Newcastle will look to make it three wins on the spin when they welcome Aston Villa to St James’ Park on Sunday afternoon.
Newcastle won back-to-back Premier League games for the first time this season after a 1-0 victory at Leeds United was followed by a 3-1 victory at home against Everton on Tuesday night. The result lifted the Magpies out of the bottom three, and Eddie Howe’s side have now strung an impressive four-game unbeaten run in the Premier League (D2 W2).
Eddie Howe still faces a challenging task in their bid to retain their Premier League status, with them only one point above 18th-placed Norwich City in the drop zone, but they do have a game in hand. For all their defensive woes this term, the Magpies have made drastic improvements under Howe and have only conceded three goals in the past four matches.
On the other hand, Aston Villa have definitely improved going forward under Steven Gerrard and are capable enough to compete for a top-half of the table finish in the Premier League. They played an exciting 3-3 draw against Marcelo Bielsa’s Leeds United in the Premier League, courtesy to a masterclass from vintage Philippe Coutinho.
Following just their third league draw of the season, Steven Gerrard’s side have dropped out of the top half and into 11th position, nine points adrift of the top seven. Aston Villa secured a routine 2-0 win in the reverse fixture against Newcastle back in August 2021, but they are in line to face a whole different proposition on Sunday.
Team News & Tactics
Newcastle United
Full focus on Sunday. ?
? #NEWAVL pic.twitter.com/BHzSayoXJF
— Newcastle United FC (@NUFC) February 11, 2022
Newcastle will be without the services of Callum Wilson, Matt Ritchie, Isaac Hayden, Ciaran Clark, Paul Dummett and Federico Fernandez due to respective injuries, though the latter two are close to returning to first-team training.
Eddie Howe has widely used a 4-3-3 formation since his arrival, which becomes a 4-5-1 off the ball and could pertain with the same setup here. But he will be forced to make at least one change to his starting XI for this clash, with Matt Targett ineligible to face his parent club, so it will be a straight battle between Javier Manquillo and Dan Burn to fill in at left-back.
Martin Dubravka will hold his spot as Newcastle’s No. 1 following intense speculation of him rejecting a late loan move to Manchester United during the winter window. Howe could opt for the recently established central defensive pairing of Jamaal Lascelles and Fabian Schar at the heart of Newcastle’s backline, with Dan Burn bringing healthy competition for the duo.
Howe has confirmed that Trippier will be subjected to a late fitness test after sustaining a calf injury in midweek. Javier Manquillo or Emil Krafth are on standby should the Englishman fail to recover in time.
Bruno Guimaraes would be itching to make his full Newcastle debut on Sunday after only coming off the bench in midweek. However, considering how well Joelinton, Jonjo Shelvey, and Joe Willock performed in midfield last time out, the blockbuster winter arrival may only get a chance to impress as a substitute.
Allan Saint-Maximin will look to utilise his pace, power and trickery from the left, whereas Ryan Fraser will want to build on his impressive goal-scoring performance down the right flank.
With Callum Wilson out for an extended period, Chris Wood will again lead the line for the northeast outfit and hope to break his goal-scoring rut while causing absolute mayhem in the opposition box with his physical and aerial presence.
Probable Lineup (4-3-3): Dubravka; Trippier, Lascelles, Schar, Manquillo; Willock, Shelvey, Joelinton; Fraser, Wood, Saint-Maximin
Aston Villa
Bodymoor Heath ? #NEWAVL pic.twitter.com/x0ooNUpc09
— Aston Villa (@AVFCOfficial) February 11, 2022
Marvelous Nakamba is still out with a long-term knee injury, but Leon Bailey has returned to training and may feature in some capacity here, while Bertrand Traore could have also been in contention after returning from AFCON action with Burkina Faso but suffered a hamstring injury. He will be sidelined for a few weeks.
Ezri Konsa serves a one-match suspension this weekend after his cynical sending off against Leeds in midweek. Calum Chambers replaced Konsa ahead of Kortney Hause, indicating that the former Arsenal player will be given the nod here to partner up with Tyrone Mings at centre-back, with the latter aiming to improve upon his error-prone defensive display last time out.
Villa boss Steven Gerrard may persist with his preferred 4-3-3 formation, with indispensable Emiliano Martinez a certainty in between the sticks. The Argentine international could have done little to prevent any of the three Whites’ goals conceded in the last game, but he will be hoping for a clean sheet this time out.
At full-back, both Matty Cash and Lucas Digne will be crucial in adding width and delivering quality balls into the box but will have to be wary defensively. Cash, in particular, may have his work cut out against the Newcastle maverick in Saint-Maximin.
Up ahead in midfield, Douglas Luiz will be anchoring the three-man unit alongside the tenacious John McGinn and an ever-exciting youngster Jacob Ramsey, looking to make effective late runs into Newcastle’s box after his recent goal-scoring exploits from midfield.
Gerrard could keep the attacking front three of Philippe Coutinho, Emiliano Buendia, and Ollie Watkins. However, with Danny Ings pushing to displace him, Watkins should better start adding to his tally of just five top-flight goals.
Probable Lineup (4-3-3): Martinez; Cash, Chambers, Mings, Digne; McGinn, Luiz, Ramsey; Buendia, Watkins, Coutinho
Key Stats
- Newcastle are undefeated in their last 12 home matches against Aston Villa in the Premier League (W6 D6) since a 3-0 defeat in the 2004-05 season.
- Aston Villa are undefeated in their last 7 matches against Newcastle in the English top-flight (W3 D4) since a 1-0 loss in February 2015.
- Having already defeated Newcastle 2-0 in the reverse fixture earlier this season, the Lions will be looking to do a Premier League double over the Magpies for only the second time since doing so in the 2004-05 season.
- Newcastle United will be looking to register their third successive Premier League victory for the first time since 2018.
- Each of the last three top-flight meetings between the two sides at St James’ Park have ended as 1-1 stalemates.
Player to Watch
Philippe Coutinho
Steven Gerrard, loving Coutinho: “If you don't like watching Philippe Coutinho then you should stop watching football because that (performance) was absolutely beautiful”. ⭐️?? #AVFC @villareport
…and there’s a buy option available for €40m in June. pic.twitter.com/wXYIjRbtdl
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) February 9, 2022
Philippe Coutinho has made an immediate impact since his arrival, registering two goals and two assists in three Premier League outings and already looks to be one of the signings of the January window. The Brazilian playmaker was heavily involved in the dramatic draw and seemed to have formed a blossoming partnership with willing runners in Jacob Ramsey and Ollie Watkins in the attacking third.
Should Gerrard continue to keep him fit and fine-tune him into his tactical setup, the Brazilian ace may well push the Villans to the top-half finish by himself. Coutinho’s technical qualities will come in handy once again, with the Lions hoping to breach a lately resilient Newcastle defence.
Prediction
Newcastle United 2-2 Aston Villa
The Magpies have produced several fine displays in the Premier League recently, and the confidence is growing in Newcastle camp following the new winter arrivals and an upturn in form. Still, with tricky-looking away fixtures against West Ham, Brentford and Chelsea in their next four after this one, they would be anxious to get a result here.
Meanwhile, the visitors have won just one of their last five top-flight games and will be aiming to get back on track following Wednesday’s exciting draw with Leeds United. An entertaining high-scoring draw could be on the cards.
