Newcastle United: A preview of the club’s October fixtures

The opening months of the Premier League season have been incredibly disappointing for Toon fans, but could October see the Magpies end their winless run and climb out of the relegation zone?

October 6th: Manchester United (Away)

In usual circumstances there would be little chance of a result at Old Trafford for Newcastle, but there’s nothing usual about the disconnect between Jose Mourinho and his under-performing Manchester United side.

The Red Devils are without a win in their last three matches, including a loss to Championship side Derby on penalties and a 3-1 defeat to West Ham last week in the league. Sitting in 10th place after only managing three wins, a draw and three losses in seven games, United also surprisingly have a negative goal difference of -2 which is uncharacteristic for the defensive mentality of Mourinho.

Most fortunately for Newcastle is the fact that their opponents will have to play Valencia in the Champions League just four days before this weekend’s fixture. Mourinho’s recent comments stating that he hopes “at least a few” of his players are looking forward to the Valencia match can only bode well for Benitez, as it’s likely Newcastle will be facing not only a restless crowd at Old Trafford, but a disjointed and demotivated side that could easily roll over for the Magpies if an early goal goes in Newcastle’s favour.

Martin Dubravka made his Premier League debut late last season against Manchester United at St. James Park, a game in which Newcastle won 1-0 thanks to a fantastic finish from Matt Ritchie. Never an easy fixture, there is nonetheless no better time to travel away to Manchester than this first week of October, and hopefully the Slovakian can replicate his performance from last season.

Ultimately, however, traveling away from home to one of the world’s richest clubs is a tall order for even a well performing Newcastle side, so it seems highly unlikely the Magpies will turn it around next weekend. Benitez will have his side raring to go, but Mourinho’s side have too much quality for an upset to be likely.

Prediction: 2-0 Manchester United

October 20th: Brighton (Home)

Certainly a different test for Newcastle, ex-Toon boss Chris Hughton’s side finished 15th last season, four points behind the Magpies. Returning to the top flight for their sophomore season, it’s been a tough first couple of months for the Seagulls as their first and only win of this season came against Manchester United in August. Currently on a five game winless run, losses against Watford, Manchester City, Spurs and Liverpool have been offset by draws against Southampton and Fulham, but 13 goals conceded in just seven games is a disappointing effort for a side that were one of the best defenses outside the top six last season.

Only scoring 34 goals in 38 games during their 2017/18 Premier League campaign, Toon fans should be confident for a result against what was the worst away team in the league last year with only two wins from 19 games on the road.

Brighton’s top goalscorer last year was 35-year-old Glen Murray, who despite scoring a relatively impressive 12 goals in 35 appearances is hardly a threat on the counter. Murray may have enjoyed a good start to the season with four goals to his name already, but Pascal Groß should be the main worry for the Magpies as the attacking midfielder scored seven and assisted eight last season en route to winning Brighton player of the season.

With an extra week to prepare for this fixture Newcastle should comfortably dispatch Brighton at St. James’ Park, but expect the defensive nature of Chris Hughton’s side to frustrate Newcastle’s under-performing attack. In a low scoring affair the Magpies should do just enough to win this one, so long as Benitez sets out his side to be more adventurous than the dull uninspired displays of recent weeks.

Prediction: 1-0 Newcastle

October 27th: Southampton (Away)

It took a borderline miracle for the Saints to avoid relegation last season, but with saviour Mark Hughes now given the reigns permanently, things have hardly improved with only one win and four losses for the Saints so far.

Heavy defeats from both Wolves and Liverpool have seen the Saints sink without a trace in recent weeks, and only six goals from seven games is cause for concern as new striker Danny Ings has been the only source of goals aside from the unsustainable work of 23-year-old midfielder Pierre-Emile Højbjerg.

Ings is an excellent finisher and tireless in chasing down opposing defenses, but provided Newcastle sit back and limit space behind the back four there should be very little space for the ex-Burnley and Liverpool man to run into. The Magpies were unbeaten against Southampton last season with a 2-2 draw bettered by an emphatic 3-0 victory at St. James’ Park that Benitez will hope to refresh in his players’ minds.

The Saints are equipped with blistering pace on the wings in the form of both Nathan Redmond and Mohamed Elyounoussi, the latter signing this summer for a reported fee of £16m. Despite this pace, however, there is very little end product, and Newcastle should be more than comfortable dispossessing Southampton’s forward players and counter attacking against the slow figures of Hoedt and Vestergaard in defense.

Newcastle may very well be the victim to which Southampton side shows up at St. Mary’s for this fixture, but the Saints’ inconsistencies should be music to Benitez’s ears as he will look for his players to simply outwork the opposition as the game becomes more stretched in its latter stages. A draw would be a good result away from home for the Magpies, but there’s a good chance of them snatching all three points so long as they allow the home crowd to get restless.

Prediction: 2-1 Newcastle