Newcastle and Bournemouth will square off in an all-Premier League FA Cup third round tie at St James’ Park on Saturday afternoon.
Eddie Howe’s side will come into this clash off the back of a thrilling 4-3 win over Leeds in the Premier League on Wednesday night, in a game that brought up two of my three selections.
That victory, combined with results elsewhere, has lifted Newcastle up to 6th place in the Premier League table.
The Magpies will now turn their attention towards FA Cup matters when they play host to Bournemouth this weekend.
As for the visitors, they snapped an 11-game winless run in the Premier League with a dramatic 3-2 win over Tottenham in midweek.
The result has put to bed any talk of Bournemouth being dragged into a potential relegation battle, as they are now 12 points clear of the bottom three.
How the bookies view it: Magpies to march on
Newcastle – who have won 10 of their last 12 home games across all competitions – are 4/5 favourites with Betfred, and that holds plenty of appeal.
Bournemouth are as big as 10/3 with bet365 to emerge from this contest victorious while the 90-minute draw is trading at 31/10 with the same firm.
Head to head: Duo evenly matched
Newcastle and Bournemouth have met 22 times across all competitions, with seven wins each and eight draws – the most recent of which was a goalless stalemate in the Premier League this season. Another 0-0 draw this weekend can be backed at 14/1 with bet365.
Players to watch: Wissa worth a look
Having scored in Newcastle’s recent wins over Fulham and Burnley, Yoane Wissa looks good value for a goal or an assist at 20/21 on bet365.
Bournemouth forward Evanilson – who has scored in each of his last two Premier League outings – is an eye-catching 5/2 on bet365 to repeat the trick on Saturday afternoon.
Predicted line-ups
Fabian Schar is the latest player to enter the Newcastle treatment room, joining Anthony Elanga, Daniel Burn, Emil Krafth, Jamaal Lascelles and William Osula.
As for the visitors, they will be without Ben Gannon-Doak, Justin Kluivert, Matai Akinmboni, Ryan Christie, Tyler Adams and Will Dennis due to injuries.
Newcastle: Ramsdale; Trippier, Botman, Thiaw, Livramento; Willock, Tonali, Ramsey; Murphy, Wissa, Barnes
Bournemouth: Petrovic; Smith, Diakite, Senesi, Truffert; Scott, Cook; Tavernier, Kroupi, Brooks; Evanilson
Anything else catch the eye?
Saturday’s FA Cup tie at St James’ Park has all the makings of an entertaining affair, with both teams to score and over 2.5 goals looking worthy of support at 20/21 on bet365.
This selection would have been a winning one in six of Newcastle’s last seven home matches across all competitions.
It’s also worth noting that this bet would have proven profitable in eight of Bournemouth’s 10 Premier League away games this season.
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