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With less than half an hour until kick-off please enjoy this excellent Jonathan Liew read on Newcastle’s PSR and ownership predicament.
The results in the earlier games mean Brentford can still go level on points with sixth-placed Liverpool with a win on Tyneside. Newcastle will jump into the top half if they claim the three points. Fulham and Sunderland losing will give cheer to these two teams for a few reasons.
The middle of the Premier League table is a very fluid situation this season.
The 3pm games are all coming to a conclusion – follow the latest updates with my colleague Emillia Hawkins here.
It is an almighty boost for Newcastle to have Guimarães back in their midfield. They’re just a different team without him. The only downside for Eddie Howe this evening is Anthony Gordon’s absence – the winger hasn’t recovered from a hamstring injury in time to feature.
It’ll be a particularly big night for Yoane Wissa, who is again preferred to Nick Woltemade up front for Newcastle. Wissa was injured for the Magpies’ 3-1 defeat at his former club Brentford earlier in the season.
Igor Thiago has fared pretty well as Wissa’s de facto replacement this season and the Brazilian – who has 16 goals in the league this season – will be key if the Bees are to come away with a positive result this afternoon.
Team news
Newcastle: Pope; Trippier, Thiaw, Botman, Hall; Guimarães, Tonali, Willock; J.Murphy, Wissa, Barnes.
Subs: Ramsdale, Osula, Elanga, Woltemade, Burn, A.Murphy, Ramsey, Shahar, Neave.
Brentford: Kelleher; Kayode, Van den Berg, Ajer, Henry; Henderson, Janelt; Ouattara, Jensen, Lewis-Potter; I.Thiago.
Subs: Valdimarsson, Hickey, Pinnock, Nelson, Yarmoliuk, Collins, Damsgaard, Donovan, Furo.
Preamble
A run of four games without a win and some existential angst regarding PSR and a lack of January transfer activity has put Eddie Howe and Newcastle fans in a pretty grumpy mood of late. But it’s really not all bad news. Three of those four matches came against PSG, Liverpool and Manchester City – not teams the Magpies are truly expected to topple – and they still sit 11th in the Premier League. Plus, the compressed nature of this year’s table means that equates to being just three points behind today’s opponents, Brentford. A win with a two-goal margin for Howe’s men tonight would draw them level with the Bees and keep European qualification hopes alive.
Bruno Guimarães is “getting closer” to a return, according to Howe, who is fully aware how his team functions – or doesn’t – without their captain and talisman. Brentford, contrastingly, have this season proved once again they are a true collective, still punching above their weight despite losing a manager and some key players. Will we see Keith Andrews on the touchline in some European fixtures next season? It’s not unfathomable.
The action at St James’ Park kicks off at 5.30pm GMT. We’ll bring you team news before then so please do stay tuned. This should be a fun one.
