Chelsea’s early 1-0 win over Fulham means Newcastle have slipped to tenth place in the Premier League. They can clamber up to seventh with all three points this evening. Victory for Manchester City will take them into second spot and within striking distance of the leaders Liverpool, as they look to land an unprecedented fourth English title in a row.
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Liverpool | 20 | 25 | 45 |
| 2 | Aston Villa | 20 | 16 | 42 |
| 3 | Man City | 19 | 24 | 40 |
| 4 | Arsenal | 20 | 17 | 40 |
| 5 | Tottenham Hotspur | 20 | 13 | 39 |
| 6 | West Ham | 20 | 3 | 34 |
| 7 | Brighton | 20 | 5 | 31 |
| 8 | Chelsea | 21 | 4 | 31 |
| 9 | Man Utd | 20 | -5 | 31 |
| 10 | Newcastle | 20 | 10 | 29 |
| 11 | Wolverhampton | 20 | -1 | 28 |
| 12 | AFC Bournemouth | 19 | -7 | 25 |
| 13 | Fulham | 21 | -8 | 24 |
| 14 | Crystal Palace | 20 | -7 | 21 |
| 15 | Nottm Forest | 20 | -11 | 20 |
| 16 | Brentford | 19 | -5 | 19 |
| 17 | Everton | 20 | -4 | 16 |
| 18 | Luton | 20 | -14 | 16 |
| 19 | Burnley | 21 | -21 | 12 |
| 20 | Sheff Utd | 20 | -34 | 9 |
Eddie Howe’s turn for a chat with TNT. “It will be a very difficult one against City … it’s difficult to know how they will play, always guessing to a degree … we just need to get our part right and deliver a really high-level game … [Joelinton’s absence means] we lose a bit of physicality, drive and steel in midfield … he chips in with vital goals so will be a miss for us … we’ve enjoyed the week … there’s been a good vibe around the city … we’re happy with our preparation … out of possession we have to be very good … there can’t be big spaces because they’ll kill you … our attacking players have to function … [the win at Sunderland] was much more like ourselves … hopefully that’s given us a real lift … if we find our best form we will pick up enough points to have a good season … we have to be progressive and attack the match.”
Pep Guardiola talks to TNT Sports. “It was an option [to start with Kevin De Bruyne] … I thought about it … he was five months injured, basically … it’s a lot of time and this is a tough place to come … I prefer not to play 90 minutes with Kevin … Newcastle’s transition is so fast … maybe we will struggle because they are really, really good … of course we miss Erling [Haaland] … Julian [Alvarez] is really good … the scouting department did a really good job to bring him here … [City’s league position] could be better, it could be worse … you are in the position you deserve to be … one step at a time.”
He’s also asked if City have any big plans for this transfer window. “I don’t think so.”
Both teams make two changes to their previous Premier League starting XIs. After the 4-2 defeat at Liverpool, Newcastle replace the stricken Joelinton and Tino Livramento with Miguel Almiron and Kieran Trippier. Manchester City follow their 2-0 win over Sheffield United by calling up Ruben Dias and Jeremy Doku for the injured Manuel Akanji and ill Jack Grealish.
Newcastle United: Dubravka, Trippier, Schar, Botman, Burn, Longstaff, Bruno Guimaraes, Miley, Almiron, Isak, Gordon.
Subs: Dummett, Lascelles, Ritchie, Krafth, Karius, Hall, Gillespie, Alex Murphy, Parkinson.
Manchester City: Ederson, Walker, Dias, Ake, Gvardiol, Kovacic, Rodri, Bernardo Silva, Foden, Doku, Alvarez.
Subs: Phillips, Grealish, De Bruyne, Ortega, Gomez, Matheus Luiz, Bobb, Susoho, Lewis.
Referee: Chris Kavanagh (Lancashire).
HOWAY NEWCASTLE! 👊#NEWMCI // #NUFC pic.twitter.com/irdaStgEIk
— Newcastle United FC (@NUFC) January 13, 2024
Your City squad today! 🩵
— Manchester City (@ManCity) January 13, 2024
XI | Ederson, Walker (C), Dias, Ake, Gvardiol, Rodrigo, Kovacic, Bernardo, Foden, Doku, Alvarez
SUBS | Ortega Moreno, Phillips, Grealish, De Bruyne, Gomez, Nunes, Bobb, Susoho, Lewis#ManCity | @etihad pic.twitter.com/0ctFF70uc9
Manchester City’s title push starts here, then …
… and where better to start it than St James’ Park? They’ve only lost one of their last 32 Premier League matches against Newcastle United, you see, a 2-1 reverse in 2019 the only blemish on a record that stretches back to 2005. They’ve scored in 30 consecutive Premier League games against the Toon, a sequence they fancy lengthening tonight, given they’d have won their last eight games straight had Phil Foden not hung out a tired leg during the closing stages of a 2-2 draw with Crystal Palace just before Christmas. It’s already beginning to look ominous for Liverpool, Aston Villa, Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur. The new world champions are on one.
Newcastle by contrast are very much off it. Their last nine games have been little short of disastrous. Six defeats in all competitions. Cashiered ineptly from both Champions League and League Cup. Comprehensive losses to Everton, Spurs, Nottingham Forest and Liverpool. Thank goodness for Sunderland, eh, who provided some much-needed succour in the FA Cup last weekend. Newcastle will also draw inspiration from their deserved victory over City in the League Cup back in September; another result like that would extricate them from the sticky patch that’s seem them tumble down the table to tenth. So while City go into this game as strong favourites, the Toon aren’t completely without hope. Kick off is at 5.30pm. It’s on!