Quantcast
Blogs

Newcastle best XI v Man United

|
Image for Newcastle best XI v Man United

OPINION

Newcastle United head coach Steve Bruce would be wise to make five changes from the side that were humiliated at Leicester City last time out for the game against Manchester United on Sunday.

The Magpies were well beaten 5-0 at the King Power Stadium last weekend, and so it would be no surprise to see Bruce axe a host of underperforming stars.

With that said, the suspended Isaac Hayden, Emil Krafth, Miguel Almiron, Yoshinori Muto and Christian Atsu must all drop out of the starting line up.

In their place, Jetro Willems, Javier Manquillo, Ki Sung-yueng, Allan Saint-Maximin and Andy Carroll should replace them. Those five alterations would likely be enough for the Magpies to potentially pull off a shock result against the Red Devils.

Martin Dubravka hasn’t been at his best this season but, with no real competition for the Slovakian international, he will almost certainly get the nod once again on Saturday.

Meanwhile, Manquillo needs to come in for the hapless Krafth at right back, with Bruce hopefully changing back to a back five after the disastrous back four affair against Leicester. On the opposite side of the defence, Willems should return after a minor knock kept him out at the King Power.

Bruce must restore the three-man central defensive unit that had kept Newcastle reasonably solid prior to the back four change last weekend. With that said, Fabian Schar, Jamaal Lascelles and Paul Dummett should all start at the heart of the defence.

The Newcastle boss doesn’t really have many options in central midfield with Hayden suspended and Jonjo Shelvey struggling with injuries. Therefore, Ki and Sean Longstaff must get the nod here.

A front three is certainly required, with Joelinton looking increasingly isolated this campaign. Allan Saint-Maximin must come in alongside the Brazilian, while Carroll should be handed his first start of the season alongside the other two up front.

Share this article