Sheffield United were demoted from the Premier League after losing 5-1 against Newcastle on Saturday.
Chris Wilder’s side is 10 points from safety with only three games remaining, having suffered their 25th league defeat of the season.
The basement team, with only three league victories, will return to the Championship barely 12 months after achieving promotion.
Anel Ahmedhodzic put the visitors ahead at St James’ Park, but Alexander Isak scored twice, Bruno Guimaraes and Callum Wilson both scored, and Ben Osborn made an own goal.
It was the Blades’ fourth consecutive defeat, leaving them winless in their last 11 games.
Wilder’s players have conceded 13 goals in their last three games, highlighting their troubles in a season that appeared destined for relegation for months.
They’ve set a new Premier League record for the most goals conceded in a 38-game season, with 97 in 35 games.
“We have not been good enough,” Wilder told BBC. “The league has been too formidable for us all season.
“There have been lots of games where we were put to bed early, but today we should have been 3-0 ahead at halftime. I’m surprised it was 1-1.
“Newcastle needs to step up their game and build momentum. Then our old mistakes begin to creep in, and our ambitions swiftly progress from two to three to four to five.
There is a reason why this happens. The team is quite young, and there is a complete absence of leadership. I thought I was going to have a heart attack trying to get the messages through.”
An 8-0 home defeat to Newcastle in September highlighted the magnitude of Sheffield United’s challenge in adjusting to life in the top league.
So it was fitting that Newcastle put the final nail in their relegation coffin.
Wilder had already believed relegation was unavoidable following their midweek defeat at Manchester United, and his concerns were confirmed in cruel fashion on Tyneside.
The Bramall Lane club has avoided the humiliation of having the lowest Premier League points tally in history, 11, recorded by Derby in 2007/08.
AFP