Premier League Preview: Newcastle United Well-Rested for Single Match This Week While Manchester City’s Midfield Star Rodri Out for the Season

At 19:30 on September 28, the sixth round of the Premier League for the 2024/25 season will see Newcastle United host Manchester City. After five rounds of the new Premier League season, Newcastle United have accumulated 10 points and are ranked sixth, while Manchester City leads the table with 13 points.

Newcastle United’s start to the season has shown noticeable improvement compared to previous years, but looking at the process and dynamics of their matches, Newcastle has been treading on thin ice. In the last league match, Newcastle suffered a 1-3 defeat away to Fulham, marking their first loss of the season. Newcastle’s manager Eddie Howe admitted after the game that “this was our worst performance of the season.” In fact, had it not been for VAR assistance, “The Magpies” would have conceded in their second-round away match against Bournemouth.

Due to the postponement of the third round of the Carabao Cup against Wimbledon, whose home stadium was flooded, Newcastle got the chance to rest during the midweek. However, for the home fans, there may be little reason for optimism regarding the league match against Manchester City, as in the past 33 Premier League encounters with Manchester City, Newcastle has only won once (five draws and 27 losses), with the sole victory coming in January 2019 when Benitez led the team to a 2-1 win at home against Manchester City.

In contrast to the hosts, Manchester City seems to be on the go non-stop. Just 49 hours after securing an unbeaten season with a dramatic 2-2 draw against Arsenal, the whistle blew for their Carabao Cup match against Watford. Guardiola made nine changes to the starting lineup, and Manchester City secured a pragmatic victory thanks to goals from Doku and Nunes.

Newcastle is Manchester City’s favorite opponent in the league, seemingly at their mercy. However, Guardiola must also be aware that Newcastle is currently maintaining an unbeaten streak of ten consecutive league games across seasons. Moreover, in the autumn of the past two years, Manchester City did not find it easy when they visited St. James’ Park.

In terms of personnel, Newcastle will be without Wilson, who is out with a back injury, Schar and Lascelles, both sidelined due to knee injuries, and Murphy, who is nursing an ankle injury. Additionally, forward Isak, who sustained a toe injury in the loss to Fulham, needs further assessment by the medical team to determine his availability. Fortunately, midfielders Tonali, Barnes, and Gordon are in decent form, leaving Eddie Howe with a relatively complete squad.

On the Manchester City side, Rodri’s serious injury has prematurely ended his season, causing concern for Guardiola. Bob, who has a leg fracture, will also be out until the end of the year. Manchester City can only hope De Bruyne recovers quickly from his groin injury to aid the team, while defender Ake’s muscle strain requires a pre-match assessment by the medical team.

In this match, Manchester City will undoubtedly have a psychological edge over the home team, while Newcastle’s home atmosphere and fitness advantage cannot be overlooked. Let’s wait and see what sparks fly between The Magpies and The Citizens.

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