Premier League Betting Preview: Newcastle United vs. Liverpool

January 1, 2024

Liverpool take on Newcastle United at Anfield on New Year's Day.

Both sides were involved in a thrilling affair at St. James' Park earlier this season as the Reds pulled off a remarkable comeback win.

Virgil van Dijk was sent off in the reverse game, which left Liverpool down to 10 men just 28 minutes into the first-half. However, the Merseysiders survived and claimed a 2-1 victory and Darwin Nunez delivered, with the Uruguayan arguably enjoying his standout performance since he joined the Merseyside giants.

All in all, Liverpool have got the better of Newcastle United over the past years. The Reds are unbeaten in their last 14 Premier League matches (winning 10) with the Magpies.

Newcastle are looking for their first top-flight victory against Liverpool since December 2015. The Reds have outscored them 29-11 during their unbeaten run.

Liverpool Betting Preview (-227 at Everygame)

Jurgen Klopp's side failed to win back-to-back league games at Anfield and the Reds will be looking to start the New Year on a high. They are aiming to extend their fine form over Newcastle by claiming their sixth consecutive win over the North East side.

The Reds maintained their Premier League title challenge with a 2-0 win over relegation-threatened Burnley on Boxing Day. Darwin Nunez broke the deadlock early in the match as the Uruguayan scored his first goal for Liverpool in 13 matches, while Diogo Jota also scored on his return from injury, minutes after he was brought on as a late substitute for Nunez.

Liverpool had several days off following their triumph at Turf Moor and they will gladly welcome the Premier League schedule in January. Their next top-flight match will be on the south coast in three weeks - when they face a high-flying Bournemouth side on January 21.

Still, the Reds will hope to balance the squad as they are set to face Arsenal in the FA Cup next weekend before a two-legged League Cup semi-final tie with Fulham later in January.

To be honest, Diogo Jota's return was a perfect Christmas gift for the Liverpool faithful as his presence is a significant boost to Jurgen Klopp’s attacking options.

Cody Gakpo will be looking to keep his place in the starting lineup, while Harvey Elliott is also hopeful his impressive recent form will be rewarded with another start, though Curtis Jones and Dominik Szoboszlai could return in the middle.

Gakpo's potential start would mean either Luis Diaz or Darwin Nunez would miss out, though Jurgen Klopp may decide to stray from what we believe to be the most likely starting XI and mix things up in some positions.

Egypt's Mohamed Salah and Japan's Wataru Endo will both join their national selections for the Africa Cup of Nations and Asian Cup, respectively, with the pair set to depart after that game.

Dominik Szoboszlai started each of Liverpool's opening 18 league matches but the Hungarian was rested against Burnley. He was only introduced as a substitute midway through the second half and Jurgen Klopp will most likely field him from the beginning on Monday evening.

Alexis Mac Allister is close to making his comeback as the Argentina midfielder showed high spirits at the AXA Training Center, after returning to Liverpool training.

Mac Allister has been out of action since the 2-0 win over Sheffield United at Bramall Lane earlier in December, missing six games over the festive period when the Liverpool boss was forced to juggle his options through multiple competitions.

In the meantime, Jurgen Klopp will have to be careful with Joe Gomez, who has been the man to step into the left-back role in the absence of Andy Robertson and his backup Kostas Tsimikas.

While Robertson makes a good progress, the Scotland international still has “a long way to go”, according to latest reports, Tsimikas will also be out for a significant period after breaking his collarbone during an incident in Liverpool's Premier League clash with Arsenal, when the Greek international was pushed into an unwitting Klopp on the touchline by Bukayo Saka.

Jarell Quansah was handed a start at Burnley but Ibrahima Konate will likely be recalled to the starting lineup against Newcastle United.

Elsewhere, Stefan Bajcetic and Thiago Alcantara remain sidelined for the foreseeable future.

Newcastle United Betting Preview (+550 at Everygame)

Eddie Howe's side slumped 3-1 against Nottingham Forest at St. James' Park in Boxing Day's early kick-off, leaving them ninth in the Premier League table on 29 points.

There were high hopes for Newcastle United ahead of the campaign as they looked to build on the momentum built up by securing a top four finish in the Premier League and there also was the added excitement of the return of Champions League football for the first time in two decades.

However, things haven't been really great and injuries have been a constant theme of their season as the Magpies boss has been forced to contend with a host of key absentees throughout the first half of 2023-24, as well as the long-term ban handed out to summer signing Sandro Tonali, who won't be available until August.

Eddie Howe finds himself in a tricky situation right now as The Magpies currently sit 16^th in the Premier League form table across the last six matches, having suffered frustrating back-to-back defeats to relegation candidates Luton Town and Nottingham Forest.

They have lost four of their last five Premier League matches and their schedule doesn't get any better as the Magpies are set to face Liverpool (away), Manchester City (home) and Aston Villa (away) in their next three top-flight matches.

All in all, Newcastle United have the second worst away record in the division, winning just one of their nine games away from St. James' Park (losing six of them). They have lost the last four in a row, including defeats to Bournemouth (2-0), Everton (3-0), Tottenham Hotspur (4-1) and Luton Town (1-0).

Their only away win in the Premier League came at Sheffield United in September when the Magpies scored eight - more than half of their away goals (14) this season.

Moreover, Newcastle are winless in their last seven away games in all competitions (0-1-6) - since a 3-0 League Cup victory at Manchester United on 1 November.

There finally might be some light at the end of the tunnel for Eddie Howe as a number of his injured players are expected to be back over the coming weeks.

The Magpies' injury concerns have eased a bit but even the players who have just returned to action following injuries will need time to get back into rhythm.

First-choice goalkeeper Nick Pope is not expected before April, while Martin Dubravka has stepped in to replace the England goalkeeper. The Slovak, however, has kept just one clean sheet in seven games and has conceded 14 goals during that time. He's not solely responsible for that form, of course, but the Magpies consider a move for a new goalkeeper during the January transfer window.

Elsewhere, Jamaal Lascelles, Elliot Anderson, Jacob Murphy and Harvey Barnes are all expected at some point in January, but Matt Targett's condition remains unclear, though there were reports suggesting March is a possible target for the left-back.

Alexander Isak, who scored his first league goal in a month to open the scoring against Nottingham Forest, is set to lead the line for Newcastle at Liverpool. The Swedish forward scored his first Newcastle goal in a dramatic 2-1 loss at Anfield last season (August 2022)

Possible Starting Lineups of Liverpool and Newcastle United

Liverpool: Alisson - Trent Alexander-Arnold, Ibrahima Konate, Virgil van Dijk, Joe Gomez - Dominik Szoboszlai, Wataru Endo, Curtis Jones - Mohamed Salah, Darwin Nunez, Cody Gakpo. (4-3-3)

Newcastle United: Martin Dubravka - Kieran Trippier, Fabian Schar, Sven Botman, Dan Burn - Lewis Miley, Sean Longstaff, Bruno Guimaraes - Miguel Almiron, Alexander Isak, Anthony Gordon. (4-3-3)

Spooky Express Betting Prediction

Both sides have enjoyed an unusually long six-day gap by festive standards as they resume their Premier League campaign on New Year's Day.

Having won their first ever Premier League trip to Anfield in April 1994 (2-0 victory to complete a league double over them), Newcastle have felt the force of the Liverpool fortress ever since, failing to win any of their subsequent 27 top-flight visits (losing 22).

The Magpies also currently hold another poor record of opening the new year on a winless note when it comes to league matches, with Newcastle kicking-off just one of the last 11 calendar years with a win (1-3-7).

Jurgen Klopp's men are undefeated at Anfield since February, when they suffered a heavy 5-2 defeat to Real Madrid in the Champions League. We actually expect them to concede but the Reds should open 2024 in the best possible way.

The Reds will be keen to keep themselves firmly in the title picture as reigning champions Manchester City are obviously picking up momentum, while Arsenal could overtake first place in the standings if they beat London rivals Fulham on Sunday.

Considering Newcastle's poor form, especially on the road, a comprehensive beating at Anfield could throw Eddie Howe’s future into further uncertainty, but Jurgen Klopp will be more than satisfied with three points no matter which way they surface.

Spooky Express Free Play: Outcome And Both To Score: Liverpool and Yes +150 at Everygame for 5/10 Units

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