Separated by two points and two places in the Premier League table, Newcastle United and Aston Villa will both aim to boost their top-four ambitions when they clash on Boxing Day.
The Magpies are back at St James' Park following a successful trip to Ipswich, while Villa overturned ailing champions Manchester City last time out, keeping them just above their hosts in the standings.
Match preview
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After a run of two wins from 11 Premier League matches, Newcastle have now won both of their last two by the same 4-0 scoreline - against Leicester City and Ipswich Town - to re-establish themselves inside the top half of the table.
While the quality of their recent opponents may be questionable, Eddie Howe's team ruthlessly dispatched Leicester on home turf, before beating Brentford in the EFL Cup quarter-finals and then sweeping past Ipswich.
Alexander Isak opened the scoring after just 30 seconds at Portman Road, before further goals from the Swedish striker and in-form winger Jacob Murphy gave the visitors a healthy three-goal lead before half time.
Isak went on to complete his hat-trick, helping the Magpies ascend to eighth place - just one point behind Man City and two adrift of Aston Villa.
Cup competitions will surely be a priority as Newcastle seek an end to their 69-year domestic trophy drought, but Howe is also intent on succeeding in a multi-club battle for European places.
The north-east side are unbeaten in 15 Premier League home games against Villa - one of their direct rivals - since a 3-0 loss in April 2005, winning the last three by an aggregate score of 10-1.
History seems to suggest they should prevail, but Newcastle have also lost their last three Boxing Day fixtures at St James' Park, most recently suffering a 3-1 loss to Nottingham Forest during last year's festive period.
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Villa will head for Tyneside following defeats in both meetings last season: they were thumped 5-1 in Newcastle on the first day of an ultimately successful 2023-24 campaign that saw Unai Emery's men follow their hosts' example by securing Champions League qualification.
Enduring a dismal run of results on the road, they now head north with some trepidation, having posted losses in all of their last four Premier League away games - as many as throughout the previous 17.
The most recent was at the City Ground, where the Villans let three points slip through their fingers against Forest, thereby ending a three-match winning streak that included a vital European victory over RB Leipzig.
They responded to that setback in some style, as Jhon Duran gave them an early lead at home to Man City, before the irrepressible Morgan Rogers notched the second against his old club - a 2-1 win took them above crisis-hit City into sixth place.
After travelling to Newcastle, the Birmingham club will host two top-flight matches and an FA Cup tie at Villa Park, so Emery is now keen to halt his team's losing streak away from home and lay the right foundations for 2025.
However, Villa have lost their first post-Christmas fixture for each of the last three seasons - conceding three goals on every occasion - and their Boxing Day hosts are not likely to prove welcoming.
Team News
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While Newcastle will welcome Joelinton back from suspension, the versatile Brazilian has yet to fully recover from a facial injury that required stitches after last week's cup win against Brentford, so his presence remains in some doubt.
Joe Willock should be passed fit despite picking up a knock at Ipswich, but first-choice goalkeeper Nick Pope still heads a lengthy absence list also featuring Callum Wilson, Jamaal Lascelles and Emil Krafth.
With Wilson sidelined, Alexander Isak again leads the line, having scored 23 Premier League goals so far in 2024 - just behind Erling Haaland (26) and Cole Palmer (25). Meanwhile, the only Newcastle players with more in one year are Alan Shearer (27 in 2002) and Andrew Cole (24 in 1994).
In his last three league games, Jacob Murphy has provided two assists against Brentford, scored twice versus Leicester, and then recorded a couple of goal involvements against Ipswich, so he is set to join Anthony Gordon in Isak's supporting cast.
Aston Villa's attacking lineup is less clear-cut, as Ollie Watkins could be recalled after starting several games on the bench; however, Jhon Duran has already scored four winning goals in the Premier League this season and also boasts the division's best minutes-per-goal ratio (one every 80 minutes).
Both have netted seven top-flight goals this term, but Unai Emery has been reluctant to pair them together, instead preferring more presence in midfield, where Amadou Onana could again join Boubacar Kamara and Youri Tielemans.
To Emery's delight, the visitors have almost a full squad available, as Leon Bailey recently returned from his latest muscular issue and Jacob Ramsey is now back in training - the latter will not be involved on Thursday, though.
Newcastle United possible starting lineup:
Dubravka; Livramento, Schar, Burn, Hall; Tonali, Guimaraes, Willock; Murphy, Isak, Gordon
Aston Villa possible starting lineup:
Martinez; Cash, Konsa, Torres, Digne; Kamara, Onana; McGinn, Tielemans, Rogers; Duran
We say: Newcastle United 2-1 Aston Villa
Newcastle (16) and Aston Villa (15) come into this festive contest having lost more games on Boxing Day than any other clubs in Premier League history.
A lesser power away from home, Villa could now draw level with their hosts in that dubious ranking, as the Magpies are flying high after recovering their form in the final third.
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Jonathan O'Shea
