AFC Bournemouth will play host to Steve McClaren’s Newcastle United in the twelfth round of what has, so far, been a less than memorable Barclays Premier League for the two clubs.
The Vitality Stadium will be packed to its 12,000-spectator-brim as both sides come into the fixture eager to take away three points from a fixture that could well decide who is relegated at the season’s end.
Both sides will need to start taking points away from crunch games to turn things around, and that is exactly what this fixture will be. Bournemouth currently sit in 17th place, one point clear of the relegation zone and the 18th placed Newcastle United.
However, Bournemouth have only managed to take a single league point from their last five league fixtures; while Newcastle have enjoyed a recent resurgence in form, with a dominate performance against Norwich, a fortnight ago, and a fixture last week where Stoke City were lucky to manage a draw.
Key Battle- Adam Federici/Artur Boruc vs Newcastle
Last week against Stoke, Newcastle dominated the pitch with the majority of possession and manage a total of 16 shots over the course of the 90 minutes.
Unfortunately for the Tyneside outfit Stoke goalkeeper, Jack Butland, was in career-best form and managed a handful of pivotal saves to keep the game nil all.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoppd95ewmU
If Newcastle are able to bring their form into this weekend’s fixture, Bournemouth manager Eddie Howe will likely have to call on the man between the sticks to make a couple of crucial saves.
The dilemma that Howe now faces is whether or not to stick with starting goalkeeper, Artur Boruc, who has been in disastrous form of late; or to pass on the shot-stopping duties to Australian, Adam Federici.
Team News:
Howe’s decision of who to field in goals may be made for him, with Boruc nursing a hip/thigh injury. Whether or not Howe has options in goal will come down to the fitness of the Polish International.
Also under an injury cloud are Cherries players Steve Cook and Christian Atsu, both of which will have to complete late fitness tests before inclusion in this weekend’s lineups.
Newcastle rap sheet of injuries offers them very little respite coming into their clash with Bournemouth. Massadio Haidara and Daryl Janmaat are both in doubt, while it has been confirmed Newcastle will likely go the rest of the season without first-teamer Tim Krul in goals.
Head to Head:
Geographic opposites within England, the two sides have only met on six prior occasions- in a period stretching from 1963 to 1992. Unlikely to have any real weighting on the course of Saturday’s game, each side has managed two wins in that period, with an a pair of draws also on the record.
Prediction:
Expect two sides playing as if it were a cup-final. Both bosses will understand the importance of the game and will, no doubt, stress it to their players. Premier League relegation battles often come down to a difference of only a few points and both these clubs seem likely to be tangled in a bottom of the table scrap come May.
However be cautious of a Newcastle side that hasn’t managed a win in a dozen away matches- remembering that droughts are made to be broken.
AFC Bournemouth 1 Newcastle United 2
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