Newcastle United are away from home for the third game in a row on Saturday, and look to make it six consecutive wins at the expense of Aston Villa.
Eddie Howe takes Newcastle to Villa Park for this weekend’s early kickoff, where he faces the man who the Toon owners wanted to appoint ahead of him.
Unai Emery was very close to replacing Steve Bruce at St James’ Park, but now he is calling the shots at Aston Villa. He has inspired an impressive surge up the table, with Villa currently sixth in the Premier League.
It is going to be a very difficult game, and this is our predicted Newcastle lineup to face Aston Villa
Matt Targett on the bench against former club Aston Villa
With no fresh injury concerns, it is highly likely that Howe will continue with his tried and test back five at Villa Park. That includes Nick Pope, who was excellent in the win over Brentford.
It means that former Aston Villa defender Matt Targett will be on the bench, with Dan Burn starting at left-back once again. It will be interesting to see what kind of reaction Targett gets if he is brought on against his old employer.
Alexander Isak predicted to start over Callum Wilson
The big decision Howe needs to make ahead of Saturday’s game is who should start up front: Alexander Isak or Callum Wilson?
They are both playing brilliantly at the minute, giving Howe something of a selection dilemma.
The Toon boss started with Isak against Brentford and then shifted to a front two in the second half when things weren’t going to plan. We expect the same to happen this weekend, meaning the 23-year-old leads the line from the off.
That decision frustrated Wilson last time out, and it inspired a brilliant appearance off the bench from the number nine.
Chance for Anthony Gordon to silence Newcastle critics
A lot of the talk after the Brentford win was about Anthony Gordon’s reaction to being subbed on then off again at the Gtech Community Stadium.
He was not happy, and it detracted from a decent performance after being brought on at half time.
The 22-year-old needs to put the incident behind him, and can do that with a strong showing at Villa Park. We expect Howe to give him the chance to do just that, with Gordon taking Jacob Murphy’s place on the right of attack.
There will be pressure on Gordon to perform, especially with Miguel Almiron back from injury. Hopefully the £21million man is fit enough for a place on the bench on Saturday.
Predicted XI vs Villa: Pope; Trippier, Schar, Botman, Burn; Longstaff, Bruno, Joelinton; Gordon, Isak, Joelinton.
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