Newcastle United boss Steve McClaren: 'I would take 40 points now'

Newcastle United boss Steve McClaren has revealed that he would accept earning 40 points at the end of the season, following his side's poor start to the Premier League campaign.

The 54-year-old claimed that the Magpies could finish in the top eight when he joined the club in the summer, but eight games into the season the Tynesiders are still searching for their first league win under his tenure.

McClaren has now conceded that he would accept taking 40 points from the campaign if it meant his side would retain their status in the top flight.

He told reporters: "If somebody said: 'You'll have 40 points by mid-April', I'd take it. I think people would think I'd gone absolutely crazy if I turned that down. The most important thing for us is to get to 40 points.

"Especially with the new television deal, that has to be the absolute priority. It's the same for 10 or 11 other clubs.

"It's always the same; at Middlesbrough we used to have massive parties when we got to 40 points."

Newcastle take on Norwich City at St James' Park on Sunday.