16th: Newcastle United
A lot of people thought Newcastle were bound to go down last year until they had a resurgence in the second half of last season. This spark was led by Arsenal loanee Joe Willock. The young England international is an attacking midfielder who was struggling to find game time for the Gunners last season so Newcastle brought him in on loan. He scored 8 goals in 14 appearances for the Toons.
With news breaking yesterday that Newcastle agreed a fee for Willock from Arsenal, it seems he’ll be back at St. James Park permanently this time. Between him, a healthy Allan Saint-Maximin and Callum Wilson, I think Newcastle will have enough to stay up again this year. Although I don’t see too high of a ceiling for the Toons I definitely don’t see a trip down to the Championship coming.