"This will be toe-to-toe" - Chris Sutton makes surprise scoreline prediction for Newcastle United vs Tottenham
Ange Postecoglou's Tottenham Hotspur travel to Newcastle United fresh off an impressive win at home. The two sides will lock horns on Sunday, September 1.
Former English footballer and manager Chris Sutton shared his prediction of the match on BBC Sport along with music producer Adam F. The manager-turned-pundit picked the visitors as the victors in a closely-contested match.
"This will be toe-to-toe, this will be like a basketball match. I'm going to back Ange Postecoglou's Spurs," Sutton said while predicting them to win 3-2.
He highlighted the form of the two teams as the reason behind his prediction. Eddie Howe's Newcastle scraped past Southampton in their season opener while they were held to a 1-1 draw at Bournemouth.
Although Spurs have the same points as their opponents for the weekend, they have been more fluid. After a 1-1 draw away to Leicester on the opening weekend, the North London side smashed four past Everton to get their season up and running.
Sutton said that Tottenham were "excellent" against the Merseyside club while Newcastle United "haven't quite clicked".
"Eddie Howe's team haven't quite clicked. I don't think it's a really settled Eddie Howe because he hasn't got the players in so far which I think he would've wanted," Sutton opined.
"I thought Spurs were excellent against Everton. I think there will be goals in this game, there can't not be," the pundit waxed lyrical about Postecoglu's side.
Adam F. backed Sutton but with a score of 2-1 in favour of Tottenham.
What to expect from Newcastle United vs Tottenham
Spurs' recent trips to St. James' Park haven't been kind to them. Last season, Eddie Howe's side inflicted a 4-0 loss on the visitors while the 2022/23 season saw Newcastle blow their opponents away with five goals in the opening 21 minutes, ending up 6-1 winners at home.
Although Spurs have the momentum, they are struggling with injuries. New signing Dominic Solanke is expected to be sidelined while defender Micky van de Ven suffered a nasty knock to his knee in their last match.
Newcastle United, on the other hand, have a clean bill of health. Eddie Howe will be looking at including Harvey Barnes from the start to complement Alexander Isak and Anthony Gordon to give his side attacking impetus.
Spurs lead the head-to-head record between the clubs in the Premier League era with 24 wins. The Magpies have emerged victorious on 22 occasions while there have been eight draws between the sides.