Gary Megson takes temporary charge of West Bromwich Albion once again as the Baggies welcome Rafa Benitez’s toon army to the Hawthorns – looking for their first Premier League win in nearly 3 months. Tony Pulis paid the price for a string of poor results and West Brom need to pull away from danger quickly. Newcastle have wobbled in recent weeks but their strong start sees them go into this game in 11th place in the Premier League table.
English Premier League – The Hawthorns – Saturday 28th November 2017 – 20:00 UK Time
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Draw Best Odd of: 2 at Ladbrokes |
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West Bromwich Albion
NewcastleWest Bromwich Albion
West Brom’s search for a new manager continues following the sacking of Tony Pulis and with a busy festive period coming up they will need to pull away from relegation trouble quickly. The Baggies are in 17th place, without a win in nearly 3 months and reside only one point and one place outside of the relegation zone. Jay Rodriguez hasn’t banged the goals in since his summer move and he’ll be desperate to improve on his modest total of 3 goals this season.
Newcastle United
A recent rocky patch has left the Toon in 11th place but such was their good start that they are still well clear of relegation trouble. Rafa Benitez will be keen to see improvements from his team though who’ve lacked confidence in front of goal recently – only managing 11 goals so far this term. Dwight Gayle registered his first Premier League goal for the Magpies last time out at Manchester United and he’ll be keen to establish himself as a first team regular.
Head to Head
West Brom and Newcastle have held some epic battles over the years and it is the Baggies who just pip the head to head with 48 wins to 47 with another 33 games ending as draws. With Newcastle playing in the Championship last term, the sides last met in the 2015-16 season with both teams winning 1-0 at home. West Brom thanks to a Darren Fletcher strike and Newcastle at St James’s Park through Aleksandar Mitrovic.
Odds and Predictions
Goals have been a problem for both sides – with only 20 goals scored between them this term.
Both teams to score – NO – looks a strong bet at 8/11 with Sky Bet.
Defending could be the order of the day between two closely matched teams.
Under 1.5 goals in the game looks a savvy punt at 9/5 with 888 Sport.
Confidence won’t be flowing for either side meaning it could be very cagey affair.
Match to be a draw at half time and full time looks great value at 18/5 with Bet Victor.
Tempers can often boil over in crucial matches and this looks likely to be a real scrap.
A red card to be shown in the match looks a sensible bet at 7/2 with Paddy Power.
Score Prediction
West Bromwich Albion 0 – 0 Newcastle United – 13/2 with William Hill.
Top Betting Tip
Neither side will want to lose this game with so much at stake and one point is obviously better than none. The match to finish as a draw is a top value bet at 2 with Ladbrokes.