Newcastle v Liverpool predictions: No stopping Reds in quad quest

Free football tips, best bets and analysis for Newcastle United v Liverpool in the Premier League on Saturday.

Where to watch

BT Sport 1, 12.30pm Saturday

Best bet

Liverpool and under 3.5 goals
1pt 5-4 Coral, Ladbrokes

Team news

Newcastle
Ryan Fraser, Kieran Trippier, Callum Wilson, Isaac Hayden and Jamaal Lewis remain sidelined.

Liverpool
Konstantinos Tsimikas and Curtis Jones are illness doubts while Roberto Firmino misses out with a foot injury.

Match preview

Liverpool are looking forward to another four years of high-octane football under Jurgen Klopp, who extended his contract on Thursday, but they had to show their patient side during 2-0 wins over Everton and Villarreal and could be forced to dig deep by fast-improving Newcastle at St James' Park.

Klopp's contract extension is just the latest piece of good news in a campaign which could evolve into the greatest in the club's history

For now there is one trophy in the Reds' cabinet but talk of the quad has grown louder with each victory and the possibility cannot be discounted.

Liverpool are the favourites to win the Champions League and the FA Cup and the Reds have piled on the pressure in the Premier League title race by taking 38 points from a possible 42 since the turn of the year.

However, rivals Manchester City hold a one-point lead and Liverpool may feel that a further five victories will be needed to have a good chance of overhauling Pep Guardiola's side.

In the 2018-19 title race City reeled of 14 straight wins to finish one point above Liverpool and this season's battle has a similar feel with neither team giving an inch.

Liverpool will be heavy odds-on favourites to win each of their remaining games but the contest with Newcastle looks their biggest banana skin.

Newcastle won just one of their opening 20 league games and looked certain to face a desperate battle for survival.

It took a while for the change of ownership to have an impact and Newcastle won just one of the first 13 games under the new regime.

But standards have risen dramatically since mid-January as the Magpies have harvested 31 points from 14 games.

Eddie Howe's side are on a four-game winning sequence - their best of the season - and are attempting to register a seventh successive home victory.

No visiting side have scored more than once at St James' Park since Manchester City's 4-0 success in December, and it will be interesting to see how the cash-rich club approach the summer transfer window.

Newcastle's players seem to be desperate to stay on the club's journey towards a brighter future and their standards are unlikely to dip as the season draws to a close.

However, even a highly motivated, well-organised Newcastle may not have quite enough to stem the flow of Liverpool victories.

Klopp could ponder a few changes after the midweek Champions League victory and it may take time for his charges to crank up the pressure. But they have become a ruthless winning machine in recent months and should do enough to secure another vital three points.

Key stat

Liverpool have been level at the break and gone on to win in each of their last two matches

Inside info

Newcastle

Penalty taker Chris Wood
Free-kick wizard Jonjo Shelvey
Set-piece aerial threat Chris Wood
Card magnet Jonjo Shelvey

Liverpool

Penalty taker Mohamed Salah
Free-kick wizard Trent Alexander-Arnold
Set-piece aerial threat Virgil van Dijk
Card magnet Fabinho

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