Newcastle United face a stern test this weekend up against Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool but they’ll be fairly optimistic ahead of the game at St. James’ Park, as the Magpies have won two of their three games on Tyneside this season.
Their only defeat in the Premier League at home came on the opening day against Tottenham Hotspur and Rafael Benitez’ side have since won three consecutive matches before their fine form was ended on Sunday by Brighton.
With nine points from six games, the general assessment of Newcastle is that they’ve done okay thus far but they have further work to do if they’re to reach their objective of 40 points- which should secure their Premier League status for another season.
It’s still early days though and a loss of form can quickly turn the campaign on it’s head, why may be why DeAndre Yedlin has rallied the troops ahead of this weekend’s clash with Liverpool- although it’s fair to say his assessments are a step too far.
The former Spurs man is adamant that Newcastle can go toe-to-toe with the finest in the Premier League and has urged his side to prove it this weekend by beating Liverpool. Quoted by The Evening Chronicle, he said:
“It’s about focusing on Liverpool now. We are disappointed about the Brighton result but we must take the positives. We need to look at the things we did wrong and try to fix them. That’s something we need to take into the Liverpool game.”
“From a defensive point of view, we need to keep clean sheets. That should be the first and most important thing for us. Every game is going to be tough and we know that.”
Whilst Yedlin’s assessments of the match against Brighton are correct, and he’s right saying the Magpies need to return to form swiftly, putting a lot of pressure on the game against Liverpool is a dangerous approach.
Jurgen Klopp’s side are far from solid defensively but they’re more than capable going forward, with the likes of Philippe Coutinho, Mohamed Salah and Roberto Firmino capable of causing Newcastle’s back-line an array of issues.
For Newcastle, a victory in this match will probably be a stretch too far but taking a point of the Champions League side would be a massive success, showing that the Magpies are capable of fighting against the strongest sides in the division- whilst not asking too much of them.
A point would also set Newcastle up nicely for their upcoming games, as the Magpies clash with Southampton, Crystal Palace, Burnley and Bournemouth.
