Arsenal will have, at least, one eye on the second leg of their Europa League semi-final as they travel to face Newcastle this afternoon.
The Gunners remain in the tie against Villarreal despite a disastrous first-half display, and Mikel Arteta will be tempted to rest his key players.
Newcastle are enjoying their best run of the season, with just one win in eight, and another scalp on Saturday will put any lingering relegation fears to bed.
Date, time and venue
Newcastle vs Arsenal is scheduled for a 2pm BST kick-off today, May 2, 2021.
The match will be held behind closed doors at St James’ Park.
How to watch
TV channel: Today’s match will be televised on Sky Sports.
Live stream: Sky Sports subscribers will be able to watch the match online via the website or Sky Go app.
Team news
Mikel Arteta is expected to make plenty of changes to keep his strong in the best possible shape for the return leg against Villarreal. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang could start to work on his fitness after a few weeks out, while Hector Bellerin may join him.
Allan Saint-Maximin and Callum Wilson are fit to start for Newcastle. Loan signing Joe Willock, who has scored in each of his last three games after coming off the bench, is ineligible against his parent club.
Prediction: Newcastle 2-0 Arsenal
Newcastle are brimming with confidence - especially when Saint-Maximin is on the ball - after a fine run of recent results, while Arsenal look unable to string two passes together at times.
With far more important matters to come for the Gunners, I expect Newcastle to record another win as their opponents look ahead to next week.
Head to head (h2h) history and results
- Newcastle wins: 67
- Draws: 38
- Arsenal wins: 81
Betting odds and tips (subject to change)
- Newcastle: 13/5
- Draw: 13/5
- Arsenal: 21/20
