John Carver will hope to start proving his doubters wrong by masterminding Newcastle’s first post-Alan Pardew era win when he takes Newcastle United to the KC Stadium for a clash with Hull City on Saturday.
Carver’s recent appointment as the head coach until the end of the season was met with mixed reactions, with a significant portion of fans fearing that Newcastle will eventually be part of the relegation battle.
Former striker Micky Quinn publicly vented his disapproval by branding the club’s recent decision as a “cheap option”. The Magpies have good reasons to be concerned having lost three of their last four games in all competitions, including an FA Cup defeat at Leicester City, since Pardew left.
Carver will at least take heart from the fact that he has the dressing room and that the Magpies are still mid-table with an eight-point gap between them and the drop zone. He will look at this game as a good contest to end Newcastle’s losing streak.
Hull City are still in the dreaded relegation zone and they also come into this game off the back of three consecutive defeats in all competitions. Steve Bruce’s side have failed to score in six of their last eight games in all competitions, which has played a significant role in their poor run because they went on to lose all those games they fired blanks.
The Tigers will take heart from the way they started brightly at West Ham in their last outing but that same game also revealed an alarming lack of confidence in the Tigers’ camp as they dramatically capitulated in the second-half and went on to lose 3-0.
Hull City team news
- James Chester (dislocated shoulder) and Alex Bruce (thigh muscle strain) joined an already lengthy injury list at West Ham.
- Liam Rosenior (hamstring), Andrew Robertson (ankle), Mame Diame (knee) and Robert Snodgrass (knee) are all sidelined as well.
- Strikers Abel Hernandez (groin) and Nikica Jelavic (knee) will be assessed closer to kick-off.
Newcastle United team news
- Newcastle could have Robert Elliot (thigh), Ryan Taylor (knee) and Paul Dummett (hamstring) back for this game.
- Jak Alnwick (shoulder), Steven Taylor (calf), Siem De Jong (thigh), Rolando Aarons (hamstring) and Gabriel Obertan (thigh) are all expected to miss out.
- Papiss Cisse and Cheick Tiote are both unavailable due to their Africa Cup of Nations participation, though Cisse could be available after the weekend.
Hull City vs Newcastle United prediction
Hull City should have a better shape about them with Maynor Figueroa fit enough to start. That could allow Ahmed Elmohamady to switch to right-back, where he can be more effective. Should Jelavic and Hernandez fail their late fitness tests then Gaston Ramirez may start as a supporting striker to Sone Aluko.
Newcastle will probably keep faith in their usual 4-2-3-1 formation with Ayoze Perez leading the attack in the absence of Cisse, while Remy Cabella and Yoan Gouffran flank Moussa Sissoko as the three attacking midfielders.
Aluko looked dangerous with his work across the West Ham defensive line but other than that Carver will have little to worry about defensively so he may encourage his side to commit forward in numbers and pressurise the Tigers.
Neither side are in good form but they have players like Aluko and Cabella who can be a handful on their day, so the side that will have sharper individuals in forward positions will have a good chance of winning this one.
Score prediction
Hull City 1-2 Newcastle United (10/1)
