MY ACCOUNT
Newcastle will be looking to put the disappointment of Wednesday’s 2-1 loss at Liverpool behind them when they welcome Crystal Palace to St James’ Park for a 3pm kick-off on Saturday.
Eddie Howe’s men saw their unbeaten start to the season ended in the harshest of fashion at Anfield, with Fabio Carvalho scoring in the 98th minute to snatch a 2-1 victory for Liverpool and break the hearts of the visitors.
Despite the late drama in midweek, Newcastle will still be happy with how they have performed so far this term, having also drawn 3-3 with Manchester City in a thrilling encounter, and Saturday’s visit of Palace should hold no fears.
The Eagles have amassed five points from five games, leaving them just one place and a point behind the Magpies, but they struggled on the road last season and more away-day misery could be on the cards.
Team news
Newcastle have certainly missed the presence of Bruno Guimaraes in midfield in the last two matches and it remains unclear whether he will be available for selection, with Howe saying “we will wait and see”.
That same notion was also used when asked about the fitness of French forward Allan Saint-Maximin, who missed the defeat to Liverpool, but striker Callum Wilson is definitely ruled out once again with a hamstring issue.
Club-record signing Alexander Isak scored on his debut in that loss on Merseyside and is expected to recover from the dead leg that forced him off on Wednesday to lead the line for the Magpies for the second straight game.
Palace have no new injury concerns for the Tyneside trip and they have been boosted by the return to fitness of Will Hughes, who has trained and will travel with the squad.
Odsonne Edouard and Jordan Ayew are also in contention to start, but James McArthur, James Tomkins, Jack Butland and Nathan Ferguson remain on the sidelines.
The stats
Home form has been key for Newcastle and they have tasted defeat just twice from their last 16 league games at St James’ Park – those losses coming against Manchester City in December last year and Liverpool in April.
The Magpies are looking to win consecutive league games against the Eagles for the first time since October 2017, having grabbed all three points when winning 1-0 when the pair last met in April last season.
Palace have struggled on their travels and have won just one of their last seven away top-flight games, while they have just four successes from their 21 away league fixtures under Patrick Vieira.
St James’ Park has also proven not to be a happy hunting ground for Palace, who have only picked up two victories in their last 10 trips to Newcastle across all competitions.
Prediction
Although Newcastle could be without Saint-Maximin and Guimaraes once again, there is enough belief and confidence within the squad that they can chalk up their second victory of the campaign and get themselves back on the right track.
The Magpies imposed themselves well against Liverpool and will feel they deserved at least a point from that clash, while the fantastic debut for Sweden international Isak is just what Howe would have wanted to see.
Either Sven Botman or Fabian Schar are expected to replace Jamaal Lascelles at the heart of defence, a change which should provide more defensive solidity, and the hosts should have enough quality to keep poor travellers Palace out.
The Eagles have failed to score in four of their last six games at St James’ Park and it would be no surprise to see Newcastle come out on top with a clean sheet in front of a raucous home crowd.
