Newcastle United will look to extend their unbeaten streak in the Premier League when they entertain Everton at St. James’ Park on Wednesday.
Newcastle United and Everton will go head to head at St. James’ Park in what promises to be one of the most intriguing games of Wednesday’s Premier League action.
The Magpies stretched their undefeated record in the Premier League to five games after earning a deserved 0-0 against Manchester United at Old Trafford. Their only defeat this season has come at Anfield via a controversial last-gasp Fabio Carvalho winner.
The Old Trafford result, along with Brighton’s setback to Brentford, kept them in the top six of the English top flight. And they will be looking to consolidate their footing in the European spots when they lock horns with Frank Lampard’s Everton at the fortress that is St. James’ Park.
The Toffees, meanwhile, are sitting 14th in the Premier League table and have won two of their last five league games. They are coming off the back of a deserved 2-0 defeat at Tottenham Hotspur, despite putting up a spirited defensive display for the most part.
This was the second successive defeat for Frank Lampard’s side. But prior to that they were undefeated in six games and had shipped just four goals along the way, including a deserved goalless draw against perennial rivals Liverpool.
The Blues are only two points adrift of 18th-placed Southampton. And notwithstanding Frank Lampard’s plaudits for improving the team at Everton, issues still exist and they are not very far away from getting into a relegation dogfight.
The Toffees can take encouragement from their last encounter with Newcastle when they scraped a late 1-0 victory to start their revival from the brink of relegation last season. Ahead of the latest meeting between the two teams on Tuesday night, The Hard Tackle takes a closer look at both sides.
Team News & Tactics
Newcastle United
🗣 "We can't rest on our laurels or take what we've done at this point for granted. Every challenge is so unique in the Premier League."
Eddie Howe's #NEWEVE press conference is now available to watch on YouTube ⤵️
— Newcastle United FC (@NUFC) October 18, 2022
Newcastle United are still without the services of Karl Darlow (ankle), Emil Krafth (ACL), Alexander Isak (thigh), and Allan Saint-Maximin (hamstring). Isak and Saint-Maximin have endured setbacks in their recovery from respective injury issues.
The Swedish striker is out until after the World Cup, while the French maverick is expected to miss several games as well. On the flip side, Jonjo Shelvey is edging closer to making his first appearance of the season after making the bench last time out.
Newcastle boss Eddie Howe would have liked to rotate his side with three games in a week. But with multiple key men injured, he is likely to keep with the majority of the XI that took to the field last time out.
Defender Fabian Schar hobbled off the pitch in injury time against Manchester United on Sunday. But he should be fine to start on Wednesday. The Swiss international will partner Sven Botman at the heart of Newcastle’s defence, with England goalkeeper Nick Pope lining up behind the central defensive duo.
Kieran Trippier and Dan Burn will form the usual full-back duo. The former is renowned for his crossing and set-piece ability, while the latter is just a towering presence at the back. Tactically, Burn is crucial as Howe’s side tends to shift into a 3-3-4 formation in possession, with Trippier bombing forward to impact the attacking play.
There should only be one change in midfield, with Joe Willock likely to come in for Sean Longstaff, who is due a breather after putting in a shift at Old Trafford. Bruno Guimaraes and Joelinton are expected to keep their places in the midfield trio.
Paraguayan winger Miguel Almiron has enjoyed a good start to the season, scoring four goals in the league. Callum Wilson will lead the line, while Jacob Murphy will provide a tenacious presence down the left. Youngster Elliot Anderson will be an impact option off the bench.
Probable Lineup (4-3-3): Pope; Trippier, Schar, Botman, Burn; Willock, Guimaraes, Joelinton; Almiron, Wilson, Murphy
Everton
Similar to his counterpart in the Newcastle United dugout, Frank Lampard has his fair share of injury concerns. Ben Godfrey (leg fracture), Andros Townsend (ACL) and Nathan Patterson (ankle) all remain sidelined in the long term, although full-back Nathan Patterson could make a return to action next month.
Yerry Mina has also had a setback in his recovery, so it is unclear whether he will be available here. Mason Holgate has returned to full training and will make a return to the squad. Striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin is also expected to get some minutes under his belt against Newcastle.
Frank Lampard will most likely use a 4-3-3 formation and may make one personnel change to his starting eleven for this encounter. Anthony Gordon, who was suspended during Everton’s 2-0 loss to Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday, is now back available and could be reintroduced straight back into the attack alongside Neal Maupay and Demarai Gray as the visitors look to engineer some decent chances in the final third.
"It is a fine balance but Dom is getting to the stage where we can hopefully get more minutes out of him."
Watch live: https://t.co/VYUloAcLtL pic.twitter.com/9cGj22OyBH
— Everton (@Everton) October 18, 2022
Nigerian midfielder Alex Iwobi has been one of the shining lights of Everton’s season so far, with four goal contributions in the league. Idrissa Gueye will slot in as the holding midfielder, while Amadou Onana will be another energetic box-to-box presence.
The trio will need to win 50-50 battles and second balls in the middle of the park to have any chance of controlling the Magpies’ buzzing midfield-three. Elsewhere at the back, Jordan Pickford remains a guaranteed starter between the sticks for the visitors.
Conor Coady will once again partner James Tarkowski to form the central defensive partnership as they look to keep a resilient defensive shape. Seamus Coleman will function at right-back in Patterson’s absence, while Vitaliy Mykolenko offers a proactive attacking presence down the left flank.
Probable Lineup (4-3-3): Pickford; Coleman, Coady, Tarkowski, Mykolenko; Iwobi, Gueye, Onana; Gray, Maupay, Gordon
Key Stats
- Newcastle United have three of their last four games against Everton (L1), with their only 1-0 defeat coming very late at Goodison Park in the reverse fixture last season.
- Newcastle are undefeated in 11 of their last 12 Premier League games.
- Everton have failed to win 20 of their last 22 away Premier League games.
- The Magpies have lost just one of their last 15 Premier League home games (W9 D5), and are looking to remain unbeaten in their opening six of the season at St James’ Park for the first time since 2011-12.
- Newcastle have won two of their last three games on Wednesdays (L1), while Everton are without a win in their last six midweek (Tue, Wed, Thu) Premier League away fixtures (D4 L2).
Player to Watch
Callum Wilson
Callum Wilson, when fit, has proven to be quite a prolific striker in the Black and White in recent seasons. He has added only three goals to his name so far this season, despite Newcastle’s free-scoring form.
An imposing and notorious presence despite his short frame, he can be a nuisance to deal with for the opposition. Wilson is long overdue for a goal and might be rejuvenated for the Everton clash on Wednesday as the striker has scored four goals in his last four outings against the Toffees in the Premier League.
Prediction
Newcastle United 2-0 Everton
Frank Lampard has undoubtedly made Everton a much stronger, more compact defensive outfit this season, but the Toffees still lack the creativity to break lines and the clinical nature to score goals, having only once managed to score more than one goal in a game this season. Meanwhile, Newcastle are flying high despite missing some of their key players in Allan Saint-Maximin and Alexander Isak.
They have won two and drawn three of their last five league games, putting five and four goals past Brentford and Fulham prior to the Manchester United game. Everton were on the losing side in their last two league games and haven’t put in a good enough display in either, which does not augur well for a trip to Tyneside with the Toon waiting on the wings to entertain their expectant home support.
That is why, despite the Toffees’ newfound resilience, The Hard Tackle are backing Eddie Howe’s men to secure all three points this midweek.
