Newcastle United vs Arsenal Bet Builder Tips: Gordon to threaten Gunners again

Newcastle United and Arsenal shared the six Premier League points on offer last season, winning 1-0 and 4-1 at home, respectively. The Magpies and Gunners meet for the first time this term on Saturday lunchtime (12:30, TNT Sports 1), with the visitors looking to avenge what they deemed to be a controversial defeat at St James' Park last year.

Below you can find my Newcastle United vs Arsenal Bet Builder tips, which include five selections involving four players - two from either side - to make up an 8/1 effort on Tyneside.

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1+ Shots on Target - Anthony Gordon (NEW)

Kicking off this Bet Builder is a shot on target for Newcastle United and England winger Anthony Gordon, who was the hero for the Magpies in the corresponding fixture last season as he struck the only goal of the game in the 64th minute.

The 23-year-old was unable to get on the scoresheet in February's reverse fixture at the Emirates Stadium but he did hit the target with his only shot of the match, forcing a save from Gunners goalkeeper David Raya in the 49th minute of a 4-1 win for the hosts.

Gordon established himself as a big-game player in 2023/24, scoring at home against Liverpool, Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester United, Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur.

He's only found the net twice in eight Premier League appearances this term but the second of those was against Man City at St James' Park, once again highlighting his big-game credentials, and the Everton Academy graduate is proving pretty accurate when shooting, averaging 0.8 shots on target per match.

Gordon registered two shots on target in last weekend's 1-0 defeat to Brighton and has either scored or hit the target in his last four Premier League games, last failing to do either in a 2-1 win at Wolverhampton Wanderers on September 15.

I wouldn't rule out Gordon getting another goal against the Gunners this weekend, but I'll play things slightly safer here and just back him for a shot on target.

1+ Shots - Declan Rice (ARS)

Gordon's international teammate, Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice, also found himself in the goals last season, scoring seven times in his maiden Premier League campaign with the north London side. He averaged 1.5 shots per game, mustering two attempts at St James' Park and one in the reverse fixture at the Emirates.

Rice is yet to score in the league this term but he's still averaging a shot per game, albeit he hasn't registered one in his last two appearances. The first of those, though, the 2-0 defeat at AFC Bournemouth, saw Arsenal reduced to 10 men inside 30 minutes following William Saliba's last-man foul. The second was last Sunday's 2-2 draw with title rivals Liverpool, so I think we can forgive the 25-year-old for holding back slightly.

I'm expecting the former West Ham United captain to spring back to life in the attacking third on Tyneside, especially if Ben White returns to his usual right-back role which would allow Thomas Partey to play in the middle of midfield, thus freeing up Rice to roam forward more.

2+ Fouls - Sandro Tonali (NEW)

On to the player fouls now, and first up is Newcastle and Italy midfield enforcer Sandro Tonali, who returned from his betting ban in August. He's been integrated back in fairly slowly, making his first three Premier League appearances of the season as a substitute, but he's now started the Magpies' last four top-flight games, lasting over an hour in all, and was only taken off in second-half stoppage-time of Wednesday's 2-0 Carabao Cup triumph against Chelsea.

The 24-year-old hasn't been shy in imposing himself on the opposition midfield, averaging 0.9 fouls per game in the Premier League, though of course three of his seven outings in the competition have been from the bench. His most recent appearances in the league, however, starts against Brighton & Hove Albion and Chelsea, have seen him commit exactly two fouls in both, and the ex-AC Milan man will be expected to show similar amounts of aggression on Saturday against an Arsenal side that have plenty of flair players in their ranks.

2+ Fouls - Kai Havertz (ARS)

My second player fouls pick comes from Arsenal, for whom Kai Havertz is likely to play a leading role at St James' Park.

The German attacker has been in the thick of the action for the Gunners this season, scoring four Premier League goals in nine appearances while averaging a mammoth 1.8 fouls per game. His foul concession numbers are actually up from 2023/24 when he averaged 1.3 fouls per game, although of course there is a disparity in the sample sizes.

Havertz certainly made his mark on the Magpies in his debut campaign for Mikel Arteta's side, making two fouls - and picking up a yellow card - in the defeat on Tyneside, and committing three fouls - and scoring - in north London earlier this year.

I think the 25-year-old will be putting himself about again on Saturday in a bid to unsettle the hosts.

Team Booking Points - Newcastle United Over 19.5

Arsenal have received the most red cards (three) in the Premier League this season, but only, Brentford, Everton (both 14) and Man City (19) have been shown fewer yellow cards than the Gunners (20).

Newcastle (22 yellows) are just ahead of Liverpool, Brighton and Arteta's charges in that particular table, while they have been shown one red card.

Eddie Howe's side have been remarkably consistent on the disciplinary front in that they have been shown at least two yellow cards in all but one of their nine Premier League matches, the 3-1 defeat at Fulham on September 21, when none of their players went into the referee's notebook, proving to be the outlier.

With Betfred, a yellow card equates to 10 booking points, meaning two cautions rack up 20 booking points, which is exactly the number we need to land this last leg of the Bet Builder.

Arsenal's thrashing of Newcastle in February was a relatively clean game as only Gunners playmaker Martin Odegaard went into the book, but previous head-to-heads have been more ill-tempered, particularly from the Magpies' side.

Newcastle received at least two yellow cards in all three of last year's meetings with Arsenal, including five in their 1-0 win over the north Londoners last November, so I suggest that 20 booking points for the hosts on Saturday is more than achievable with a fervent crowd backing them at St James' Park.

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