Newcastle United host Brentford at St. James’s Park in the English Premier League as Eddie Howe takes charge of his first game as the Magpies manager. The hosts are struggling for points and are just one place above the bottom of the table. Brentford’s first season in the Premier League has seen a dip in form and the Bees have lost their previous four encounters.
Newcastle United played out a 1-1 draw against a very attacking Brighton & Hove Albion side in the previous round. The Magpies had 34% of the ball possession and attempted four shots with a 50% shot accuracy rate. The above chart shows that two smart passes were attempted with a 100% success rate. Jacob Murphy attempted five crosses, and his four passes landed inside the opposition’s penalty box. The team won 65% of the defensive duels and made 57 recoveries in the match.
The home team have a very poor defensive record this season. They have the highest expected goal against rate, conceding 24 goals in 11 matches. 12 goals have been scored in return, with an expected goal rate of 12.45. Newcastle United have the lowest number of positional attacks in the league, and the team is also at the bottom for the number of shots attempted.
Paul Dummett looks like the only absentee, as Eddie Howe will have the option to select all the other players available in the team. The Magpies have played with a back three throughout this season, and it will be interesting to see how Eddie Howe lines up the home team in his first game in charge.
Brentford is ranked 14th in the Premier League table with 12 points and suffered their fourth consecutive defeat after going down 2-1 at home against Norwich City. The Bees dominated the match but were unable to convert the chances. They had 60% of the ball possession, creating 47 positional attacks, and attempted 14 shots towards the opposition goal with a shot accuracy rate of 50%. 12 out of the 14 shots were attempted from inside the opposition’s penalty box. The Bees have attempted the lowest number of shots from outside the box and average just 3.15 shots per 90. They contested 54 aerial duels, and the team is ranked second for the most aerial duels contested.
Brentford have scored 13 goals this season, conceding 14. The team has a high expected goal rate of 18.24 and averages 1.51 xG per 90. Against Norwich, they created an xG rate of 2.27 and dominated the match in the second half. Sergi Canos and Christian Norgaard had two shots on target each, and their team attempted five shots within the first 20 minutes of the match. Brentford have made the most number of recoveries this season. The team averages 83 recoveries per match and made 103 recoveries in the last match, out of which 54 were made in the opposition’s half.
Mathias Jensen was tested positive before the international break, and his inclusion is still a doubt. Kristoffer Ajer is out with a hamstring injury, while Shandon Baptiste and Myles Peart-Harris played a friendly in the international break. David Raya and Josh Dasilva are long-term absentees.
The Bees will look to shift back to early-season momentum and end their dreadful run. Eddie Howe has a mountain to climb and will look to avoid relegation with a struggling Newcastle United side. He will look to earn three points in his first match in charge and bring them back on track.
