Aiming to snap their miserable losing run before commencing Champions League duties, Newcastle United welcome Brentford to St James’ Park for Saturday’s tantalising Premier League showdown.
Eddie Howe‘s men were outfought and outclassed in a 3-1 loss to Brighton & Hove Albion two weeks ago, while the Bees remain unbeaten thanks to a 2-2 draw versus Bournemouth.
Match preview
Goals were promised when the Seagulls and the Magpies engaged in a fierce avian battle at the Amex Stadium before the international break, but the Newcastle faithful were not rewarded for their gruelling journey south, as an Irish protege single-handedly put Howe’s men to the sword.
Even though Callum Wilson’s late goal for Brighton destroyed Brighton’s clean sheet, 18-year-old Evan Ferguson added a few more pounds to his value by scoring a beautiful hat-trick for Brighton. However, the Englishman’s impact off the bench unsurprisingly was minor.
In normal circumstances, the Magpies could not have been faulted for losing by a goal to title contenders Manchester City and Liverpool. However, allowing the 10-man Reds to steal all three points from the hosts was obviously a sign of things to come, and the hosts’ 5-1 thrashing of Aston Villa on the opening weekend now seems like a lifetime ago.
Owing to their dissatisfactory start to the new term, Newcastle are languishing in 14th place in the table before they meet three European behemoths in Borussia Dortmund, Paris Saint-Germain and AC Milan in a harsh welcome back to life in the Champions League; the Italian giants await at San Siro for their first ‘group of death’ battle next Tuesday.
Before tackling some of the continent’s big boys, Howe must seek to reverse an alarming trend which has seen Newcastle win just two of their last nine top-flight outings, while their only clean sheet in their last 15 Premier League matches came against relegated Leicester City, and the hosts have not lost four successive games in the division since the days of Steve Bruce in January 2021.
In gameweek four, when Brentford and Bournemouth squared off, the Gtech Community Stadium fans also witnessed a four-goal extravaganza. A beautiful Mathias Jensen free kick opened the scoring after only seven minutes, and Dominic Solanke and David Brooks later hushed the London crowd.
Thomas Frank’s team appeared to be headed for their first loss of the year, but with three minutes left in second-half injury time, the dependable Bryan Mbeumo sprinted through to steal a point for the hosts, who have established themselves as the season’s foremost experts in stalemates.
While the eighth-placed visitors have now gone four games without defeat in the new term, their only win in that sequence came away to London rivals Fulham, while they were also held to a 1-1 draw by Newport County in the EFL Cup before prevailing on penalties.
Nevertheless, the Ivan Toney-less Bees continue to deliver on the offensive front and have only lost one of their last 11 Premier League contests – a 1-0 beating on Liverpool’s territory back in May – and Frank’s team are now unbeaten in seven successive top-flight games.
However, the Brentford faithful may wish to avoid casting an eye over their side’s recent results against Newcastle, whom they have failed to beat in all four Premier League meetings since earning promotion to the big time, although a Josh Dasilva strike did seal a slender EFL Cup quarter-final success in 2020-21.
Team News
Several notable players have been left battered and bruised during the international break, including the Magpies’ marquee summer signing Sandro Tonali, who missed Italy’s win over Ukraine on Tuesday with a muscular problem and is a doubt for the visit of Brentford, as well as his San Siro homecoming with Milan next week.
Tonali is in the treatment room with Joe Willock (calf), Emil Krafth (ACL), and Javier Manquillo (groin). Sven Botman missed the Brighton thrashing due to an ankle injury, but Howe is optimistic that the Dutchman will play. The same is true for Elliot Anderson following a knock.
If Tonali is not required for the trip to Italy, Anderson and Sean Longstaff are likely to compete for one spot in the midfield trio. If Botman does not return to the starting lineup right away, Lewis Hall may be in line to make his debut after Matt Targett’s disappointing performance in the South.
Dasilva, Brentford’s 2020–21 EFL Cup hero, will be sidelined against Newcastle as he recovers from a serious thigh injury, and Shandon Baptiste will also be sidelined indefinitely after dislocating his shoulder.
Due to an adductor issue, Mikkel Damsgaard missed the draw with Bournemouth and Denmark’s international matches. Frank is hopeful that the 23-year-old will be eligible to play against Newcastle, but a seat on the bench is almost certain.
Neal Maupay, who was on loan from Everton, has returned to the Bees for a homecoming while Toney is still on the naughty step until January; nonetheless, Mbeumo, Kevin Schade, and Yoane Wissa should continue to be the attacking trio for the time being.
Newcastle United possible starting lineup:
Pope; Trippier, Schar, Botman, Burn; Longstaff, Guimaraes, Joelinton; Gordon, Isak, Barnes
Brentford possible starting lineup:
Flekken; Hickey, Pinnock, Collins, Henry; Janelt, Norgaard, Jensen; Mbeumo, Wissa, Schade
We say: Newcastle United 2-1 Brentford
Up north, where questions over Tonali and Botman’s respective fitness levels will do the demoralized Magpies absolutely no favors, the Bees’ recent penchant for draws may serve them well.
We anticipate Howe’s team to return from the international break with a bang and secure a fourth consecutive victory over their capital rivals because Brentford still exhibits a propensity to concede goals and Newcastle is more than capable of turning their fortunes around at home – especially with the Champions League on the horizon.
