Newcastle United vs Wolverhampton Wanderers

St James’ Park forms the backdrop for a mid-table Premier League clash between Newcastle United and Wolverhampton Wanderers.

Newcastle’s form woes nearly cost them FA Cup elimination a few days ago. Yet they navigated a nail-biting penalty shoot-out to beat second-tier Blackburn Rovers in the competition’s fifth round. That doesn’t change the fact they’re winless in the regular 90 minutes across their last three competitive outings (D1, L2), including a disastrous 4-1 away loss to Arsenal in the previous Premier League round. A second successive European finish could prove elusive for the Magpies as they commence this matchday in mid-table, seven points adrift of sixth-placed Manchester United. Eddie Howe’s men have fared terribly at St James’ Park lately, going winless in their last four home league outings (D2, L2), not to mention conceding 2+ goals on each occasion.

Buoyed by a hard-fought 1-0 win against Brighton in midweek FA Cup action, Wolverhampton will be keen to take advantage of Newcastle’s barren home run to extend their three-game winning streak in all competitions. Manager Gary O’Neil can draw further confidence from beating Tottenham 2-1 on his last Premier League travel, making it six consecutive unbeaten matches on the road (W4, D2). However, Wolves have stuttered on Tyneside lately, failing to take three points on their last four top-flight visits to this venue (D2, L2). It’s also worth noting they netted under 1.5 goals in all four H2Hs, casting doubt on their hopes of stretching their one-point lead over Newcastle at the start of this round. Adding to this sentiment, the Wanderers have only won once in their last ten encounters against the Magpies (D7, L2).