NEWCASTLE UNITED have called an emergency board meeting for tomorrow which will almost certainly mean the sack for manager Glenn Roeder.
Angry Toon fans demonstrated outside St James' Park after the 2-0 defeat by Blackburn yesterday chanting "Taxi for Roeder".
Magpies chairman Freddy Shepherd wanted to delay a decision on Roeder's future until after next Sunday's final match of the season at relegated Watford.
But Newcastle's timid surrender against Blackburn seems to have sealed Roeder's fate.
The Lancashire side cruised to a 2-0 victory thanks to goals by Benni McCarthy and Jason Roberts to spark angry protests outside the ground.
Newcastle's failure to score for the fifth home league game in a row was their worst St James' Park sequence since 1951.
Earlier, the bealeaguered Toon boss had appealed to chairman Shepherd to give him until Christmas to try and revive Newcastle's fortunes.
But that plea looks to have fallen on deaf ears and Roeder seems certain to be sacked before the Watford game.
Former Bolton boss Sam Allardyce is hotly tipped to take over from Roeder, although Shepherd insists that no contact has yet taken place.