Newcastle United will clash heads with Everton at Goodison Park on Saturday afternoon hoping to put an end to their wretched run of form in the Premier League. The Magpies have lost six matches in a row across all competitions, so there will be a lot of pressure on Steve Bruce’s shoulders to select a team good enough to pick up a positive result at Merseyside this weekend.
The Tyneside outfit could set themselves up in a 5-3-2 formation with Bruce expected to make a few changes to his first-team for this clash on the road. Both Andy Carroll and Emil Krafth could get a start in this game as the Magpies look to freshen up their starting XI later this week.
5-3-2 Newcastle United Predicted Lineup To Face Everton
Defence
Karl Darlow will operate in between the sticks for Newcastle after shipping in two poor goals versus Leeds United on Tuesday. Isaac Hayden might drop back to function as a makeshift centre-back alongside Jamaal Lascelles and Fabian Schar at the heart of Bruce’s defence as they look to keep Everton’s Dominic Calvert-Lewin and James Rodriguez quiet during the 90 minutes.
Emil Krath could get the nod to start at right-back while Jamal Lewis looks to catch the eye by putting on a good showing as the left-back. Bruce will instruct them to maintain a solid defensive shape so that they can limit the chances Everton create from the wide areas.
Javier Manquillo will be available for selection on the bench because he will offer cover for the defensive positions.
Midfield
Bruce might choose to go with a hard-working midfield three of Miguel Almiron, Jeff Hendrick and Jonjo Shelvey. The talented trio will have to make sure that they provide adequate protection for their teammates at the back as well as engineer some decent chances for others in the final third.
Matty Longstaff and Matt Ritchie will make up the numbers on the Newcastle bench as they await their opportunity to make an impact in the latter stages if required.
Attack
Callum Wilson will lead the charge along with Andy Carroll up top. We can expect the former to carry most of the goal-scoring burden while the latter looks to be an aerial threat from the indirect set-pieces deep inside the Everton half.
Dwight Gayle will have to be content with a place on the bench but could come on to influence the game if Bruce decides to call upon his services.
