Should Newcastle take the game to Tottenham or be defensive?

Should Newcastle United play it safe and defend for a point or take some risks and attack for a potential upset in London on Sunday?

Even though this weekend’s game only marks the third week of Premier League action, the Toon Army have not been this anxious for a game since November when the Magpies claimed their first victory of the 2018-19 campaign. The embarrassing and unacceptable 3-1 defeat to Norwich City at Carrow Road has given life to new doubts and frustration on Tyneside.

In my personal opinion, that was one of the worst, if not the worst, performances I have seen from Newcastle United since they returned to the Top Flight in 2017. Yes, it was that bad and for those of you who missed the game I would not go searching for highlights.

That lazy and unorganized display has fans extremely worried. Newcastle United actually put up a decent fight against Arsenal in the season opener, but completely collapsed against a newly-promoted side. Steve Bruce called the players in for an extra training session on Sunday and made it clear that he would not tolerate a similar performance in the future. That being said, the million dollar question that fans and pundits want some insight on is how the Toon will look to play against Tottenham – attack-minded or defensive?

Reasons to Play Defensively

The primary reason why Newcastle United should play defensive football on Sunday is quite obvious: Tottenham are far more superior and the last thing the team needs is back-to-back major defeats. The Magpies are only one of four teams yet to earn a single point in the Premier League, so the key objective is to at least steal a point in front of 62,000 fans at the new Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. The team, Bruce, and the fans are desperate for three points, but a point on the road against last season’s Champions League finalists will definitely be perceived as a success.

Reasons to Play Attacking Football

With Watford and Brighton being two of the Magpies’ next three opponents after taking on Tottenham, fans will be looking at those games as six points up for grabs. In other words, a loss is expected in London this weekend, so why not take some risks and try to cause an upset before facing two mediocre opponents at home.

Moreover, Tottenham have already proved to be an inconsistent side after creating 31 chances against Aston Villa, but then only managed to take three shots against Manchester City. Okay, the disparity in quality between Aston Villa and Manchester City is like night and day, but only three shots… come on. This could be a negative thing for the Toon, though, because Tottenham undoubtedly view this clash as a winnable game and will look to attack from the opening whistle.

This will force Newcastle United to keep more bodies in their own half to defend a constant bombardment from the home side, however, it could also lead to an open game in which the underdogs could expose Tottenham when too many players press forward. Bruce should start Miguel Almiron, Joelinton and Allan Saint-Maximin together for the first time to see how many problems they can cause for a back-line that is most likely expecting an easy shift.