After two dull weeks of soul searching, Premier League football is finally back and so is our beloved Newcastle United. Next up for Steve McClaren’s side is a difficult test against high-flying Leicester City, whose top scorer has netted nine times in his last nine games.
Ahead of the game, we caught up with editor of our sister site Read Leicester, Connor McDonagh, for his insight into the fixture.
Would you take any Newcastle players at Leicester? If so, who and why?
I would take three Newcastle players. Tim Krul is an outstanding goalkeeper, he has been very consistent and would improve our side. Georginio Wijnaldum has been fantastic since joining Newcastle in the summer. I am a big fan of Ayoze Perez, technically he is very good and is still young, so can improve.
Are there any rising stars at Leicester that we should be keeping an eye on?
Our biggest youth prospect is Ben Chilwell. He has just joined Huddersfield on loan. I’d like to see Ranieri give him a chance in the first team, but this probably won’t happen until next season now.
Recent reports suggest Jamie Vardy could miss Saturday’s game. So, who will step up in his absence as your key player?
It would be a big blow for us but we have quality across the pitch. Riyad Mahrez has scored seven goals this season, Schlupp has scored a couple, so I am not overly concerned if we are without Vardy on Saturday.
What do you reckon will be the key battle on Saturday?
Riyad Mahrez against Paul Dummett will be a key battle. Mahrez plays on the right hand side of midfield and likes to cut inside. He has the capability to take on defenders at will so Dummett will have to be aware of that or he could be in for a tough afternoon.
Finally, your predicted line-up and score prediction:
Schmeichel; Simpson, Huth, Morgan, Fuchs; Mahrez, Drinkwater, Kante, Albrighton; Ulloa, Vardy
1-1. Newcastle have improved in recent weeks and I expect it to be a close game.
