Newcastle United finally seem to be back on track for a strong end to the Premier League. Despite the difficulties, Rafa and his men have come through the pain of the Championship all the way up to what looks like a side that can hold their own in the Premier League once again. 

It's not the same as the glory days, but Newcastle United fans will be happy to see that their club is FINALLY beginning to take a turn in the right direction.

Indeed, with Rafa at the helm and finally looking as though there will be some serious backing in the summer after the winter arrival of Miguel Almiron, we look at a couple of smart moves Newcastle have made during their rough climb back up to the Geordie standard.

Dwight Gayle 

Signing from Crystal Palace back in 2016, for a fee of around £10m Dwight Gayle was brought in to get Newcastle out of the Championship as soon as possible. Well, scoring 23 goals in the league did just that and the English striker went down as a Newcastle hero during the gruelling Championship season.

Perhaps not Premier League quality, the 28-year-old completed his only task of getting the Toon Army back to the top flight, making him worth every penny.

Martin Dubravka 

Initially signing on a loan deal back in January 2018, Dubravka quickly became an integral part of the Newcastle survival squad.

Prior to his arrival at St. James', no one had ever heard of the 30-year-old Slovakian, and many fans must have wondered if the board were just signing him as a trial for next season in the Championship.

Despite all the doubt, he came in and kept a clean sheet in his first appearance in a 1-0 win against Manchester United.

Now that's how you get your name out there!

Signing a permanent deal in the summer, Dubravka has shown time and time again, just why he was bought in to help the defensive troubles that Newcastle are prone to having.