The Championship big boys face off at Villa Park on Saturday.
The Championship’s big two, Newcastle United and Aston Villa, meet for the first time this season on Saturday.
Both clubs invested heavily in the summer – each more so than Real Madrid – but will they be envious of the other’s business come 8pm on Saturday?
Here’s three Magpies signings who would arguably improve Roberto di Matteo’s team.
DeAndre Yedlin
Linked with a move to Villa Park prior to Ritchie de Laet’s arrival, Villa perhaps wish they had gone for Yedlin after the Belgian’s recent injury. Without De Laet, the Villans’ options are limited to Alan Hutton and Leandro Bacuna.
Isaac Hayden
Villa added imposing duo Aaron Tshibola and Mile Jedinak in the summer, but never really replaced the tenacity of Idrissa Gueye, who was snapped up by Everton. So far this season, Hayden has averaged 2.5 tackles per game and 1.9 interceptions per game (WhoScored).
Matt Ritchie
Newcastle pulled off a coup in landing Ritchie from Premier League Bournemouth, albeit at a cost. The Scotland international has experienced promotion from the Championship before and would walk straight into Villa’s team, which lacks natural width.
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