Newcastle vs Tottenham preview, H2H, team news, line-ups and prediction

Newcastle United will welcome Tottenham Hotspur to St. James Park on Sunday and both teams will look to get the better of the other to improve on their Premier League standing before the international break.

In the recently concluded season, Newcastle’s form, performances and results dipped compared to the previous season where they finished in a historic fourth position.

Toon fans had expected the Tyneside club would ride in the momentum into the 2023-24 season but it didn’t go as planned as Newcastle ended in seventh place, missed out on European qualification, and saw their star signing Sandro Tonali banned for a significant portion of the campaign

While Eddie Howe might have hoped for a smoother 2024-25 season, the season began on a challenging note when Fabian Schar was sent off just 28 minutes into their opening Premier League match against newly-promoted Southampton on August 17, forcing Newcastle to relinquish control and territory to the Saints.

Midfielder Joelinton scored the decisive goal in the 45th minute, capitalizing on a mistake by Southampton goalkeeper Alex McCarthy, who played a poor pass to Alexander Isak in his penalty area.

Newcastle then found themselves amid controversy during their 1-1 draw against Bournemouth on August 25. Bournemouth’s forward, Dango Ouattara, had what would have been the winning goal disallowed in the 92nd minute after it was ruled that he had handled the ball.

Joelinton was involved in the headlines again, this time for avoiding a red card after clotheslining Bournemouth’s goalkeeper Neto in stoppage time. Even Eddie Howe acknowledged that the Brazilian was fortunate to escape with just a yellow card.

Most recently, the Magpies played out a 1-1 draw against Nottingham Forest in the second round of the EFL Cup on August 28, but they progressed to the third round after a 4-3 win in the penalty shootout. Their next challenge in the competition will be against AFC Wimbledon on September 17.

At home, Newcastle have been powerful offensively, finding the net in each of their last 20 Premier League home games. This marks their second-longest scoring streak at St James’ Park in Premier League history, with the longest being 24 games between January 1995 and February 1996.

They’ll once again count on their talisman, Isak to open his Premier League account this season against an opponent he has scored twice in both of his two Premier League home matches.

For Tottenham, their season began with a 1-1 draw against Leicester City on August 19, despite dominating possession with 70% and taking 15 shots. Pedro Porro opened the scoring in the 29th minute, but the team also showed susceptibility to counter-attacks.

Their second game, against Everton on August 24, saw a more decisive performance. Goals from Yves Bissouma, Cristian Romero, and a brace from Son Heung-Min secured a convincing 4-0 win.

Tottenham benefited from an error by Jordan Pickford in the 25th minute of their match against Everton. Pickford failed to control a pass from James Tarkowski, allowing Son Heung-Min to score Spurs’ second goal.

Under Ange Postecoglou, the north London club have been prolific, averaging the second-most shots on target per match, creating the second-most big chances, and having the most touches in the opposition box in the Premier League. They’re unbeaten in their last three league games, during which they’ve scored eight goals.

In the last nine Premier League encounters between Newcastle and Tottenham, a total of 40 goals have been scored. However, Spurs have suffered heavy defeats in their last two league visits to St James’ Park, losing 6-1 and 4-0.

This encounter promises to be an entertaining affair as both clubs will aim for victory to propel them to a top-six position ahead of the international break.

Newcastle United vs Tottenham Hotspur match details

• Date: Sunday 1 September, 2024
• Location: Newcastle upon Tyne, England
• Venue: St. James Park
• Kick-off time: 12:00 PM UTC, 02:30 PM CEST
• Referee: Robert Jones
• Assistant referees: Ian Hussin, Nick Greenhalgh
• Fourth official: Darren Bond
• VAR: Stuart Attwell
• Assistant VAR: Natalie Aspinall
• Tickets: Fans can buy tickets through the official club channels or via trusted resellers like Seatsnet.com.

Match stats and head-to-head

• Tottenham’s 95 touches in the opposition box is the most by any team across matchday one and two in the Premier League.

• Newcastle have conceded the most touches in their box in the Premier League with 75. Only Ipswich Town (99), and Leicester City(93) have conceded more touches in their box.

• The Magpies have found the back of the net consecutively in their last 20 matches in the Premier League at St. James Park. Newcastle have only had one longer scoring streak at St James’ Park in the Premier League, which was 24 consecutive games between January 1995 and February 1996.

• These two sides have never played out a 0-0 draw in the Premier League, the most-played fixture without a goalless draw in the Premier League.

• Eddie Howe’s side have won three of their last four Premier League matches against Spurs.

• These two sides have met 170 times with Spurs holding the upper record with 74 wins while Newcastle have recorded 62 wins.

• Tottenham have won only three of their last 14 away matches, recording five draws and six losses in that run.

• The Tyneside club have defeated Spurs in their last two matches at home by an aggregate score of 10-1.

Team news

Newcastle are dealing with multiple absences, including centre-backs Sven Botman and Jamaal Lascelles — who are both sidelined with cruciate ligament injuries.

Additionally, Fabian Schar is still suspended. As a result, Dan Burn and Emil Krafth, who started together in central defence against Bournemouth, might be the starting pair again on Sunday.

Callum Wilson, Lewis Miley, and Joe Willock are all expected to be unavailable for Newcastle, with goalkeeper Martin Dubravka also listed as a doubt.

However, Sandro Tonali made his return in Newcastle’s match against Nottingham Forest and might be considered for a starting role this weekend.

For Tottenham, Richarlison will be sidelined for the next few weeks following an injury sustained in training, and Dominic Solanke is also unavailable for selection.

On a brighter note, Rodrigo Bentancur is likely to be included in the squad to face Newcastle, though he may start on the bench if Ange Postecoglou opts to go with Pape Matar Sarr, Yves Bissouma, and James Maddison in midfield.

Predicted starting lineup

Newcastle United predicted starting lineup:

Pope; Livramento, Krafth, Burn, Kelly; Tonali, Guimaraes, Joelinton; Murphy, Isak, Gordon.

Tottenham Hotspur predicted starting lineup:

Vicario; Porro, Romero, Van de Ven, Udogie; Sarr, Bissouma, Maddison; Johnson, Son, Odobert.

Prediction

Newcastle and Tottenham currently occupy ninth and tenth positions respectively on four points and a win for either side would see them climb to fifth place in the Premier League standings.

The Magpies will hope to continue their strong record at home in the Premier League and against Spurs having won the last two matches at Tyneside.

Tottenham on the other hand have played some classic football and are capable of netting multiple goals on Sunday afternoon.

It’ll likely be a goalscoring affair but the team with the better defence should emerge victorious.

We’re predicting a 2-2 draw.