Here is how Newcastle United and Sunderland will line up this weekend:
Newcastle United welcome Sunderland to St James’ Park this weekend as the two sides clash in arguably the biggest Tyne-Wear derby of all time.
The Magpies are currently 19th in the Premier League, four points from safety but with two games in hand over 17th-placed Norwich City.
The Canaries’ 1-0 win against West Bromwich Albion on Saturday means Sunderland slip into the bottom three, and this afternoon’s fixture is very much a relegation six-pointer.
Sunderland have a great recent record against Newcastle but with Rafa Benitez now in charge at St James’ Park things could be about to change.
He certainly will not want to suffer back-to-back defeats after losing to Leicester City last time out and whatever happens expect this match to be an absolute humdinger.
A win for Newcastle will see them climb above Sunderland but a Black Cats victory will move them four points clear of their fierce rivals with time running out.
Newcastle lineup
Starting:
- Robert Elliot
- Daryl Janmaat
- Jamaal Lascelles
- Chancel Mbemba
- Jack Colback
- Jonjo Shelvey
- Moussa Sissoko
- Andros Townsend
- Georginio Wijnaldum
- Ayoze Pérez
- Aleksandar Mitrovic
Substitutes: Karl Darlow, Steven Taylor, Vurnon Anita, Siem de Jong, Henri Saivet, Papiss Demba Cissé, Emmanuel Rivière.
Sunderland lineup
Starting:
- Vito Mannone
- Younes Kaboul
- Jan Kirchhoff
- Lamine Koné
- Patrick van Aanholt
- DeAndre Yedlin
- Wahbi Khazri
- Yann M’Vila
- Jack Rodwell
- Fabio Borini
- Jermain Defoe
Substitutes: Jordan Pickford, Billy Jones, John O’Shea, Lee Cattermole, Ola Toivonen, Jeremain Lens, Dame N’Doye.
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