Newcastle boss John Carver 'stronger' for relegation battle

Newcastle boss John Carver has challenged his players to embrace the pressure of having to dig themselves out of a hole.

Carver takes his side to relegated QPR on Saturday knowing victory, combined with a Hull City defeat across London in Tottenham, would seal his side's Premier League future for another season.

Newcastle finally ended a run of eight successive defeats last weekend with a 1-1 draw against West Brom, but Carver believes the experience of that dismal run will stand him in good stead.

He said: "The last four or five months, I've learned an awful lot, and that's what it's all about. The fact I've been given the time to learn from different situations, I think it's very important.

"The one thing is, I'm looking forward to this weekend because there's a huge challenge in front of us, there's a bit of pressure on us and we have to be able to embrace that pressure and deal with the challenge ahead of us.

"When we come out the other end of it - and hopefully we'll be at the right end of it - then I will definitely, without a shadow of a doubt, be a stronger and better person for it.

"The spirit has been good, it's been upbeat. But we are not taking our eye off the ball because we haven't done a job yet. There's a huge job in front of us, starting with Saturday and then the following Sunday, so we need to stay focused."