Newcastle United Match Preview

West Ham United play the second game of their home double-header in the Premier League this afternoon, where they will be looking to add another three points to their total before the international break. They will be in for a tough test however, as Newcastle United are the visitors.

Both teams were involved in European competition in the week so it will be interesting to see who carries the momentum through to this game. Not only that, the two sides occupy seventh and eighth place in the table respectively and if the Hammers can build on the 2-0 win against newly-promoted Sheffield United eight days ago, they will pull further clear of the Magpies in the table.

Eddie Howe’s side may have notched up an unexpected triumph over Paris Saint-Germain on Wednesday but David Moyes’ team had an equally as impressive result a day later, beating German outfit SC Freiburg.

The home side will surely be looking for another result here and may look to take advantage of the energy levels of their opponents as they also had to put every ounce in to claim a victory over Manchester City in the Carabao Cup eleven days ago. They’re going to have to crack sometime soon so why can’t it be today!

Of course, Newcastle will be the fresher of the two sides, having had more time to prepare for this game but Moyes hasn’t recorded victory over them since the opening day of the 2021/22 season, so you’d think that he is due one.

The Hammers’ boss is likely to restore the players that missed out in midweek to his starting line-up. If Michail Antonio hasn’t recovered from his abductor injury in time, then Mohammed Kudus may well be in contention for a first top-flight start.

The match is a 2pm kick-off and the referee is Peter Bankes.