Newcastle United will lock horns with Aston Villa at Villa Park on Saturday night hoping to bounce back in the Premier League by earning a positive result on their travels. The Magpies suffered a poor 3-0 loss away at Arsenal in midweek, which has drained their confidence ahead of this league clash versus Dean Smith’s men.
Steve Bruce will probably go with the 4-4-2 formation once again despite getting his tactics wrong against the Gunners earlier this week. However, we can expect the Newcastle boss to make quite a few changes to his team for this upcoming league showdown at the West Midlands.
4-4-2 Newcastle United Predicted Lineup To Face Aston Villa
Defence
Karl Darlow will retain his spot in goal for the Magpies after shipping in three goals in his last league outing. Ciaran Clark will continue to play alongside Jamaal Lascelles at the centre of the Newcastle backline as they look to keep Aston Villa’s Ollie Watkins in check during the 90 minutes.
DeAndre Yedlin could get the nod to function at right-back while Jamal Lewis continues to feature on the other side as the left-back. Both of them can expect to defend deep as they will have to find a way to stop the Villans attackers from getting in behind them throughout the game.
Emil Krafth and Javier Manquillo will provide cover for the full-back positions on Bruce’s bench.
Midfield
Jonjo Shelvey will get a chance to resume his partnership with Isaac Hayden in central midfield as they focus on protecting the backline and creating some decent chances on the counter. Matt Ritchie might operate on the left-wing while Jeff Hendrick could play down the right flank as Bruce looks to freshen up his midfield this weekend.
Miguel Almiron and Sean Longstaff will have to be content with a place on the bench but could come on as the impact substitutes if Bruce decides to call upon their services.
Attack
Callum Wilson will once again play alongside Andy Carroll up top. The attacking pair failed to give a good account of themselves in midweek, so this could be a perfect chance for them to redeem themselves by putting on a good showing collectively versus the Villans.
Joelinton will be available for selection on the bench as he waits for his chance to influence the game in the latter stages if needed.
