Paul Merson has predicted who will win the match between Newcastle United and Arsenal this weekend.
Newcastle have a five-game unbeaten streak in all competitions, despite their defense leaking goals, while Arsenal’s attack has been on fire until their 1-0 loss to Porto last night.
According to Merson’s Sportskeeda predictions, Arsenal will just have too much for Newcastle, and Bukayo Saka will be crucial against the Magpies’ defence.
Merson says things ‘could get messy’ for Newcastle
Newcastle’s previous encounter at the Emirates in January 2023 ended 0-0, Arsenal’s final scoreless match in the Premier League, leaving the Gunners dissatisfied as they struggled to get past Newcastle’s tight-knit defence.
Newcastle, on the other hand, is facing a much more difficult situation, having conceded nine goals in their last four games and struggling to beat Bournemouth and Luton.
Martin Dubravka in goal has performed poorly, and Dan Burn has received the most criticism and has frequently been removed early in the second half.
There are some calls for Tino Livramento to come in at left-back and try to defend against the pace of Bukayo Saka, who Merson believes will have a field day on Saturday.
“Arsenal sustained a significant blow yesterday night. They last won a European trophy 30 years ago. It merely demonstrates how difficult European contests are – you need experience. They possessed a lot of the ball away from home, but they weren’t sure what to do with it. I’m not sure why they changed the away-goals rule, but you’re going to see games like this because teams will go into a shell during away matches.
“I don’t think Arsenal’s European failure will influence them this weekend. Newcastle have been inconsistent recently, but they have remained unbeaten in their last five games. They score goals, but they also concede far too many goals. They cannot go to Arsenal this weekend and defend like that; they will be decimated.
“Newcastle’s defence is suffering right now, but they don’t have anything to play for. I enjoy seeing them play because they open up games, but they don’t want to do so against Arsenal because it might be messy. Bukayo Saka could have a field day in this game, and I anticipate Arsenal to win easily.”
Prediction:Â Arsenal 3-1 Newcastle United
Arsenal will be looking for revenge against Newcastle
The most recent meeting between these two teams was in a 1-0 victory for Newcastle at St James’ Park, thanks to an Anthony Gordon goal that was reviewed by VAR three times for ball out of play, offside, and foul.
That, along with a performance from Bruno Guimaraes that did not result in a red card, angered the Gunners, and in his post-game interview, Mikel Arteta claimed the game’s judgments were ‘a disgrace’.
Arsenal will be hoping to get revenge on their opponents, and there is no better moment than now, with Newcastle missing so many key players due to injuries.
Newcastle will be without Joelinton, who had a fantastic game in the 1-0 victory, Nick Pope, who would have been invaluable against Arsenal’s onslaught, and Callum Wilson, who also began the game at St James’ Park.
That is not to say Newcastle has no chance on Saturday, but they will need to perform at their peak to come away with a result that is significantly better than the Bournemouth and Luton games.
