Newcastle United and Brighton meet at St James’ Park on Thursday night, and the Magpies will be hoping to play better than they did in the reverse fixture.
The Magpies and the Seagulls played out a 0-0 draw at the Amex Stadium at the start of the season, but it was Brighton who were left to wonder what might have been.
They were excellent on that day, and really should have taken all three points. There were some spectacular saves made by Toon goalkeeper Nick Pope, who gave fans their first real glimpse of how talented he is.
It was a valuable point for Eddie Howe’s side, who struggled to match up against the team that was than managed by Graham Potter.
Now Roberto De Zerbi is in charge, and he has taken Brighton to even greater heights. That is why some Toon fans are feeling slightly pessimistic ahead of the biggest game of the season.
Howe is expecting a really tough game on Thursday, and has singled out one Brighton player who impressed him in the previous meeting back in August.
Newcastle boss singles out Brighton star for praise
Ahead of Thursday night’s game, Howe has spoke to the media. He was asked about the 0-0 draw at the Amex Stadium at the start of the season.
“It was a baking hot day and really tough conditions,” he said.
“We were indebted to Nick (Pope) who made some good saves. I remember (Kaoru) Mitoma coming on and doing really well at that stage of the game when it was quite open.
“We weren’t at our best that day and it was probably one of our toughest games (of the season) and I think that will be equally the same in this game. We’ll be ready for it.”
Kieran Trippier knows all about Kaoru Mitoma
Mitoma was excellent against Newcastle back in August, on what was his Premier League debut. Fans knew nothing about the Japanese winger when he was brought on, but they quickly became aware of his talents.
The 25-year-old played on the left wing, and caused Toon right-back Kieran Trippier real problems. He is normally brilliant in one-on-one situations, but could not handle Mitoma’s sensational dribbling ability and speed.
He was an unknown quantity back then, but everyone knows about Mitoma now. Trippier certainly does, and will hopefully be more equipped to stop him on Thursday night.
It is going to be an interesting battle, and a chance for Mitoma to show the Newcastle recruitment team what he is capable of. That is because it was reported earlier this year that Toon officials had discussed a potential move to sign the dribbling extraordinaire.
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