Newcastle v Man City: betting preview, free football tip, team news & TV details

Football tips, best bets and predictions for Newcastle v Man City in the Premier League on Saturday lunchtime.

Where to watch

BT Sport 1, 12.30pm Saturday

Best bet

Man City to keep a clean sheet
2pts 4-5 BoyleSports

Team news

Newcastle
Sean Longstaff is available after a ban. Fabian Schar and Florian Lejeune are fit but Matt Ritchie and Jamaal Lascelles are crocked.

Man City
Sergio Aguero (thigh) is out. Aleks Zinchenko, Aymeric Laporte and Leroy Sane are also injured.

Match preview

Question marks over Manchester City’s defence are dogging their title defence but Pep Guardiola’s Premier League champions might be able to enjoy an easier ride at St James’ Park.

City haven’t kept a clean sheet in six matches and haven’t looked like doing so either.

It’s not proving too costly as they still have a happy knack of outscoring their opponents, but they kick off the weekend nine points adrift of leaders Liverpool and desperately needing to sustain pressure with a win.

At Newcastle, however, that brittle defence might not be examined in quite the same way as it was by, say, Liverpool or Chelsea.

Only Sheffield United and Brighton have mustered fewer shots on target than Newcastle while no team have chalked up fewer corners. And their possession percentage of 31.5 also props up the table.

Steve Bruce is all about trying not to lose and he will deploy his team with that as their chief ambition.

Bruce’s predecessor Rafa Benitez did something similar in January when Newcastle became the first of just four clubs to beat City in a Premier League match in 2019.

But two of Newcastle’s key men that day – indeed their two best players – Jamaal Lascelles and Matt Ritchie are absentees on Saturday and the lack of any potency up top makes it doubtful that they can score. They didn’t at Villa in a woeful 2-0 loss on Monday night and may not again. City keeping a craved-for clean sheet looks the best bet.

Bruce would dearly love to make changes to his attacking trio but isn’t spoiled for choice. There is a clamour for Christian Atsu to get a start in front of the underperforming Miguel Almiron, although Alain Saint-Maximin, a box of tricks though rarely in areas that matter, can hardly be guaranteed a start. Meanwhile poor Joelinton ploughs that loneliest of furrows.

This should be one of City’s back four’s easier days and they look bankers to score themselves.

They haven’t failed to find the target against Newcastle since 2006 and haven’t failed to score in a Premier League away game since August.

Sergio Aguero’s absence simply means more industry from replacement Gabriel Jesus.

Guardiola’s team have only won one of their last four but it’s been a testing run of matches, two in the Champions League plus showdowns with Liverpool and Chelsea.

They’ve never stopped attacking in any of those and were unlucky to lose at Anfield. But defeats usually inspire City to go on a lengthy winning run and they need to do just that to close the gap on their Merseyside title rivals.