Manchester City vs Newcastle United tips: Magpies to shock champions at the Etihad
- George Dempsey
- 18 August 2023
Manchester City continue their hectic schedule with a tough test against Newcastle United live on Sky Sports this weekend.
Planet Sport is backing Newcastle United to upset the odds on Saturday Night Football when they visit Man City at the Etihad Stadium.
Date, KO time and TV coverage
Premier League, Saturday, August 19, Kick-off 8pm, live on Sky Sports Main Event
Predicted score
Manchester City 1-2 Newcastle United
Premier League betting tips
Bet: Both teams to score
Manchester City vs Newcastle United team news
Manchester City sorely missed Kevin De Bruyne (thigh) in their Super Cup draw against Sevilla and lacked creativity. Ruben Dias and John Stones both returned to the squad but didn't feature.
Bernardo Silva (illness) was also absent, leaving Phil Foden and Mateo Kovacic to partner Rodri in midfield, while Cole Palmer and Jack Grealish started on either side of Erling Haaland.
Emil Krafth (knee), Joe Willock (thigh) and Javier Manquillo (groin) are the only concerns for the visitors so Eddie Howe is likely to field the team that beat Aston Villa 5-1.
Sandro Tonali made quite the debut in that match and formed a fearsome partnership with Bruno Guimares and Joelinton.
Manchester City vs Newcastle United betting preview
Manchester City have endured a hectic start to their season, losing to Arsenal in the Community Shield before facing Burnley in the Premier League five days later.
There was the small matter of the UEFA Super Cup against Sevilla, taking place in Greece, sandwiched between their opening-day victory and this clash with Newcastle.
The Magpies have had the week off to enjoy their thumping 5-1 win over Aston Villa at St James Park and could well be the fresher side in more ways than one.
City have a quick turnaround from their Super Cup victory and they'll be without the creative qualities of Kevin De Bruyne for a number of months.
It's not easy to bet against the champions, but it has to be said Newcastle find themselves in a nice set of circumstances this weekend.
Even professional footballers with a full pre-season behind them aren't fully fit at this stage, so the extra game in 30-degree heat is taxing.
De Bruyne's absence limited City midweek, with most of their chances coming from lofted balls into a packed penalty area. That's not going to work on Saturday.
Another area of concern is that Pep's side has yet to replace the influence and energy of Ilkay Gundogan and it looked sorely missed.
There's still lots of quality in this team with wide threats from Jack Grealish, Phil Foden and Bernardo Silva. Meanwhile, Julian Alvarez and Erling Haaland have formed a dangerous bond.
Eddie Howe's side does look perfectly capable of dealing with the wide areas and midfield runners in behind the fullbacks, with Kieran Tripper and Dan Burn ably assisted by Bruno Guimares.
They're more than capable of defending their box under pressure and between August and April, only City and Liverpool breached them more than once.
Sevilla's performance provides the blueprint for slowing City down and Alexander Isak, Miguel Almiron and Anthony Gordon are capable of providing a threat on the break.
The Toon have caused problems for City at St James Park but they've not laid a glove on them for years, losing their last four trips by a combined score of 14-0.
We think this is the perfect opportunity to show they're ready to compete at the top of the Premier League and upset the odds by beating the champions on Saturday.
