With a maximum points haul on Monday night, Graham Potter will achieve something that his predecessor Julen Lopetegui never managed during his short spell in charge of the Irons; win three successive matches in the Premier League.

Not since the days of David Moyes in December 2023 have the Hammers come up trumps in a trio of consecutive top-flight fixtures, but Potter's men were full value for their stunning derby success over Arsenal and made light work of a leaky Leicester City most recently.

Tomas Soucek being in the right place at the right time and Jannik Vestergaard's own goal propelled West Ham to a routine 2-0 triumph over Ruud van Nistelrooy's men, and as the Hammers boast a double-figure points lead over the Premier League relegation zone, they should not be dragged into a demotion dogfight in the final few weeks.

Getting the better of Arsenal and Leicester without conceding saw West Ham pick up as many victories as they had in their previous nine matches in all competitions - six of which ended in defeat - but the hosts' profligacy still sticks out like a sore thumb.

Indeed, the Irons have only managed to put away 9% of their chances in the 2024-25 Premier League season, while only managing to find the target with 30% of their shots in the top flight, making it easy to see how they failed to score in three of their four home games before Leicester rocked up.

Coincidentally, the last time Newcastle failed to score in a Premier League home game came against none other than West Ham United - more on that later - but the obligatory Alexander Isak goal proved insufficient in a chaotic FA Cup fifth-round battle with Brighton & Hove Albion.

At the end of an action-packed 120 minutes where goals, red cards and tight VAR calls were the order of the day, the Brighton faithful's long journey was made worthwhile as the Seagulls ran out 2-1 winners at St James' Park, where the red-hot Danny Welbeck had the final say.

As a result, Newcastle's 70-year trophy drought will continue unless they can outwit Liverpool in next weekend's EFL Cup final, but the odds do not favour Howe's side after a crippling period, where a new wave of injury and suspension concerns have emerged at the worst possible time.

Two defeats from their last three Premier League games has also left the Magpies trailing the top-four places, and a side who were formerly hailed for their defensive excellence have now conceded at least twice in five successive matches across all tournaments, while also losing their last two on the road without scoring.

January 2021 was the last time that Newcastle suffered three straight losses while failing to score in any of them, but that fate could befall them if West Ham repeat their St James' Park trick from November, where the capital club ran out surprise 2-0 winners on the Magpies' territory.

West Ham United possible starting lineup:

Areola; Cresswell, Kilman, Todibo; Wan-Bissaka, Soucek, Alvarez, Ward-Prowse, Scarles; Kudus, Bowen

Newcastle United possible starting lineup:

Pope; Trippier, Schar, Burn, Livramento; Tonali, Guimaraes, Joelinton; Murphy, Isak, Barnes