Newcastle United will host West Ham United at St. James’ Park on Sunday, looking to build towards a solid end to the 2025/26 season.
Newcastle United have shown improvement in recent weeks after a run of four successive defeats in the Premier League, and they will hope to continue that vs West Ham United on Sunday. They will be desperate to pick up all three points here. The Magpies are 13th in the Premier League table, and they will look close on the top half.
On the other hand, West Ham United have lost back-to-back Premier League matches, and they are 18th in the league table. The Hammers need to win the remaining games and hope for some luck with the other results to stay up. They cannot afford to lose here.
It will be a devastating blow for them if they drop points again. It remains to be seen whether they can produce a strong performance here and grind out all three points. West Ham beat Newcastle United earlier this season, and the home team will look to avenge that defeat here. The Hard Tackle takes a closer look at the encounter ahead of the latest meeting between the two sides.
Team News & Tactics
Newcastle United
Lewis Miley (calf), Emil Krafth (knee), Valentino Livramento (thigh), and Fabian Schar (ankle) are all ruled out for the away side. Newcastle United will shape up in a 4-3-1-2 formation vs West Ham United, with Nick Pope in goal.
Kieran Trippier and Lewis Hall will start as the full-backs. They will look to help out at both ends of the pitch. Meanwhile, Sven Botman and Malick Thiaw will form the central defensive partnership for the home side.
As for the midfield unit, Bruno Guimaraes will start in the middle of the park alongside Sandro Tonali and Joelinton. Joelinton and Guimaraes will look to add creativity and drive to the side, while Tonali looks to provide defensive cover.
Anthony Elanga will start as the attacking midfielder, and he will look to create openings in the final third. Finally, Nick Woltemade will spearhead the Newcastle United attack alongside William Osula. Anthony Gordon will likely miss out again, with Eddie Howe hinting the English international may have played his final game for the Tyneside outfit.
Probable Lineup (4-3-1-2): Pope; Trippier, Thiaw, Thiaw, Hall; Bruno Guimaraes, Tonali, Joelinton; Elanga; Woltemade, Osula
West Ham United
Lukasz Fabianski will miss out due to a lower back injury. Meanwhile, Adama Traore is struggling with a thigh problem. West Ham United will shape up in a 4-2-3-1 formation vs Newcastle United, with Mads Hermansen in goal.
Aaron Wan-Bissaka and El Hadji Malick Diouf will start as the full-backs. They will look to contribute at both ends of the pitch. Meanwhile, Konstantinos Mavropanos will start alongside Axel Disasi at the heart of the defence.
As for the midfield unit, Tomas Soucek will pair up with Soungoutou Magassa in the double pivot. They will look to add defensive cover and physicality to the midfield. Mateus Fernandes will start as the attacking midfielder here, and he will look to create goalscoring chances for his teammates.
Jarrod Bowen and Crysencio Summerville will add creativity, flair, and goals from the flanks. Finally, Taty Castellanos will lead the line for West Ham United vs Newcastle United on Sunday.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Hermansen; Wan-Bissaka, Mavropanos, Disasi, Diouf; Soucek, Magassa; Bowen, Fernandes, Summerville; Castellanos
Key Stats
- Newcastle United have picked up three wins from the last six matches against West Ham United. Meanwhile, 24 goals have been scored in the last six matches between these two teams.
- Newcastle United have picked up one win from their last six Premier League matches.
- West Ham United have picked up two wins from their last six Premier League matches.
- Four of the last six matches between these two teams have seen both sides get on the score sheet.
- West Ham have failed to score in each of their last three away league games. They last went four without a goal in April/May 2015, the fourth game of which was at Newcastle in their final away game of the season..
Player to Watch
Tomas Soucek
While West Ham have been over-dependent on Jarrod Bowen in the final third, Tomas Soucek may be the dark horse for producing offensive output for the away side. The Czech midfielder has a solid record against Newcastle United, having scored more Premier League goals against the Tyneside outfit than he has vs any other opponent (5).
Soucek is one goal or assist away from being only the second Czech player to register 50 goal involvements in the Premier League (41 goals, 8 assists) after Patrik Berger (38 goals, 31 assists). His performance will hold the key for the visitors this weekend.
Prediction
Newcastle United 2-1 West Ham United
West Ham United will look to put up a fight here. They will not want to slip to defeat, as it could be catastrophic for them in their push for survival. Both teams have been quite vulnerable defensively, and there are likely to be plenty of opportunities.
The two sides are likely to get on the score sheet here, but Newcastle United have more quality in the final third. They should be able to grind out a narrow victory here. The Hard Tackle predicts a hard-fought 2-1 win for Eddie Howe and his charges.
