (Pearson) has turned them around and they are in with a chance of staying up. Saturday is a tough game. Leicester are very well organised, very strong, and are a big, physical team. "It's the biggest game of the weekend, and huge for both sides. We need to stop this rot and get a result. We need four points to survive."

As well as predicting a difficult afternoon at the King Power Stadium, Carver also revealed that Siem de Jong would not be fit to start - despite the Dutchman having scored for the Magpies off the bench last weekend and having played a full 90 minutes for the Under-21s in midweek. Carver did state that, along with the returning Paul Dummett and Moussa Sissoko, De Jong is likely to be involved in some way. He continued:

"Siem de Jong is ready for this weekend, having played 90 minutes for the Under-21s. He is not ready to start, however. "Paul Dummett and Moussa Sissoko coming back into the group this week has given us a lift."

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