Newcastle vs Arsenal Prediction: Title-chasing Gunners can claim a big scalp

Newcastle and Arsenal had contrasting midweek fortunes as the Magpies beat Manchester United 3-0 in the EFL Cup while a much-changed Gunners side exited at the hands of West Ham.

However, there's no denying that the Premier League and Champions League are the main aims for Arsenal this season and Mikel Arteta's men, who are unbeaten in the league, look set to bounce back in what should be a pulsating St James' Park clash.

Team news

Matt Targett picked up a hamstring injury in the EFL Cup win over Manchester United. He will join a long list of Newcastle absentees including Javi Manquillo, Alexander Isak, Sven Botman, Elliot Anderson, Jacob Murphy and Harvey Barnes. Sandro Tonali is banned.

Arsenal midfielder Emile Smith Rowe has suffered another injury setback and the Gunners remain without Gabriel Jesus, so Eddie Nketiah should continue to lead the line in the Brazilian's absence. Thomas Partey and Jurrien Timber are also unavailable.

Match Odds

This appears to be one of the most competitive Premier League matches of the weekend and that's reflected in the match markets with Newcastle 9/5 to claim a fifth league home win of the season while unbeaten Arsenal are 6/4 to triumph at St James' Park. The draw is a 23/10 chance.

Both teams to score has landed in just one of the Magpies' last six home matches but that is still a 4/6 shot while over 2.5 goals is 5/6 having copped in each of Arsenal's last five on the road. The Gunners might be marginal favourites but Newcastle striker Callum Wilson is the 9/2 market leader in the first goalscorer market.

Arsenal to win @ 6/4

Newcastle's slow start to the campaign has left them off the pace of their Premier League rivals, and while Eddie Howe's men are now unbeaten in six, their hopes of catching up with the top five could suffer a blow at the hands of Arsenal.

The unbeaten Gunners have claimed 10 points from a possible 12 on the road and have demonstrated an ability to pick up the tempo in the biggest matches, including when beating Manchester City 1-0 prior to the international break.

Arsenal have been victorious on four of their last five trips to St James' Park, including at the end of last season, and although Newcastle are clearly a different beast these days, Howe has a growing injury and suspension list to manage.

The Magpies lost against Dortmund in the Champions League, then dropped points against Wolves in their most recent Premier League outing, and their midweek win was more of a damning indictment of Manchester United's failings.

#PickYourPunt - Bukayo Saka to score & each team to get over 19.5 booking points @ 4/1

Newcastle struggled to deal with the threat posed by Pedro Neto and Hee-chan Hwang in last week's 2-2 draw at Wolves and the Magpies' defenders could have their hands full with Bukayo Saka.

The England winger has not been as effective since returning from the injury which ruled him out of the Three Lions' victories over Australia and Italy but two Premier League matches are a small sample size and Saka remains a hugely dangerous attacking option.

He can get on the scoresheet in what could be an ill-tempered, high-stakes contest. There were nine bookings when these teams met at the Emirates last season and match referee Stuart Attwell has averaged 5.5 yellows per game in the Premier League this term.