Tottenham v Newcastle predictions: Magpies can take another step forward

Free football tips, best bets and analysis for Tottenham Hotspur v Newcastle United in the Premier League on Sunday.

Where to watch

Sky Sports Main Event & Premier League, 4.30pm Sunday

Best bet

Newcastle or draw double chance
1pt 4-5 Hills

Team news

Tottenham
Emerson Royal is available after suspension but Richarlison and Dejan Kulusevski are sidelined.

Newcastle
Alexander Isak, Karl Darlow, Matt Ritchie and Emil Krafth are ruled out while Allan Saint-Maximin and Joelinton are doubts.

Match preview

Newcastle are aiming to challenge the Premier League's top teams as quickly as possible and they can take another step forward when they take on Tottenham in north London.

This season may be too soon for the Magpies to break into the top four, but they are not far off the pace and head to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on a six-game unbeaten run.

Eddie Howe's side have tasted defeat just once this season, when Fabio Carvalho's 98th-minute goal condemned them to a 2-1 loss at Liverpool, and they showed maturity and ability when drawing 0-0 at Manchester United last Sunday.

They withstood a late period of pressure against United but their Old Trafford performance was much better than the dreadful offering served up by Spurs in their 2-0 midweek defeat at the Theatre of Dreams.

Tottenham headed to Manchester needing a point to go second in the table but ended the night with question marks over their top-four credentials.

Antonio Conte went with an extra midfielder, selecting Yves Bissouma as the replacement for the injured Richarlison, and might have expected his team to have some control in central areas.

However, they were soon forced on to the back foot and had to cope with wave after wave of United attacks.

Tottenham could count themselves fortunate to escape with a two-goal defeat and they were strangely subdued in attack with Harry Kane and Heung-Min Son starved of quality service.

Conte's side are still reasonably well placed with 23 points from 11 games, but they have not beaten any of the top-six contenders and three of their wins have been against teams who headed into this weekend in the relegation zone.

There was a lack of intensity from Tottenham in midweek and they need to get it back quickly because they face a vital Champions League clash at home to Sporting Lisbon on Wednesday.

The ideal way to prepare for Sporting would be with a home win, but Conte's out-of-sorts side may struggle to get what they want.

Newcastle have competed well in each of their matches this season and will view the Spurs match as another great opportunity to demonstrate their progress.

It may take a few more transfer windows before Newcastle can match the Premier League elite but they have looked superior to Spurs in recent games and could be the team to end the Lilywhites' 100 per cent home record.