Newcastle United will look to punch their ticket to the FA Cup quarter-finals when they head to Ewood Park to face Championship side Blackburn Rovers on Tuesday night.
Blackburn Rovers and Newcastle United lock horns in the FA Cup fifth round at Ewood Park on Tuesday night. The hosts continue to drop down the table in the second tier. They were involved in a share of the spoils for the third straight game, as they only managed a 1-1 league draw with Norwich City on Saturday.
Jon Dahl Tomasson parted ways with Blackburn Rovers at the start of February after reportedly losing trust in the financial backing of the club’s controversial owners. John Eustace, Tomasson’s replacement, has yet to oversee a victory for Rovers in four games, leaving them in 16th place in the Championship table, 16 points off the playoff positions, and just four points outside of the relegation zone at a crucial stage of the campaign.
Blackburn now turn their attention to the FA Cup, where they began their campaign with a 5-2 victory over Cambridge United in early January before hammering Wrexham 4-1 at Ewood Park. On the other hand, Newcastle’s five-game unbeaten run ended in spectacular style as they fell to a 4-1 loss at Arsenal on Saturday night. That defeat ended a four-game winning run away from home.
Sitting in eighth place in the Premier League, a whopping 15 points behind fourth-placed Aston Villa, the Magpies went out of both the UEFA Champions League and EFL Cup before the festive period. So, the FA Cup is now the only route to end their long trophy drought.
Newcastle United required extra time to beat Blackburn Rovers when they last visited Lancashire in the third round of the FA Cup in January 2019, and they have not won at Ewood Park since both clubs were in the Premier League a decade ago. Ahead of their latest meeting on Tuesday night, The Hard Tackle takes a closer look at both teams.
Team News & Tactics
Blackburn Rovers
Ryan Hedges was forced off after only 15 minutes into Blackburn Rovers’ 1-1 draw with Norwich City on Saturday with a tight groin. The Welsh winger had missed four months with a severe hamstring injury and could be in for yet another spell on the sidelines.
Hedges joins John Fleck (calf) and Joe Rankin-Costello (leg) in the treatment room until at least mid-March, while Hayden Carter is expected back from a hamstring issue in April. Harry Leonard will be assessed late before the game.
Head coach John Eustace could make a few alterations to the side that took to the field in the 1-1 draw with the Canaries. Andrew Moran and Arnor Sigurdsson could come into the starting lineup. But Sammie Szmodics and Sam Gallagher should keep their places in the final third of the pitch.
Probable Lineup (3-4-3): Pears; Hyam, McFadzean, Wharton; Brittain, Garrett, Tronstad, Sigurdsson; Moran, Szmodics, Gallagher
Newcastle United
Callum Wilson (chest) and Joelinton (thigh) are out for the campaign. First-choice goalkeeper Nick Pope is still some way short of full fitness after dislocating his shoulder, and it is doubtful Martin Dubravka will be able to recover from illness by Tuesday. So, third-choice Loris Karius is in line to continue in between the sticks.
Elliot Anderson has been hampered by a nagging back problem throughout the season, while Matt Targett has been sidelined with a hamstring issue. Both are inching closer to making a return to first-team training. Sandro Tonali will not be back from his betting ban until August.
Eddie Howe has put out a quality starting XI in the FA Cup this season, and that will probably keep going on Tuesday, although there will be changes from the side that faced Arsenal on Saturday.
Harvey Barnes, Jacob Murphy, Joe Willock, and Dan Burn could all be drafted into the side, while the likes of Kieran Trippier, Fabian Schar, Sven Botman, Bruno Guimaraes, Sean Longstaff, and Alexander Isak should retain their spots.
Probable Lineup (4-3-3): Karius; Trippier, Schar, Botman, Burn; Willock, Bruno, S Longstaff; Barnes, Isak, Jacob Murphy
Key Stats
- Newcastle have failed to keep a clean sheet in each of their last four matches.
- However, the Magpies are unbeaten in their last five across all competitions, winning their last three away matches.
- Newcastle continue to have defensive problems, with 12 goals conceded in their last four games while scoring ten themselves.
- The Magpies have yet to concede a goal in this season’s FA Cup.
- The Toon have only lost one of their last six matches.
Player to Watch
Alexander Isak
Newcastle’s leading scorer bagged a brace in the Wear-Tyne derby against Sunderland in the FA Cup third round last month. And the Swede will shoulder the goalscoring responsibility for his side in attack here after gaining vital minutes under his belt in the 4-1 defeat to Arsenal on his return from injury.
Prediction
Blackburn Rovers 1-2 Newcastle United
Goals could be the order of the day at Ewood Park. Blackburn Rovers have kept just one shutout at home all season, while Newcastle United have conceded 12 in four games this month. The hosts are very capable of reaching the FA Cup quarter-finals at Newcastle’s expense, and we expect Tuesday’s game to be quite tight.
However, with European qualification distant and no other competition to prioritise, there would be little reason for Eddie Howe to not field a strong XI, and The Hard Tackle backs the visitors to advance to the Last Eight.
