Liverpool v Newcastle – Premier League match preview.

This is Anfield! It's also a dump!
A Sunday lunchtime trip to Anfield awaits Newcastle United as they head to Liverpool for match that has a bit more spice to it than it should do.

I mean the two clubs aren’t jostling in and around the same positions in the league, so there is really no rivalry in that regard. Instead the focus is on one man and one man alone – Andy Carroll. Our former number nine broke the hearts of Newcastle fans when upped and left for Liverpool on transfer deadline day, and this match at Anfield represents the first chance for fans of NUFC to show the player how they feel about him and his departure.

I’d argue that, spent wisely, the £35 million we received for Andy Carroll could be the making of us as a Premier League team and could help to propel us to the next level. Do we miss Carroll? Yes, of course, but we’ve struggled on without him and have actually gained more points per game without him in the team (1.26) than we did when he was in the side (1.15). Still he is a Liverpool player now, which brings me neatly onto the team news.

The man in question may not even feature tomorrow after jarring his knee against Arsenal two weeks ago. Even if he is fit there is no guarantee of him starting after Liverpool demolished Birmingham 5-0 last weekend without him in the side. Glen Johnson is also rated as doubtful as he nurses a hamstring strain.

If those two don’t make it they will join Daniel Agger, Fabio Aurelio, Martin Kelly and Steven Gerrard on the sidelines. Those four players are all definitely out which will mean that Liverpool will name the same side that started against Birmingham. That was:

Liverpool: Pepe Reina, John Flanagan, Jamie Carragher, Martin Skrtel, Jack Robinson, Raul Meireles, Jay Spearing, Lucas, Maxi Rodriguez, Dirk Kuyt, Luis Suarez.

Onto the important team news now, and Kevin Nolan should be fit for the away side after suffering from a groin injury against Blackpool last week. Stephen Ireland is now back at Aston Villa whilst Hatem Ben Arfa and Dan Gosling continue to recover from their long term injuries. Alan Smith, Leon Best and Danny Guthrie are all sidelined still.

That will mean that we will probably line up with the same side that drew 1-1 at Bloomfield Road last weekend, although they will need to play much much better if they want to a point or more from Anfield. Anyway, that team was:

Newcastle: Tim Krul, Danny Simpson, Mike Williamson, Fabricio Coloccini, Jose Enrique, Joey Barton, Cheik Tiote, Kevin Nolan, Jonas Gutierrez, Shola Ameobi, Peter Lovenkrands.

Newcastle traditionally don’t get results at Anfield. In fact our last win there was 17 years ago, or 15 games ago, when Rob Lee and Andy Cole scored the goals in a 2-0 win for Newcastle. If Liverpool win it will be their 50th victory over Newcastle.

If Joey Barton gets sent off again he will become the first away player in history to be sent off on three different occasions at Anfield.

Liverpool have taken 27 points from the last 39 available and have scored in all of their Premier League matches in 2011.

I’d love it if we could get the win on Sunday, love it. Unfortunately I can’t see it though and think the best that we can do is draw, mainly because I can’t see where our goals are going to come from. Liverpool are likely to score and I can’t see us scoring two goals to be honest. Hopefully I’m just doom-mongering and I get proved completely wrong in the end, but a good performance that is improved from last week will do for me.

The game is live on ESPN and is scheduled for an unusually early 12pm kick-off, so set those alarms and get behind the lads. If you’re going, have a good’un, watch out for scallywags, and coppers with big sticks. You’ll have more chance of seeing them than you will of seeing that “famous Anfield atmosphere” 🙄

Howay the lads!

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.

55 thoughts on “Liverpool v Newcastle – Premier League match preview.

  1. Should be a good game, cant see Shola and Lovenkrands posing much of a threat but you never know 😀

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  2. I reckon Shola and Nolan are our biggest goal threats at the mo. Maybe a fired up Joey would put one past his ‘common enemy’, and Jonas on his day is unpredictable. I just assessed our team vs theirs player for player and to be honest I think our defence is better and our midfields are very similar, it’s just when you get to the front line and compare ‘Kuyt & Suarez’ with ‘Lovenkrands & Ameobi’. 🙄

    still, hopefully come summer we can change that front two to Ben Arfa & Gameiro’ 🙂

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  3. Fair assumation DevonMag. That’ll be the difference in the sides.

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  4. I fancy Nolan to play a blinder tomorrow. Could nick it 1-1. Nolan ans Suarez. I’d take that. 🙂

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  5. We have to use the fact we’re playing against inexperienced full backs to our advantages…Maybe if Enrique and Jonas can have a blinder, and with Joey fired up we can get down the flanks and whip some crosses in for Shola. Shola is due an amazing game, so lets hope it’s tomorrow. Be interesting to see if Ranger gets a shot tomorrow as a Sub after the impact he made against liverpool last time.

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  6. Totally off topic but maybe you can help.

    I’ve noticed that you Poms call yourselves British these days, and you live in the UK. When I was a kid we used to be English and we lived in England.

    When did it change?

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  7. I have a good feeling about tomorrow. Think we’ll hammer them. Nil-3 for me. Colo, Nolan, loven. Turn the screws and dominate possession. We need Tiote to shut down meireles. He’s my fav portuguese player and I may get his shirt for the euro but tomorrow he needs to be put in shackles.
    HOWAY THE LADS!!!

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  8. If we make sure Carragher is on Lovenkrands we’ll get some chances. Granted Lovenkrands aint great, but I’ve seen milk turn quicker than Carragher!

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  9. Wish I was as certain about things, Batty. I’m sometimes more Aussie than English, but I want England to beat Australia in every sport, except football. And I feel more Geordie than English. Don’t know how I’d feel if, say, Brisbane Roar played Newcastle.

    One thing I’m definitely not and that’s British, and I wasn’t born in the UK.

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  10. You’re probably right, Batty. When Newcastle lose I feel sick. When Brisbane lose I say, c’est la vie and hope Newcastle win their next game. 😆

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  11. toonsy that united kingdom part pisses me right off ,lets face it whats united aboot it,the fookin jocks hate us just ask you know who 😉

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  12. Bris – No, it would be England. But the fact that those from Scotland, Wales, NI are all under the same umbrella makes it the UK.

    Dunno why. Scotland want independence. Wales want independence. Let them have it and stop the subsidy we give them IMO 🙂

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  13. Enjoying this Leeds v Burnley game. A bit of niggle and a lot of passion. Just love Saturday evenings – me, the dog, the telly and a bottle of whisky. Oh, and of course this blog.

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  14. Aye, it’s a strange thing. I don’t even know the difference between Britain, Great Britain and the British Isles, and whether that’s different from the UK.

    Seems like an awful lot of names for such a small place.

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  15. Easy; Graet Britain is the mainland island. The british isles includes ireland the hebrides lindisfarne etc. The UK is the political “Country” made up of the forur countries of England< Wales, Scotland & Northern Ireland, exc The Isle of Man and the irish republic which are seperate political entaties. Britain is a hangover from the 20 odd years 2 centuries back when the political union was called britain.

    Try Norman Davies excellent book "The Isles" if you want everything you learnt at school put right.

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  16. also had the greeks called at a village further along the south coast from cornwall we would have ended up being calle cruds instead of brits.

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  17. Bris

    The name of the UK changes according to who is in residence and to whom you are talking.

    Britain is a mix of the fellas who discovered it “Bri”an, “Ta”mas and “Ian” all of whom were lost fishing from the Norwegian Fjords.

    It is called the British Isles because Tesco’s first introduced the Frozen Pea Isle in the 60s in a small store in Swansea- the Isle became so popular every city wanted one – hence the term British Isles is referred to by every pea lover in the world.

    Its called Great Britain when Bobby Shinton Number 9 is in residence.

    Hope that helps :lol”

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  18. Thanks Premandup, that saves me some research time.

    Still, though, it doesn’t explain why people say UK instead of England. I guess it isn’t important. I just thought it might be a cool line to include in a paragraph I was writing. I can get by without it.

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  19. Premandup – pleeeaaasssseeee that books a comic and hasn’t got a single fact in it. Suggest you get more worldly and read the same reference books as myself which appear to be far superior 😆

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  20. Why do people fly the flag of St George, a portugese crusader who never set foot in the UK. Why don’t we fly the white dragon that Harold fought under.

    why do people refer to the Uk insead of england, no idea. Instead of britain or GB yes but not england

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  21. Good onya Leeds.

    Hope they go up. Always liked them, even during the Bremner years when everybody else hated them.

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  22. I guess flying a Portuguese flag fits as the royal family isn’t even English. The real name of the “windsor’s” is the German Saxe-Coburg and Gotha.
    So britsh German Englishman flying Portuguese flags. :shook:
    Did I get it right? 😕 :mrgreen:

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  23. good point the relationship between the queen and the “commonwealth” countries varies with every state, however i dont think she has power over the canadian govenment any more than she has over ours. Harper requested the suspension.

    The presence of the monarchy limits the powers of the govenment. but does not give those powers to the monarch.

    Otherwise we would still have dictator maggie.

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  24. After the Reading game last year I went out and bought the yellow away strip with Ameobi on the back. Has anyone seen anyone else with one? I reckon it’ll be worth something one day, no one in the world wouldve been daft enough to get it, it’s a right collectors item haha!

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  25. Oh absolutely jerseygeordie remeber a rabid scot, are there any others? 🙂 saying the only good monarch was mary queen of scots. disnt like that fact that she had a best 1/32 scottish blood in he her maternilal line being german, french and **** forgotten for now.

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  26. ST lol maybe yellow will become what pink is today 😉
    They never even sold those over here.
    I really liked the white and light blue one from a couple years back but couldn’t afford one then and now can’t find it…
    What I really want is the blue star kit with beardo on the back. Thought those were class 😎

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  27. Stardust – If you’re still about…..

    Forgot to tell ya….. Obviously I’ve changed jobs now and I’m learning how to drive a bus. The bus I’m learning in is no other than the colour red. Just made me think of you that is all 😆

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  28. Eh Premandup – because Dragons never existed!

    Harold was obviously mad, though he did go on to open a very important store in London – named it after himself apparently

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