Toon will be pressing for victory at St James’ Park.
Newcastle boss Alan Pardew has performed a u-turn and says he wants the Toon to finish the season on a high against Arsenal next weekend.
The Magpies secured their Premier League status with a 2-1 win at QPR yesterday and face the Gunners in the final game of the season at St James’ Park next Sunday.
Arsenal will need to win the game the game to ensure a top four finish and qualification for next season’s Champions League, while Tottenham will be hoping their rivals slip up in the north east.
After the victory at Loftus Road, Pardew claimed he didn’t care if Arsenal won 4-0 but the 51-year-old told Newcastle’s official website his comments were ‘a joke’.
“I know people will have picked up on my comments about not caring about the result against Arsenal, which were of course a joke,” Pardew said.
“It is definitely not the case that I would be happy for us to lose 4-0 against Arsenal on Sunday. I simply want our players and fans to be able to enjoy the game without looking over their shoulders.
“Even though we are now safe we will be putting in the same effort that we would for any other Premier League game.”
The Toon have lost their last two games at St James’ Park 3-0 and 6-0 to Sunderland and Liverpool respectively, and Pardew is determined to finish the season on a high against Arsene Wenger’s side.
“Our last two results at St. James’ Park – against Sunderland and Liverpool – have been nowhere near good enough, and Sunday gives us the chance to put that right.
“We want to end the season on a positive, to finish in as high a position as possible and to give the fans something to cheer about on the final day of what has been a frustrating season.
“Arsenal will be doing everything they can to try and achieve a Champions League spot and we won’t make it easy for them, make no mistake about that.
“This is a game everyone at this football club wants to win.”
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