Newcastle United will host Chelsea at St. James’ Park in their third encounter of the season. The Magpies got off the mark on the points table in the last game when they secured a draw against Cardiff City. However, they would be disappointed to come home with just a point as they had a glorious opportunity to take all three late on in the game as they got a penalty but Kenedy fluffed his line.
Chelsea, on the other hand, are coming on the back of two victories and the team has already shown that they have settled well to their new manager’s instructions. We are seeing more free-flowing football from the Blues as they have scored 6 goals in their opening two games. However, Arsenal also showcased their defensive vulnerabilities.
The Toon would be expected to be organised, and they would make it hard for the Blues to find an opening.
Team News
Isaac Hayden’s red card in the last game rules him out of this encounter. Rafael Benitez would also be without Brazilian winger Kenedy as he cannot play against his parent club. Florian Lejeune is still out due to his injury. DeAndre Yedlin is likely to be back for this encounter.
4-4-1-1 Newcastle United Predicted Lineup Vs Chelsea
Formation (4-4-1-1)
Defence
Martin Dubravka will be starting in goal for the Tyneside outfit. Jamaal Lascelles and Ciaran Clark will be the centre back pairing, and they will have to be at their best to stall Eden Hazard and Co. For the fullback role, DeAndre Yedlin should start down the right and Paul Dummett down the left. Expect a busy afternoon for the United back four.
Midfield
There is a possibility that Benitez would bring in South Korean Ki Sung Yong, but we expect Jonjo Shelvey and Mohamed Diame to start in the middle of the park. A lot will depend on this central midfield pairing as they will have to work extremely hard off the ball and they would have to be precise and quick with their passing as Chelsea would be expected to press high. We will see a change in the wide region as Kenedy is unavailable. Christian Atsu should be given the nod to start down the left flank. On the right, Englishman Matt Ritchie will keep his place.
Attack
Ayoze Perez will be expected to play the role of a shadow striker. Though there is a case for new signing Yoshinori Muto to be given a start, we expect the Spaniard to keep his place for now. Solomon Rondon might have to wait for his first start of the season and Joselu would be expected to lead the line.
