Man United vs Newcastle Prediction & Tips

Joe Vaughan 29 Dec 2024
  • Manchester United are hoping to bounce back from two successive league defeats on Monday when they entertain Newcastle, who have risen to fifth spot after three consecutive victories. The match kicks off at Old Trafford at 8pm. Read on for our detailed, in-depth analysis, predictions and betting tips for this crunch Premier League game.

Man United vs Newcastle Predictions

  • Full Time Result: Newcastle Win
  • Correct Score: 2-0
  • Both Teams To Score: No
  • Over 2.5 Goals: No
  • First Goalscorer: Alexander Isak

New Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim will have been left in no doubt of how serious the situation is at Old Trafford as they head into the new year hoping to drag themselves into the top half of the Premier League table.

Consecutive defeats to Bournemouth and Wolves have taken the shine off their surprise 2-1 victory in the derby against City a couple of weeks ago and that result has the looks of a blip as they struggle to be competitive even against some of the league’s lesser lights.

That does not bode well for a visit from Newcastle, who have scored 11 goals in their last three league games without conceding and the Magpies will be confident they can claim their first league success at the Theatre of Dreams in 11 years when they face the Red Devils in Sky’s final Monday Night Football offering of 2024.

Man United vs Newcastle Tips

Tip 1

Amorim was seen as the saviour at Manchester United when he replaced Erik ten Hag as manager, but the Portuguese coach is finding life tough after losing four of his last five Premier League matches.

A win at the Etihad against champions City looks to have papered over the cracks and we are in the unusual position of seeing Newcastle chalked up as favourites to win their trip to Old Trafford, despite the fact their last league win came there in 2013.

However, following the home side’s capitulations in their 3-0 home loss to Bournemouth and the subsequent 2-0 defeat to Wolves, it seems entirely justified and there is good value to be had in getting behind the Magpies to claim three points.

It is not just the Red Devils’ issues that point to an away win, but the excellent form Eddie Howe’s team have displayed in pushing themselves up to fifth in the table before Sunday’s action took place.

They have eased past Leicester, Ipswich and Aston Villa in their last three matches and should have nothing to fear against a team who are still out of sorts despite their managerial change.

Tip 2

The star of the show during Newcastle’s recent progress has been striker Alexander Isak and he should be taken to add to his 11 Premier League goals this season when he lines up at Old Trafford.

The former Real Sociedad striker netted in the 3-0 win over Aston Villa, which came five days after he scored a hat-trick in the 4-0 win at Ipswich.

However, the Sweden hitman is anything but a flat-track bully as he has also been on target against some of this season’s leading lights, netting against Liverpool, Arsenal, surprise package Nottingham Forest and Chelsea in both the league and the EFL Cup.

Expect him to relish the opportunity to face a Manchester United defence that is struggling for confidence.

Man United Form, Team News & Predicted Line-Up

New Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim has found life tough in the early days of his Old Trafford stewardship and desperately needs a win on Monday to produce some optimism for the New Year with his team 14th in the Premier League standings.

The Portuguese boss has introduced a 3-4-3 system at the club, but a 2-1 win at champions Manchester City two weeks ago seems a distant memory as his team have been limp in defeats to Bournemouth and Wolves.

United will have to go into their game with Newcastle without Bruno Fernandes, who was sent off in the 2-0 Boxing Day at Molineux, while fellow midfielder Manuel Ugarte will also miss out after picking up five bookings.

Casemiro and Alejandro Garnacho are expected to come in while United are sweating on Matthijs de Ligt’s potential recovery from illness but don’t expect out-of-favour forward Marcus Rashford to feature.

Man United Predicted XI: Onana; Yoro, Maguire, Martinez; Mazraoui, Casemiro, Mainoo, Dalot; Amad, Hojlund, Garnacho.

Newcastle Form, Team News & Predicted Line-Up

The Magpies have stormed to fifth in the Premier League after scoring 11 goals without reply in their last three matches against Leicester, Ipswich and Aston Villa, who they beat 3-0 at St James’ Park on Boxing Day.

Their main concern for the trip to Old Trafford is whether right-back Tino Livramento has recovered from illness after missing the game against Villa.

The match comes too early for Sven Botman, while Callum Wilson, Jamaal Lascelles, Nick Pope and Emil Krafth remain sidelined.

Newcastle Predicted XI: Dubravka; Livramento, Schar, Burn, Hall; Guimaraes, Tonali, Joelinton; Murphy, Isak, Gordon.

Key Players to Watch in Man United vs Newcastle

Manchester United need to get a tune out of Rasmus Hojlund as the Danish striker has netted just twice in the Premier League this season, while there could hardly be a greater difference between his contribution and that of Newcastle forward Alexander Isak.

The Swedish hitman has scored seven goals in his last six games, including a hat-trick in the Magpies’ recent 4-0 win at Ipswich.

Man United vs Newcastle Head-To-Head Statistics

Newcastle have not gained a league victory at Old Trafford since a 1-0 win in December 2013 when Yohan Cabaye scored the winner.

This will be the 168th occasion that the teams have met in league action, with Manchester United winning 83 times and Newcastle 44, with matches finishing level 41 times.

Leicester vs Man City Prediction & Tips

Tottenham vs Newcastle Prediction & Tips