Paul Merson discusses Newcastle and predicts 3pm clash with Southampton
Ahead of opening Premier League weekend, Paul Merson has dropped his first round of predictions, backing Newcastle to beat Southampton 3-0 in tomorrow's 3pm kick-off on Tyneside.
Merson understands the power of the St. James’ Park crowd to influence performances on the pitch, noting that Southampton will “have to keep the crowd quiet” otherwise “Newcastle will run away with it.” He also highlighted what all Newcastle fans know – if the lads can just stay fit, we have a lot of excellent players at the club.
The Sky Sports pundit also thinks Southampton will be in for a tough time this season, like Burnley last time out, because of their style of play. Russel Martin had his team playing excellent football last year, however it was still only good enough for the Playoffs compared to Burnley running away with the Championship in 2022/23. Time will tell if they fare better than the Clarets did.
Speaking with Sportskeeda, Merson said: “Southampton play good football, but they’ll need to change it up on the Premier League. We saw it last season with Burnley – they kept shooting themselves in the foot last season. Vincent Kompany has now got the Bayern Munich job, and that sums it up – everyone’s’ fascinated by the ball rolling out from the back these days.
"These teams have got to be flexible. Southampton have got to go to Newcastle and keep the crowd quiet. You can’t be passing the ball out the back and have it knocked off you – Newcastle will run away with it.
"Newcastle will be competitive again this season, and they’ve got quality players. They’ve made steady progress. Newcastle have got to stay fit and if they do, they’ll have a good season.”
Prediction: Newcastle United 3-0 Southampton
Opening days of previous Premier League campaigns can be like the wild west with players, managers, pundits and fans not always knowing how a new signing or tactical style will work, especially after a summer dominated by international competitions.
Hopefully, the new season can start with a bang, much like against Aston Villa last year.
