Alan Pardew did not suffer a frosty reception from the 19,188 crowd yesterday as he did on his last outing in the St James’ Park technical area against Cardiff City.
That day he was booed every time he left his seat and cheered every time he sat down.
But he may yet come under internal pressure if the Magpies get off to a bad start.
Yesterday Toon legend Les Ferdinand said Pardew was not out of the woods just yet.
Les Ferdinand: “The jury is still out on the manager and the signings.
“A good start is huge for them.
“But I’ve always had sympathy with Alan Pardew and I think he hasn’t been helped at all by the owner in the past couple of seasons.
“He hasn’t had the money when he’s needed it and they’ve struggled because of that. It’s frustrating.”