Live match preview – Newcastle vs Man Utd 27.12.2021

Team news, stats and prediction ahead of Newcastle vs Man Utd in the Premier League on Monday Night Football; kick-off 8pm.

Team news

Newcastle will be without Isaac Hayden, who is suspended, while Federico Fernandez, Paul Dummett and Jamal Lewis remain absent.

The Magpies have no cases of coronavirus in their squad, with Emil Krafth and Javier Manquillo back in contention following a bout of illness.

Ralf Rangnick has given his Manchester United squad a clean bill of health after the club’s Covid-19 outbreak and called on the Premier League to aid player welfare by again allowing five substitutes per game.

Manchester United are set to return to action at Newcastle on Monday following a 16-day break which saw their Premier League games against Brentford and Brighton postponed.

Only the injured Paul Pogba is unavailable at St James’ Park, with interim manager Rangnick admitting he has major selection decisions to make after 25 outfield players trained on Wednesday.

How to follow

Newcastle vs Man Utd is live on Monday Night Football on Sky Sports Premier League from 7pm; kick-off 8pm. Sky Sports customers can watch in-game clips in the live match blog on the Sky Sports website and app. Highlights will also be published on the Sky Sports digital platforms and the Sky Sports Football YouTube channel shortly after the final whistle.

Last time out…

Jones Knows prediction

I’m yet to be anywhere near convinced Eddie Howe has the magic formula to keep Newcastle in the Premier League.

They are 6/5 to stay up with Sky Bet if you disagree.

Their problem remains an inability to keep clean sheets which stems from being far too brittle when being put under pressure in matches. Howe’s men have conceded 41 Premier League goals – only three teams in Premier League history have conceded more after 18 games. In his seven games so far, Howe has made very little impact on Newcastle’s defensive shortcomings. That is likely to continue in this game and for the remainder of the season with this squad.

In contrast to Howe at Newcastle, Manchester United’s new interim manager Ralf Rangnick has been able to make an immediate impact on results since his November appointment, winning both his Premier League games 1-0. Newcastle have also played three times since we last saw Rangnick’s United in action, so the visitors should be far fresher.

The quotes of 4/9 for an away win look fair enough to me – but a better bet is found in the Newcastle corner count market.

Since Howe arrived, the Toon’s more adventurous attacking approach can be seen through the amount of corners being won. In matches against Brentford (8), Burnley (10) and Leicester (6) they have soared past their allocated lines set by Sky Bet and even to win three against Manchester City was another sign of good intent.

Early signs are from Rangnick’s United is that they will offer space down the flanks to oppositions teams and that is seen by their corner conceded count against Norwich (9) and Crystal Palace (6). Yes, it’s a small sample size but I’m happy to back that theory while prices remain in our favour. The 11/8 with Sky Bet for Newcastle to win five corners will do for me.

SCORE PREDICTION: 1-3

BETTING ANGLE: Newcastle to win five or more corners (11/8 with Sky Bet)

Opta stats

• Newcastle have won two of their last four Premier League home games against Manchester United (L2), more than they had in their previous 13 against the Red Devils at St James’ Park (W1 D3 L9). They did lose this exact fixture 4-1 last season, however.
• Manchester United have won their last four Premier League games against Newcastle, their longest such run against them since a run of five between 2004 and 2006.
• Manchester United have scored 112 Premier League goals against Newcastle – no side has scored more against a single opponent in the competition’s history (Arsenal also 112 vs Everton).
• Manchester United have won 10 Premier League games from a losing position against Newcastle – no side has won more from behind against an opponent in the competition’s history (Man Utd also 10 vs Southampton).
• Newcastle have conceded 79 Premier League goals in 2021, the joint-most in a single calendar year in the competition (also Ipswich Town in 1994). The last top-flight team to concede more over the course of a year were West Bromwich Albion in 1985 (87).
• Coming into this round of games, Newcastle have dropped more points from winning positions than any other Premier League side this season (17). It’s their highest such total in a single top-flight campaign since 2019-20, where they dropped 18 across the course of the whole season.