Newcastle United will be in action at St. James’ Park tonight when they host Crystal Palace. The Magpies’ snapped their 11-game winless streak with an impressive 2-0 victory over Carlo Ancelotti’s Everton at Goodison Park and have some momentum on their side.
Crystal Palace are a tricky side that deserves respect, especially after drawing with Arsenal (0-0) and defeating Wolverhampton (1-0) in the last two weeks. The game could go either way, but new “assistant coach” Graeme Jones has come in and sparked a resurgence with his tactics and modern ideas.
For the first time all season, Newcastle United were a lethal threat in the final third almost every time they pressed forward. A similar setup is expected tonight against the Eagles, but one player will miss out on the fun: Ryan Fraser.
When fit, the dynamic Scottish winger has been an influential presence on the pitch for Newcastle United, but hamstring injuries and a booking suspension have disrupted his ability to fully adapt to his new club. Fraser is now fit, but the problem, according to Steve Bruce, is that he has not trained in recent days due to illness.
Fans will have to keep waiting to see the duo of Allan Saint-Maximin and Ryan Fraser together on the wings from the opening whistle.
That is unfortunate for Newcastle United because Fraser is extremely comfortable with the ball at his feet, he causes problems for defenders with his pace, and he delivers quality balls into the box. The Magpies will miss him, however, this also means Allan Saint-Maximin will finally start again after his lengthy battle with COVID-19.
With Saint-Maximin roaring to go from the opening whistle after being a substitute in the last few games, and with Miguel Almiron now playing in his preferred number ten role, it only makes sense that fans will see speedster Jacob Murphy deployed on the opposite wing.
So long as Newcastle United keep their foot on the pedal by applying high pressure and create seven to eight chances per half they should get the job done against Crystal Palace. A win today could see the Toon move up to 14th, only six points behind 10th and eleven points clear of the bottom three.