Newcastle United will host Bournemouth at St. James’ Park for the FA Cup third round on Saturday, looking to book their place in the next phase of the competition.
Newcastle United are in impressive form right now, and they are coming into this game vs Bournemouth on the back of three consecutive victories in all competitions. On the other hand, the Cherries have not been at their best in recent weeks.
Andoni Iraola’s men ended their winless run with a victory over Tottenham in their last outing, and it will be interesting to see if they can build on that. Bournemouth have the quality to pull off an upset away from home, and it remains to be seen who comes out on top.
Both teams will be looking to book their place in the next round of the FA Cup. This should be a close contest. The Hard Tackle takes a closer look at the encounter ahead of the latest meeting between the two sides.
Team News & Tactics
Newcastle United
William Osula (ankle), Dan Burn (chest), Emil Krafth (knee), Anthony Elanga (knee), and Jamaal Lascelles (undisclosed) are ruled out. Fabian Schar is the latest absentee after he picked up a serious ankle injury earlier this week against Leeds United.
Newcastle United will shape up in a 4-3-1-2 formation vs Bournemouth, with Aaron Ramsdale in goal. Valentino Livramento and Lewis Hall will start as the full-backs. They will look to help out at both ends of the pitch. Sven Botman and Malick Thiaw will start in the central defensive partnership.
As for the midfield unit, Bruno Guimaraes will start in the centre 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 Gordon will start as the attacking midfielder, and he will look to drift into the wide areas as well. Finally, Nick Woltemade will spearhead the Newcastle United attack vs Bournemouth, with Jacob Murphy completing the numbers in the offensive third.
Probable Lineup (4-3-3): Ramsdale; Livramento, Thiaw, Botman, Hall; Bruno Guimaraes, Tonali, Willock; Murphy, Wissa, Gordon
Bournemouth
Andoni Iraola will be without Justin Kluivert (knee), Ben Gannon-Doak (hamstring), Tyler Adams (knee), Matai Akinmboni (knock), and Ryan Christie (knee) this weekend.
Bournemouth will shape up in a 4-2-3-1 formation vs Newcastle United, with Djordje Petrovic in goal. Adam Smith and Adrien Truffert will start as the two full-backs. They will look to keep things tight defensively and hit Newcastle United on the counter. Bafode Diakite will start alongside Marcos Senesi at the heart of the defence.
As for the midfield unit, Alex Scott will start alongside Lewis Cook in the double pivot. They will look to protect the team defensively and keep things compact in the middle of the pitch.
Amine Adli will start as the attacking midfielder, and he will look to link the midfield with the attack. David Brooks and Alex Jimenez will start on the flanks, adding goals and creativity from the wide areas. Finally, Enes Unal will lead the line for Bournemouth vs Newcastle United.
Bournemouth (4-2-3-1): Petrovic, Smith, Diakite, Senesi, Truffert; Cook, Scott; Jimenez, Adli, Brooks; Unal
Key Stats
- Four of the last six matches between these two teams have ended in a draw. 15 goals have been scored in the last six matches between these two teams.
- Newcastle United have picked up four wins from the last six matches in all competitions.
- Bournemouth have failed to win in five of their last six matches across all competitions.
- Bournemouth have won their last four away matches in the FA Cup, their best ever away winning run in the competition, with two of those wins coming at Premier League teams – Burnley in February 2021 and Everton in February 2025.
- Eddie Howe has lost six of his last nine home matches in the FA Cup (W2 D1), with four of those defeats coming with former club Bournemouth (W1 D1 L4) and two with Newcastle (W1).
Player to Watch
Yoane Wissa
The Newcastle United striker is our key player to watch out for. He is still working hard to establish himself as a regular starter for the Tyneside outfit, and this is a golden opportunity for him to prove his worth. He will look to take advantage of Bournemouth’s defensive vulnerabilities and get on the score sheet here.
Wissa will look to help create opportunities for his teammates as well. The DR Congo international was outstanding during his time at Brentford, and he will look to make his mark at Newcastle United now.
Prediction
Newcastle United 3-1 Bournemouth
Both teams will be looking to play for a victory here, and this is likely to be an open game with plenty of chances. Neither side is defensive in their approach, and they will look to outscore each other. Both clubs have quality attacking players at their disposal.
However, Newcastle have greater depth and quality in the final third, and they should be able to secure a comfortable home victory. The visitors have recently lost Antoine Semenyo to Manchester City, and that will affect them negatively in the coming months. The Hard Tackle predicts a 3-1 win for Eddie Howe and his charges.
