Leicester City could make 137-year football league history v Newcastle United - on one condition

The Foxes are currently sat second bottom of the Premier League table with Ruud van Nistelrooy’s side staring down the barrel of relegation to the Championship. It seems only a miracle will save the Foxes this campaign - one they will need to make happen beginning with the visit of Newcastle United.

The Magpies, meanwhile, head to the King Power Stadium with hopes of securing a fourth successive win in all competitions. Playing on Monday night means all of their main rivals for European football will have played before they kick-off, but Eddie Howe’s side know this is simply a must-win game against a side they hammered 4-0 in the reverse fixture.

That win in December, secured courtesy of goals from Alexander Isak, Bruno Guimaraes and a brace from Jacob Murphy was the first time Van Nistelrooy tasted defeat as Foxes manager. It also kickstarted a run of 14 defeats in 15 league matches for Leicester, with their only Premier League win in that time coming against Tottenham Hotspur at the end of January.

Leicester City could set unwanted English Football League record

Since that win against Spurs, Leicester have lost seven-straight league matches. The last of which came in midweek as strikes from Jack Grealish and Omar Marmoush condemned them to a 2-0 defeat at the Etihad Stadium.

Between those games, the Foxes have been beaten by Everton, Arsenal, Brentford, West Ham, Chelsea and Manchester United in the Premier League - all without scoring a single goal. No team in English Football League history, not just Premier League history, has ever lost eight league games in a row without scoring.

That means that should they fall to defeat against Newcastle United and fail to put one past whoever Howe picks to start in goal on Monday night, then the Foxes will have made a huge slice of unwanted history. Whilst recent history and the form guides point to an away win, Howe is not underestimating the qualities of their opponents - and has pinpointed the threat of the evergreen Jamie Vardy as someone his team need to watch out for on Monday: “They're not out of it [survival hopes], and I think they'll believe they still have a chance.

“I always look at how a team plays and I think Leicester have been very competitive. The results don't necessarily show that, but I look back to the Manchester United game, where I thought they were in the game and they had chances to score, and then the result is really deceiving.

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“We know they're dangerous. We know they've got good players - Jamie Vardy is still a massive threat. He brings his unique qualities that we're going to need to control.

“Ruud's got his team playing good football as well, so we're going to have to be on our guard. There are no easy games at this level.”

Newcastle United’s clash with Leicester City kicks-off at 8pm on Monday night. Sky Sports have live coverage of the game in the United Kingdom.

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