Surely not: Sky Sports’ David Prutton predicts Newcastle United and Brighton & Hove Albion fixtures

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Newcastle United and Brighton & Hove Albion face favourable home games on Saturday.

Newcastle United boss Rafael Benitez [right] shakes hand of Brighton counterpart Chris Hughton

Newcastle United and Brighton & Hove Albion remain neck and neck in the Championship’s promotion race with eight games remaining.

The division’s top two have chopped and changed in recent months, but it’s Newcastle who’ve held pole position since beating the Seagulls on their own turf at the end of February.

Both teams have favourable home games ahead of them this weekend, with bottom three sides Blackburn Rovers and Wigan Athletic visiting St James’ Park and the Amex Stadium respectively, and many will anticipate little change at the top.

Sky Sports pundit David Prutton isn’t one of them, however, and feels that one of the two are in for a shock on their return from this month’s international break.

Discussing Newcastle’s fixture, Prutton writes in his weekly predictions column: “This has banana skin written all over it.

“Newcastle struggled at home to Blackburn, Bristol City and QPR, and you fancy Wigan will go to St James’ and be really up for it too.

“They are fighting for their lives down at the bottom and I’m sticking my neck on the line here, I think they’ll get a battling draw.”

Former Sheffield Wednesday midfielder David Prutton

Of Brighton, the former Premier League midfielder adds: “This won’t be straightforward. Blackburn have turned a few heads on their travels this season and have picked up under Tony Mowbray.

“They are not quite digging out wins yet but they aren’t losing either and they look much more solid now. That’s a baby step in the right direction.

“But I just think Brighton will have too much firepower for the visitors. It will be close, though.”

Should Prutton’s predictions come true, Brighton would be two points clear of Newcastle come 5pm on Saturday.

And things could get worse for the Magpies, with third-placed Huddersfield Town hosting another struggling side, Burton Albion – a game that Prutton expects to end in a comfortable win for the Terriers, closing the gap on Rafa Benitez’s side to four points with a game in hand for the chasers.