Two of the Premier League’s form teams meet at Villa Park on Saturday, and pundit Chris Sutton expects Newcastle United to come out on top.
Eddie Howe comes up against Unai Emery in this weekend’s early kickoff, and it will be the first time the two men have met since they were both involved in the race to become Newcastle manager.
The Toon owners had Emery as their first choice, and believed he was going to replace Steve Bruce. However, the deal collapsed and they instead turned to Howe.
It has worked out for the best, with Howe in a great position to lead the Magpies into the Champions League. As for Emery, he is excelling with Villa since his return to the Premier League.
They have won their last four and are now sixth in the table. It is going to be a great game at Villa Park, with Newcastle also boasting an impressive unbeaten run. Howe’s side have won five on the bounce, and Sutton thinks they will make it six.
Chris Sutton thinks Newcastle will beat Aston Villa
As part of his predictions for BBC Sport, Sutton has tipped Newcastle to win 2-1 on Saturday.
“Both of these teams are in such good form – Aston Villa have won their past four games, while Newcastle are on a run of five wins in a row,” he wrote.
“The obvious result is a draw, but I am actually going to keep on backing Newcastle because I was really impressed with their second-half display at Brentford last week.
“I really admire what Unai Emery has done at Villa too, and they have enough firepower to cause the Magpies problems here but I just feel like Newcastle’s quality will edge it.”
Huge test for Eddie Howe’s side
It is a supreme show of faith from Sutton to predict Newcastle to win. As he says, the obvious result is the draw.
Both sides are playing very well, while Villa have home advantage. However, Sutton still believes the Magpies are going to ‘edge it’.
If that proves to be the case, it could be another season-defining victory. Three points in the early kickoff would put real pressure on the teams below us, although Manchester United and Tottenham do have very winnable fixtures this weekend. They face Nottingham Forest and Bournemouth respectively.
In that respect, it is essential that Newcastle avoid defeat. That is something we are pretty good at, losing just three league games this season.
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