Newcastle United play host to Arsenal in Saturday’s early Premier League kick off hoping to build some momentum from their midweek Carabao Cup win over Chelsea and propel themselves up the table.
Eddie Howe’s side have not won in five league games and slumped to a disappointing 2-1 defeat against Chelsea despite impressing at Stamford Bridge last time out. The Magpies went on the defeat the Blues in a repeat league cup fixture on Wednesday and such an immediate response will hopefully kick start their season believes Howe.
For Arsenal, they took two points off Liverpool in a 2-2 last weekend in what was a crucial result for their title chances. Five points behind leaders Man City they cannot afford to slip up further and will need to secure all three away at St. James’ Park today. Mikel Arteta has a few injuries to navigate but his youngsters got a run out in the Carabao Cup on Wednesday and defeated Preston 3-0 proving they are ready to fill in if required.
Follow all the Premier League action with our live blog below:
Newcastle take on Arsenal in the Premier League with kick off at 12.30pm, live on TNT Sports
Eddie Howe’s men are on a five-game winless streak in the league
Gunners need three points to keep up with leaders Man City
NEW XI – Pope, Livramento, Schar, Burn, Hall, Willock, Longstaff, Guimaraes, Gordon, Isak, Joelinton
ARS XI – Raya, Partey, Saliba, Gabriel, Timber, Rice, Merino, Saka, Trossard, Martinelli, Havertz
Newcastle United FC – Arsenal FC
11:45 , Chris Wilson
Eddie Howe has insisted Newcastle will do “whatever it takes to win” as they head into a Premier League clash with Arsenal which has proved explosive in the past.
Gunners boss Mikel Arteta was furious after last season’s 1-0 defeat at St James’ Park, sealed by Anthony Gordon’s controversial strike, which survived three separate VAR checks and was later described by the Spaniard as “an absolute disgrace”.
He had been unhappy too after the Magpies had held his side to a 0-0 draw at the Emirates Stadium in January last year, prompting a debate about the “dark arts” employed by Howe’s men as they gatecrashed the top four to secure Champions League qualification at the end of the 2022-23 campaign.
Eddie Howe: Newcastle will do ‘whatever it takes to win’ against Arsenal
11:38 , Chris Wilson
Ethan Nwaneri’s performance delighted Mikel Arteta but did not surprise him as the 17-year-old’s superb strike helped Arsenal to a 3-0 win over Preston and into the quarter-finals of the Carabao Cup.
The teenager bent in a fine first-half goal after Gabriel Jesus’s first strike since January had set Arsenal on their way, with substitute Kai Havertz adding the third early in the second half.
It was another stand-out Carabao Cup performance from academy product Nwaneri, who got his first senior goals with a brace in Arsenal’s 5-1 win over Bolton in the previous round. He might have had two at Deepdale too, but a late strike hit the crossbar.
“He did it yesterday in training too, so we’re getting used to that,” the Arsenal boss said.
“He’s a big talent, he’s got the right attitude, he’s got the right players and context around him and we need to make sure that we put brick by brick in the right tempo, in the right order, but we have some player there.”
More from Arteta:
‘A big talent’: Ethan Nwaneri shines for Arsenal as Mikel Arteta praises 17-year-old
11:35 , Chris Wilson
Eddie Howe was delighted with Newcastle’s response after they reached the quarter-finals of the Carabao Cup for the third year in a row with a 2-0 win against Chelsea.
The Magpies bounced back from Sunday’s Premier League defeat against the same opponents at Stamford Bridge as two first-half goals sealed victory on Tyneside.
A mistake at the back allowed Alexander Isak to put Newcastle ahead in the 23rd minute and they extended their lead just three minutes later when Joe Willock’s deflected header was turned into his own net by Axel Disasi.
“We needed a performance and a result, I think we got that tonight,” Newcastle head coach Howe said.
“Especially in the first half, I thought it was hallmark us at our best; front foot, really good energy, good feel, good quality, good attitude – most importantly – and a massive win for us.”
More from Howe:
Eddie Howe feels cup win over Chelsea can be a big moment in Newcastle’s season
11:30 , Chris Wilson
Richard Jolly at St. James Park:
Gabriel Magalhaes has been passed fit to start for Arsenal, which isn’t entirely unsurprising – Mikel Arteta can put players straight back into the team as soon as they become available – but is welcome and suggests Arsenal aren’t actually in a defensive injury crisis, as had been feared.
No Sandro Tonali in a Newcastle team which looks heavy on industry, with Joe Willock and Sean Longstaff either side of Bruno Guimaraes while Joelinton looks set to play in the front three.
11:27 , Chris Wilson
Mikel Arteta has made just one change from the side that drew to Liverpool last week – William Saliba comes in for Ben White at centre-back, with Thomas Partey keeping his place at right-back.
Brazilian defender Gabriel is fit to start after coming off at Anfield.
11:22 , Chris Wilson
Newcastle have made three changes to the side that lost away to Chelsea last weekend, with the big news being that Anthony Gordon is fit to start – he replaces Harvey Barnes on the left wing.
On the right wing, Joe Willock comes in for Miguel Almiron, while Sean Longstaff replaces Sandro Tonali in midfield.
11:18 , Chris Wilson
Newcastle XI: Pope; Livramento, Schar, Burn, Hall; Longstaff, Guimaraes, Joelinton; Willock, Isak, Gordon.
Subs: Dubravk, Tonali, Barnes, Krafth, Osula, Almiron, Kelly, Murphy, Miley.
Arsenal XI: Raya; Partey, Saliba, Gabriel, Timber; Rice, Merino, Saka, Trossard, Havertz, Martinelli.
Subs: Neto, White, Kiwior, Zinchenko, Lewis-Skelly, Sterling, Nwaneri, Jesus.
🔴 𝗧𝗘𝗔𝗠𝙉𝙀𝙒𝙎 ⚪️
🧱 Saliba partners Gabriel
👊 Merino in the middle
©️ Saka skippers the sideLet’s leave it all out there, Gunners 😤
— Arsenal (@Arsenal) November 2, 2024
11:10 , Karl Matchett
Team news coming in about five minutes! Defensive injuries remain for Newcastle but Howe’s big calls will come further upfield, where depth is starting to impress and cause a jostle for spots.
Arsenal will have to juggle the defensive line once more. Confirmed XIs on the way.
11:00 , Karl Matchett
For Newcastle, meanwhile, Eddie Howe wants a return to the formidable defensive resolve of last season, even if his team received criticism for perceived dark arts at the time.
“We want to make it as uncomfortable as we can for any opposition team coming to St James’ Park. That’s the beauty of playing at home. We don’t want to make this a comfortable environment for any team,” he said.
“When you are winning games, if you are leading games, everything is different compared to when you are chasing games.
“In part, it was over-hyped and talked about more because we were in that position a lot that season. This season, we have not been in that position as often, so you end up being the reactive team trying to chase the game effectively.
“We don’t want to be in that position, we want to be the team in control. But certainly, doing whatever it takes to win – as long as it is within the rules – I’m a firm believer in that.”
10:50 , Karl Matchett
The Arsenal boss also issued updates on the squad’s other injury concerns and confirmed that captain Martin Odegaard would be missing the game.
Odegaard is close to a return from an ankle injury picked up on international duty but has not yet finished the final stages of his recovery despite an intention to be fit for Saturday’s match.
“Now is the stage he’s going to start doing some work with us and see how he deals with pain.” the Spaniard said, “With the work rate and the amount of hours he has put in, I don’t know when he will be ready. Hopefully soon.
“Riccy [Calafiori] and Martin [Odegaard] are out definitely. With Ben [White], we don’t know yet. Let’s wait and see.”
10:40 , Karl Matchett
Big positive news for Arsenal yesterday. Mikel Arteta said that central defender Gabriel could return to the team in time for the trip to Newcastle following concerns over a potential injury during the draw with Liverpool.
Gabriel was substituted out of the game and hobbled off the pitch sparking concerns that he may be joining the Gunners’ ever-growing list of absentees.
Arteta played down any serious doubts over his fitness on Wednesday night where the 26-year-old defender was in contention to play against Preston in the Carabao Cup. Arsenal won the match 3-0 and Gabriel did not feature.
“We are still assessing him,” Arteta said, “It doesn’t look bad at all. It was much better the next day. Hopefully he’ll be fine. He has done some tests.”
During his pre-Newcastle press conference on Friday morning Arteta provided another hopeful update on the defender’s condition adding: “We have a training session today, if he can complete that, he will be available.”
Friday 1 November 2024 17:19 , Karl Matchett
Good morning and welcome to the Independent’s live coverage of the Premier League, where today we’re headed to St. James’ Park for Newcastle against Arsenal.
Both were victorious in the Carabao Cup in midweek but it’s a big league game for both for different reasons today.
