- West Brom have won just one of their last eight Barclays Premier League away games (W1 D4 L3).
- In the last eight Barclays Premier League meetings between Newcastle and West Brom, neither side has kept a clean sheet.
- Shane Long has scored three goals in his last two Premier League appearances, this after failing to score in his previous 10 in the competition.
- Magpies’ striker Loic Remy has scored eight goals in his last eight Premier League games.
Five days after Shane Long’s stunning double against Aston Villa, the Republic of Ireland striker and his West Brom teammates travel to up-start Newcastle (watch live on NBC 12:30pm ET and online via NBC Sports Live Extra) at St. James’ Park.
In the corresponding fixture in October 2012, a 93rd minute strike by Papiss Cisse cancelled out a Romelu Lukaku leveller to hand the Magpies a 2-1 victory. Six months later West Brom exacted revenge in the form of a 1-1 home draw with Billy Jones scoring a second half goal for a share of the points.
This year it’s a different story as Newcastle are enter the match in red-hot form having won their last three in the league. Alan Pardew’s side got things started following the 1-2 loss to Sunderland in the Tyne-Wear derby by upsetting Chelsea 2-0. The Magpies followed that up with a 1-0 win over Spurs at White Hart Lane before returning home to knock off Norwich City 2-1.
Much of Newcastle’s success is due to the fantastic play by on-loan striker Loic Remy, who brought his strike-tally to eight goals this past weekend. But while the offense is clicking, the defense deserves credit with Mike Williamson and Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa stepping up brilliantly in the absence of the injured Steven Taylor and Ryan Taylor. If both ends of the pitch get it right on Saturday, Newcastle could make the leap from eight to fourth in the table, making European dreams a potential reality on Tyneside.
West Brom enter the match in a decent run of form, having taken five out of possible nine points from their last three fixtures against Crystal Palace (2-1 win), Chelsea (2-2 draw) and Aston Villa (2-2 draw). Of all the clubs in the Premier League, they’re the one that nobody wants to face.
With a tricky front four that includes Shane Long (for me, the most underrated striker in the Premier League), Saido Berahino, Morgan Amalfitano and Stephane Sessegnon, the Baggies can be devastating on the counter-attack. They’re strong up the spine as well, with Claudio Yacob and Youssuf Mulumbu forming a menacing holding pair that sits in front of a pair of underrated center-backs Jonas Olsson and Gareth McCauley.
West Brom’s current susceptibility is at the full-back position where Goran Popov and Steven Reid have deputized for the injured Liam Ridgewell and Billy Jones. Reid has been decent but Popov was atrocious last Monday when his lazy marking allowed Karim El Ahmadi to score and his poor clearance allowed Ashley Westwood to level.
If the Baggies are to avoid a loss this weekend, they’ll need to shore up the flanks where players like Yoan Gouffran and Moussa Sissoko and Hatem Ben Arfa will be looking to feast.
What They’re Saying
Newcastle manager Alan Pardew: “The focus now is on this period because it really is the nuts and bolts of this league. Between now and the end of January is really when it all happens.”
West Brom manager Steve Clarke: “At the moment, the feeling is more disappointment than anything else . . . . I’ve touched on it a couple of times this season that I feel we’re drawing too many games, and we have to turn those draws into wins.”
Prediction
People are high on Newcastle right now and I don’t blame them. The Magpies have been impressive and look to have put the woes of last season into their rear-view mirror. If they truly are the real deal they have to prove it against mid-table clubs like West Brom. Problem is, West Brom are one heck of a difficult mid-table club.
Expect these sides to share the points.