Two of the Premier League’s four winless sides look to break their duck on matchday four as Newcastle welcome Wolves to St James’ Park.
Match News and Current Form
A long and arduous summer of transfer sagas is finally over for Newcastle, who eventually lost Alexander Isak to Liverpool, but were able to bring in Nick Woltemade and Yoane Wissa in his place. Manager Eddie Howe will hope they provide his team with the focal point they’ve desperately lacked in their first three league matches, all of which they failed to win (D2, L1). Their winless run in the Premier League stretches to five matches overall (D2, L3), while they’ve lost their last two on home turf - the Magpies were last beaten in three successive league games at St James’ Park in February 2021.
A visit from the Premier League’s bottom side Wolves seemingly comes at the perfect time, as Vítor Pereira’s men are the only top-flight team yet to pick up a point this season (L3). The Old Gold have never lost their opening four league matches of a campaign, but reasons for optimism are slim as their slump extends into last term, with their previous seven Premier League outings yielding just one point. Something they can cling to is that they managed to keep hold of talisman Jørgen Strand Larsen despite strong interest and a pair of bids from Newcastle.
Head-to-Head History
Newcastle have been beaten in just two of their 20 Premier League meetings with Wolves (W7, D11), which is their lowest loss rate against any side they’ve faced at least 20 times in the competition. The Magpies netted in all of those matches and have lost just one of the last 22 top-flight home H2Hs (W14, D7).
Hot Stats and Streaks
Just one of Newcastle’s last five home league games saw both teams score.
Newcastle have faced the fewest shots of any side in the Premier League this season (18).
Three of Wolves’ four matches this season in all competitions have produced over 3.5 goals.
Seven of Wolves’ last eight away league games were settled by a one-goal margin.
Key Players to Watch and Missing Players
Newcastle midfielder Sandro Tonali scored a stoppage-time winner for Italy against Israel on Monday, but his last two club goals have been first-half match openers at St James’. Rodrigo Gomes has been a rare bright spark for Wolves this season, scoring in their last two matches, both of which ended 3-2 (W1, L1).
Newcastle will be without new striker Yoane Wissa and Jacob Ramsey, while Wolves will be hoping the international break gave Jørgen Strand Larsen the time to recover from a calf injury.
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Betting Analysis
Newcastle’s performances have merited more than their results so far, so backing them to win and keep a clean sheet could be a smart move.
Author: Ryan Fisher