Newcastle v Leeds predicted lineups: Monk and Benitez to make two changes each?

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Newcastle United host Leeds United in a crucial game towards the top of the Championship on Friday night.

To be played on Friday 14th April 2017 at 19:45. Venue: St. James’ Park, Newcastle

Odds: Newcastle 4/7, Draw 14/5, Leeds 9/2

Leeds United manager Garry Monk shakes hands with Newcastle United manager Rafael Benitez

Newcastle and Leeds meet on Friday night knowing that whichever side comes out on top, they will take one giant step towards achieving their target.

With a win, the Magpies will move within touching distance of automatic-promotion while Leeds would almost certainly have the confidence they would need to secure a play-off spot by winning.

Garry Monk’s men probably have a little more momentum than their opponents having won their last game, the 3-0 victory over Preston North End at Elland Road, during which, they played some fantastic football.

Meanwhile, Newcastle lost to fellow promotion chasers Sheffield Wednesday in their most recent game, and actually have a slightly worse record at home than they do on their travels.

Newcastle United’s Daryl Murphy celebrates scoring

And the Magpies’ hopes of securing a positive result have been dented with Dwight Gayle out (via Shields Gazette), so Rafa Benitez faces a tough call choosing between Daryl Murphy and Aleksandar Mitrovic.

The former is perhaps slightly more reliable and may have more luck dealing with Leeds’ centre-back pairing of Kyle Bartley and Pontus Jansson.

The Magpies’ other possible change is in the middle of the park with Isaac Hayden – whose partnership with Jonjo Shelvey has been extremely influential – perhaps coming back in with Yoan Gouffran dropping to the bench.

Leeds United’s Charlie Taylor in action

For Leeds, Monk has shown that he is not afraid to make brave selection decisions so predicting how he will manage the squad is arguably difficult given that they face Wolves on Monday.

Gaetano Berardi has been brilliant lately but he may be rested for Charlie Taylor. However, Luke Ayling’s ability to play centre-back may mean that he is the one rested in case he is needed in the middle for the Wolves game.

Meanwhile, Kalvin Phillips was excellent against Preston, but perhaps Eunan O’Kane’s experience and freshness may appeal to Monk for this kind of game, so he may play alongside Ronaldo Vieira in the box-to-box role.

Here are the potential lineups in full…