Newcastle v West Brom – Premier League match preview

A warm welcome to West Bromwich Albion
Newcastle return to Premier League action tomorrow when West Brom visit St James’ Park for an untelevised Sunday afternoon encounter.

The Baggies have started off the season superbly and find themselves sitting pretty in 6th place in the league, four points ahead of the home side.

With Steve Clarke impressing in his first real stint as a manager, things are looking up for West Brom and they will be eyeing three points on Tyneside, a place where he once took charge of one game following the resignation of Ruud Gullit – a 5-1 defeat to Manchester United – and I’m sure he’ll want to prove a point on his return.

However Newcastle have their own reasons to go for the win tomorrow. If Alan Pardew and Co want to look like emulating what they achieved last season then the team will need to start converting some of these draws into wins. Granted we’ve only lost twice in the league season, to Manchester United and Chelsea, but it’s the draws against the likes of Aston Villa that have prevented us being further up the table than the 11th place we currently occupy.

Newcastle United

A return to league action will also see a return for some stars who only had limited involvement on Thursday night. Tim Krul, Jonas Gutierrez, Demba Ba and Hatem Ben Arfa all failed to feature against Club Brugge with Yohan Cabaye, Fabricio Coloccini and Shola Ameobi all having to make do with an appearance from the bench.

However most of them will be back in the starting XI tomorrow with the only real doubt in my mind being Shola Ameobi who will likely make do with a place on the bench again in favour of the goal-hunting Papiss Cisse.

Cheik Tiote starts the first of a three game suspension following his sending off against Sunderland last week, with James Perch likely to be the one who replaces him. Ryan Taylor, Haris Vuckic and Dan Gosling are all out injured.

West Brom

Chris Brunt and Billy Jones could feature for the Baggies whilst Jerome Thomas is back in training following a spell on the sidelines with a knee problem. Claudio Yacob is likely to miss the game with a hamstring injury.

Previously…

West Brom are most definitely our bogie team, which started really when we found ourselves in the Championship with them. In the relegation season we completed a league double over them but since then our results against the Midlanders have taken somewhat of a nosedive.

They emerged victorious at St James’ Park last season edging a five goal game 3-2 although we did get our own back at The Hawthorns by winning 3-1 and putting in a superb display to boot. However that is our only victory home and away in all competitions in seven meetings since relegation and then through subsequent promotion. One win in seven is pretty woeful.

Overall our records against each other are pretty similar, although yet again West Brom hold the advantage. Of 118 matches in all competitions, West Brom have emerged victorious on 45 occasions, Newcastle on 42 occasions with the other 31 meetings, unsurprisingly, ending as draws. West Brom have scored 201 goals against us compared to our 199 against them.

Stats and facts

This is generally a high-scoring fixture in recent times. Four goals or more have been scored in six of the last seven encounters.

Newcastle have won only one game in the last seven league games. However they have only lost twice in the last 14 home games (Manchester City and Manchester United).

West Brom have not won away from home in nine attempts and have only scored two goals this season away from The Hawthorns.

Final thoughts

It’s a home game against, with all due respect, a team that isn’t in that top bracket of clubs, like a Manchester City or a Manchester United for example, so I’ll be looking for for us to go for the three points.

Having said that, time and time again West Brom have proved to be stern opposition for us do I don’t expect it to be an easy game. Far from it in fact.

If we play to our potential we should have enough to secure the three points, but that is a very logical thought in a very illogical game. It doesn’t work out as it should “on paper” more often than not so we will need to be assured at the back and confident in attack whilst controlling the play if we want to grab the points.

Howay the lads!

Date: Sunday, 28th October, 2012

Time: 3pm

Venue: St James’ Park

About toonsy

A lifelong Newcastle fan and current webmaster of this very 'blog who has the sole aim of creating a place by Newcastle United fans, for Newcastle United fans.

54 thoughts on “Newcastle v West Brom – Premier League match preview

  1. See Villa v Norwich ended 1-1 Bent was only on the bench again , would like us to make an offer for him in january . Then again i see them sacking their manager before long ,they look like a team heading for the drop 😀

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  2. Good preview Toonsy don’t think it will be an easy game and will be happy enough to get a draw, but I think we should be winning games like these.
    Aussie @ 1 tell us something new 😀 you have a good feeling about every game you galah 😆

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  3. Axel-Think Villa would want top dolla for Bent, they did spend 24mil or something on him. Wait and see if they drop, then see what we can pick out of their squad, they have some decent players that might be able to fit in. I can’t see them sacking Lambert either, imo he’s a decent manager, and they actually had to buy him didn’t they? Or pay Norwich compensation anyway…

    Re the Colo cap’n talk, I do think his calm nature has a very big effect behind the scenes that we don’t see. I would like to see a deputy beneath him who could kick some **** though, with Jonas usually deputising he “leads by example” through his workrate, but only really talks to Santon and isn’t commanding either.

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  4. Good preview Toonsy. Yes that championship season seems to have set up a little rivalry between us. Us and them fighting it out for top spot has carried on into the premier league and they are hard to beat for sure . Hopefully with more of our first teamers fit now and home advantage we can nab 3 points off em. I want to see the same desire we showed when reduced to 10 men last week. 😉 HWTL. 😀

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  5. Good review Toonsy.

    Tomorrow is going to be a difficult game for us without doubt. Clarkey has got them playing really well at the moment. They look strong defensively, have goals in midfield from Morrison and Long and Lukaku upfront are a real threat.
    I think we are really going to have to play better than what we have so far this season to get a win tomorrow.
    If we start the way we did against the scum, continue it throughout and keep 11 on the pitch, then I think we can beat them, and that would be great confidence for the Liverpool game.

    As for Colo – he is without doubt the best defender we have ever seen in Black and White. He cost us around £10m when we signed him and looked a real waste of money in his first season, but he has proven to be one of our best signings in recent seasons. He is a huge player for us and one of the best defenders in the Premier League.
    Personally I’d like to see us sign a similar style CB when we do eventually get on. I’d like to see a Sakho or Yanga signed but reckon that’s another £10m we’d need to spend and I don’t see us doing that anymore.

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  6. Sharpy ,I don’t think we’ll ever spend 10M on a CB again .It’s a shame because sometimes you got to speculate to accumilate.Too often owners only want to pay big money for forwards ,but arn’t willing to pay out for a quality defender. It’s so short sighted as a good back line is worth as many points as a goal scorer is. It’s the same with goalkeepers ,they are never the glory boys ,very odd.

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  7. Well how stupid, M’bia got a rush of blood to the head, like Tiote, kicks out on the floor and gets sent off. What do these players expect? You can’t do anything now. Probably cost his team the point. Bloody Arsenal always sneek it at the end. No wonder their fans are bored, they played rubbish. Wonder how many times they do that and get the 3 points and are up the top of the table, yet at times they were outplayed by the mercenaries of QPR. Cesar in goal is pure class, would have been at least another two goals without him. The best thing about him is not his pace or even skill; it’s the way he closes the angles and is always in the right position, he is such a clever player. Woodman should make our keepers just sit and watch DVD’s of him. Tim Krul is ten years younger, taller, quicker, he should look at how Julio Cesar plays and his positioning and try to copy that IMO.

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  8. DJG young Tim Krul is doing ok in my opinion… 😉

    Could this really be the year the makkems get relegated ? …. 😈 😈

    Difficult game tomorrow, I think we’re gonna miss Tiote, 1-1 or maybe a sneaky 2-1 to the toon.

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  9. “I think we’re gonna miss Tiote”

    Yep I’ll miss the feeling of being on a knife egde all game waiting for the cards to come out. I’ll miss the passing without looking. I’ll miss the conceding of possession…

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  10. Dave – Good job you said as I was going to e-mail you about doing team news. Won’t bother now as sounds as though you’re busy 😉

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  11. MM – I just reckon his impact is overstated by some fans 😉

    We’ve done fine without him for the plethora of games he’s been injured/at ACoN/suspended for 😉

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  12. Toonsy TBH I would love to try to get out of it but my Aunt has just been told that she could be gone anytime soon 😥 so I have to go down to see her and im fuking dreading it 🙁

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  13. DJG, loved that piece. Playing with Beardsley, not knowing who he is, and telling him that he’s really good! If we can get Ben Arfa the ball in the opposition third more, then he could be setting up and burying loads more goals. Hope our midfield and fullbacks can support the attack more like we started in the scum game.

    I think Perch will be good for this game. He has good game awareness, and doesn’t get caught with the ball as much as Tiote does. That’ll be good considering how dangerous West Brom can be on the counter

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  14. Sharpy-I agree, I’d like a centre back who’s comfortable with the ball at his feet. I know Staylor isn’t bad and used to go on those forward runs, but I’d like someone a bit calmer. We were apparently after a commanding CB-presumably to challenge both Willo and Staylor, but when Colo retires or gets injured that would leave us with 3 of a kind..Unless the club think we can mould Good into that role in time then we need a serious understudy/replacement…Tav is decent in the middle but I’m not sure if he has the stature..

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  15. Newkie, thats a good point about our type of CBs. It’ll be at least 3 or 4 years until Good is ready to come in. Tav could have a chance though. I think he’s 5′ 11″ or summat, so he’s not short, just not quite tall either, haha

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  16. Andrew-Yeah exactly, I don’t think Good is going to be a worldy and CB is generally the hardest position to blood people in at, so he will likely need several years. Thing is with Tav it’s not necessarily his height but just the fact he’s fairly slim, but I suppose if we put him next to a powerhouse he might be alright. He looks tidy playing the ball out but not sure if his tackling would be up to scratch yet..

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  17. Nice words from WBA manager Steve Clarke about the Toon;

    “I had a great time at Newcastle. It was very early in the career of my development as a coach. It was the first two years out of playing. I got some wonderful friends from my time up there.

    “I still keep in touch with them. The supporters are fantastic, it is a great football city and I look forward to taking my team up there and giving them a game.

    ”It’s a place where everyone lives for their football. The first thing you see when you come into Newcastle is the stadium, it’s right on the top of a hill.

    “They are trying to build a bit of stability into a club that maybe has not been known for its stability over the years.”

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  18. Newkie, the kid can get bulked up. At least he’s learning the game now under Captain Colo. But you’re right, when he’s out we don’t have anyone else ready to play as that cool head to just play the ball out rather than hoofing it.

    I have a feeling Cisse could finally get his league goal for us tomorrow. Whether he starts on the pitch or the bench, we’ll have to wait to see. But I just have a feeling that he’s gonna connect well with a Ferguson cross or something tomorrow

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  19. Andrew-true, although some players seem to lose a bit of pace as they bulk up which may hurt his play as a full back 😕 Although he may be alright, Enrique seemed fine. Whatever happened to him anyway? 😆

    Troy-Yeah nice words, he seems a good bloke. Still, I don’t care how we do it or who scores, we need to win. They’re a very good side though and have been our bogey side, over three years really 😕

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  20. Having checked the article apparently we did do the double over them, so it must have been one of the cups where they whipped us 4-2 or something? 😕

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  21. Apparently Enrique isn’t showing enough hunger for Rodgers. Not surprising since he only moved for money

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  22. Andrew- 😆

    I thought he moved for European football? Funny, I don’t think rodgers even dares to field a second string in that, so he still won’t get a match there. I’ve been watching some of that “Being Liverpool FC” ****, and there was a massively awkward moment in pre season when Brendan was in the lift with Enrique and they were both just staring blankly and smiling nervously. Definitely a sign of things to come! 😆

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  23. Haha! That’s hilarious Newkie. My brother in law is a Liverpool fan and watches that **** all the time. I’ll have to ask him if he’s seen that.

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  24. Yeah, it was one of the very first episodes while they were in the U.S.I think it’s just funny in hindsight as they clearly had some sort of great vision for this season and yet, till now they’ve been completely ***** as usual. Saying that they’ll probably win tomorrow….

    It’s a strange one with Enrique as he was, at least at first, one of their best players and definitely Dalglish’s best buy… 😕 Not that i’m complaining now obviously.

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  25. **** **** bollocks

    yeah, wesy brom, aye, reet team, that Peytar Odemwingee or sumik, canny player like. 😯

    ..sivinty fawa – fawa

    nee swett 😎

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  26. “wesy brom”

    ….oooooaaaiiiiyyyy farkin lavvit mite 😯 😯

    …app theeeee aaaiiirrrr-poooos en pairs mite 😉

    OI
    OIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII 😯 😯 😛 😛 😛 😛 😎

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  27. Quality tip-off for any gamblers out there.

    …I actually had this verified by Piers Brosnan when I bumped into him in Lidl this afternoon.

    …next person to type a comment is a total ****.

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  28. …humblest apologies, wasn’t paying attention there. Couldn’t give a **** anyway. Out with the light, in with the dark.
    You know it makes sense. 😎

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  29. Still feeling good about today’s game, not even Big Dave and his negativity can change my positive outlook 🙂 🙂 2 nil to us 🙂

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  30. Strop…nah, I only brick it cos I don’t like derbies and not cos I think we’ll get beat,I always expect to get something out of them it’s more the memories of the past when we haven’t that makes me hate them…I never predict a toon loss and go into every game thinking we have a chance no matter who we play 😉

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  31. More nice words from an unexpected source, Mark Lawrenson;

    “Fabricio Coloccini at the back, Hatem Ben Arfa in midfield and Demba Ba up front have all had their moments but they have not really fired together. They know that, when they do, they can sweep away most teams in the Premier League.

    “Even so, Newcastle are still one of the top six teams in the country because they still possess a cutting edge, whether that comes from midfield or attack. They will have a good run sometime soon where they will start to win games, and keep on winning.

    “They might start on that run here, actually.”

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  32. Troy@49 ,Blimey Troy what the hell they been putting in his coffee at the beeb 😯 I’ve never heard such praise from Lawro .Well that’s us screwed today then as he always puts the mockers on us 🙄 .

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  33. Rich, nice to hear, now days I do the same. We have quality to beat anyone on any given day… 🙂

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  34. Looking at the league table, 3 points are an absolute necessity today.
    I dont care how we get them, but we cant afford to slip 7 points behind West Brom after 9 games. We need the mini gap to be behind us not infront of us.
    I see this game as vital to our season. A win will give us the confidence to push on and stuff the cesspool next week. Lose and we will struggle to play catchup for the remainder of the season.
    I got a good feeling tho we are gonna click today, and give the baggies a throsling.
    3-0.
    Howay the Lads

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  35. The prem doesn’t start or end after 8 games and as we have all seen in the past..some teams go on a blinder of a start, only to start stuttering to a halt half way through..then before you know it, many teams way below, start to gain momentum.
    I believe we will gain momentum and get stronger and stronger as the season goes on..with the stamina to finish it, still looking strong, especially with the emergence of the squad players showing excellent promise and desire.

    It would be nice if we can give W.B.A. a good old spanking today and leave them shell shocked at the machine that’s just rolled over them. 😀

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  36. If Colo and Taylor stay strong at the back….Ba and whoever, stay strong in attack…..I think the midfield will more than cope…and leave west brom with almost no hope.

    With Cabaye in the middle and pulling the strings…we have all the ingredients for greater things.
    West Brom play good football but then so can we……and the score will be six one by the time we have tea.

    😀

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