Charlie Nicholas predicts Newcastle v Preston North End

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Newcastle United take on the Lilywhites in the League Cup.

Charlie Nicholas has told Sky Sports that he expects Newcastle United to edge out Preston North End en route to reaching the quarter-final of the League Cup.

St James’s Park plays host tonight as Newcastle bid to reach the last eight of the competition.

The Championship leaders have been in fine form this season, winning 10 of their 14 outings in England’s second tier so far and, in theory, a visit of Preston should be straight forward.

Rafael Benitez’s side are nine places and 11 points above the Lilywhites in the table, but it remains to be seen whether or not the Spanish manager names his strongest XI.

The priority for Newcastle is definitely winning promotion back to the Premier League, and Benitez may look to avoid unncessary risks with his team selection.

One man who Preston boss Simon Grayson won’t want to see in the first XI is Dwight Gayle as the former Crystal Palace hitman has 11 goals in 12 Championship games so far.

The 27-year-old is undoubtedly one of the division’s most lethal marksmen at the moment, and Nicholas says that former Palace first-team coach Gerry Francis told him that Gayle was one of the finest finishers he had seen in the game.

“Newcastle are going well again now with Rafael Benitez getting some graft from his team to go with the quality,” he told Sky Sports.

“If you’re a club of this stature then why would you not consider having a go at this competition? I know there’s a lot of games to get through, but when you get to this stage against significant underdogs then it’s a chance to give something back to the fans that have kept faith.

“Jonjo Shelvey seems to have his swagger back and Dwight Gayle is scoring plenty of goals, so I’d make these along with Arsenal my home bankers.

“I was speaking to Gerry Francis, who I’ve always had great respect for, and he surprised me by saying Gayle is one of the best finishers he’s worked with, which is saying something given he has worked with the likes of Teddy Sheringham and Les Ferdinand.”