Match Preview - Newcastle United vs Liverpool - Key Battle, Team News, Prediction

Newcastle United will welcome Liverpool to St James' Park on Saturday. Kick-off is at 12:30pm.

The Magpies have been in terrific form as of late. Newcastle United were fighting relegation before Eddie Howe became the manager of the club back in November 2021.

Now, Newcastle United sit in ninth-place in the Premier League table. The Magpies defeated Norwich City 3-0 at Carrow Road last weekend.

Liverpool on the other hand have been superb for the majority of the 2021-22 top-flight campaign. The Reds are coming off a 2-0 victory in the Merseyside derby, which took place at Anfield last Sunday.

With five games to go, Liverpool are only one-point behind league leaders Manchester City.

Therefore, this weekend's Premier League match between Newcastle United and Liverpool is massive. We have previewed the fixture below.

Key Battle

You could look at individual match-ups for this particular clash. But, if Liverpool can win the battle mentally, they should claim the three points.

Many people believe that Newcastle have a chance of getting something against the Reds because of their recent form.

As far as we are concerned, if Jurgen Klopp's side can stay calm and focused, they should walk away from St James' Park with a victory.

Liverpool have proven in recent times that they are one of the best teams in the world. Newcastle are far from that.

Team News

Newcastle United boss Howe has said that both Kieran Trippier (metatarsal fracture) and Callum Wilson (calf injury) are on the mend, but are unlikely to feature against Liverpool on Saturday.

Both players are certainly in the Magpies' best XI, so it's a blow for Howe.

In team news for Liverpool, Klopp has confirmed that Roberto Firmino is set to miss the fixture.

The Brazil international has been out of action in recent weeks due to a foot injury and is yet to recover.

The club has further stated that Curtis Jones did not take part in Thursday's training session.

However, Kostas Tsimikas, who missed Liverpool's Champions League semi-final clash against Villarreal at Anfield midweek due to illness, has returned to training.

Previous Premier League Meeting

Back in December, Liverpool defeated Newcastle 3-1 at Anfield. Jonjo Shelvey did give the Magpies the lead after seven minutes of play.

However, Reds duo Diogo Jota and Mohamed Salah scored one goal each before half-time. After the break, Trent Alexander-Arnold scored a beauty from outside the penalty area to secure the three points for the Reds.

Klopp had the following to say post-game.

"No problem with that, that's the Premier League," the German told the club's official website when asked if he was pleased with the performance.

"The opponent is obviously fighting for staying in the league, put everything in, threw everything on the pitch, had a very defensive organisation, went 1-0 up – so this is the recipe for a difficult game.

"But we still won it – absolutely deserved and that's it pretty much."

Klopp said the following about Alexander-Arnold's goal: "Absolutely crazy goal. His shooting technique is really different level and really cool to watch.

"In a situation like that, having the positivity and optimism to do it is, again, the basis for these kind of goals. So, well done."

Prediction

We are not expecting Liverpool to comfortably beat Newcastle United. As we have pointed out, the Magpies have been in decent form under Howe.

But, the gulf in class between the two sides is still quite big. The Reds should be claiming three points at St James' Park on Saturday.

Anything less and the title is probably out of Liverpool's reach. So, all the pressure is on Klopp's side.

Newcastle United 0 Liverpool 2