Newcastle United and Aston Villa renew hostilities as the Premier League season gets underway.
Aston Villa vs Newcastle United sees Eddie Howe’s side kick off a busy day of action on Saturday, less than 24 hours after Premier League champions Liverpool raise the curtain against Bournemouth.
Newcastle have previous when it comes to facing Villa on the opening weekend, too.
In 2023, Howe’s side thrashed Villa 5-1 at St James’ Park and that raises hope for Saturday’s game, although the fact it is away from home clearly doesn’t help the Newcastle United manager.
It was a statement performance from Newcastle, though one that did not quite convince a certain Sir Alex Ferguson.
Sir Alex Ferguson’s shock claim about Newcastle United 5-1 Aston Villa
Not long after Newcastle had put Villa to the sword on Tyneside, the former Manchester United manager was asked about what he made of the start of the 2023/24 season.
Speaking to NBC Sports, Ferguson suggested that Villa had in fact impressed him during the game and that strange scorelines can happen in football.
“To be honest with you, I watched Aston Villa and Newcastle and I can’t believe the scoreline,” he said.
“Honestly, Aston Villa played fantastic football and just lost bad goals. Newcastle are going to be very difficult to beat at their home ground and the manager has done a great job there. But a surprising game, you can play teams off the pitch and not score and that’s what happened to Villa.”
That did seem somewhat strange at the time but Villa ended up finishing eight points ahead of Newcastle in the Premier League table.
Newcastle United’s record on the opening day of the season
Newcastle have won 12 of their 29 opening Premier League fixtures.
Last season, Howe’s side beat newly promoted Southampton at home despite losing Fabian Schar to injury.
| Games | Wins | Draws | Losses |
| 29 | 12 | 5 | 12 |
Still, Newcastle have struggled at Villa Park over the years, winning only two of their last ten visits to the ground.
It will be a difficult first assignment to navigate. Unai Emery’s side have been brilliant at home since his appointment and it’s one of the worst venues in which to start your campaign for an away team.
If Newcastle win there after such a frustrating summer, it would be a welcome relief to supporters.
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