Newcastle United aim to get back to winning ways on Tuesday evening when they visit the Emirates Stadium to face league leaders Arsenal in the Premier League.
A 0-0 stalemate with Leeds United ended the Toon Army’s six-game winning run in the league, leaving them nine points below the Gunners. They were the dominant side but could not find a breakthrough against a resilient Leeds defence on New Year’s Eve.
While there was a sense of missed opportunity on Saturday, Eddie Howe’s side will now fully focus on handing Arsenal just their second defeat of the season.
None of Newcastle United’s injured quintet should be ready to return to the squad, with Paul Dummett, Alexander Isak, Jonjo Shelvey, Matt Targett and Emil Krafth all unavailable to face Arsenal in north London.
Goalkeeper
Nick Pope has enjoyed a solid debut season with Newcastle United and should continue to protect their goal. He will be raring to keep a fourth clean sheet in a row when the Magpies play Arsenal.
Defence
Newcastle have the meanest defence in the division with 11 goals conceded in 17 games, thanks to defenders such as Kieran Trippier, Fabian Schar, Sven Botman and Dan Burn.
Schar will resume his centre-back partnership with Botman, while Trippier and Burn look to enjoy productive nights from the right-back and left-back positions, respectively. However, Trippier and Burn have to be defensively switched on to contain in-form Saka and Martinelli at the Emirates Stadium.
Midfield
Bruno Guimaraes is one of the first names on the team sheet, and the Brazilian’s passing, reading of the game and energy will be needed against Arsenal in the middle of the park. Sean Longstaff should keep his place in the engine room, while Joelinton could replace Joe Willock for some much-needed physicality and bite to combat Arsenal’s Xhaka and Partey.
Willock should drop down to the bench to provide cover for the midfield positions along with Matt Ritchie and Jacob Murphy.
Attack
Allan Saint-Maximin could be handed a start in the Newcastle attack. The Frenchman’s pace, directness and unpredictability can cause problems for the Arsenal backline. From the opposite flank, Miguel Almiron will provide a threat. Almiron is Newcastle’s top scorer, and after firing a blank against Leeds, the Paraguayan should be raring to get himself on the scoresheet at Arsenal.
Eddie Howe could be tempted to go with Callum Wilson up top at the Emirates Stadium, having brought the England international on as a substitute for Chris Wood against Leeds on New Year’s Eve.
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