Newcastle vs Liverpool Prediction, Lineups & Team News | Premier League 2026/27
Newcastle host Liverpool in their 2026/27 Premier League opener Sunday at St James' Park, with both managers making their competitive debuts and Liverpool favored on the road. Our Newcastle vs Liverpool prediction favors Andoni Iraola's side, who are unbeaten in their last 19 league meetings with Newcastle and in each of their last 13 season openers.
Matthias Jaissle has been in the Newcastle job just 17 days after Eddie Howe stepped down, inheriting a squad that sold Bruno Guimaraes, Sandro Tonali and Anthony Gordon for more than £240 million.
He also confirmed Thursday that Valentino Livramento and Joelinton are out, while new captain Dan Burn is a game-time decision. Alexander Isak returns to St James' Park for the first time since his British-record move.
This preview covers predicted lineups, injury news, head-to-head history, the tactical matchup and a score prediction for Sunday's Premier League opener on Tyneside. For a full Gameweek 1 betting preview, check out our Best Bets and Picks.
When & Where to Watch (USA)
Sunday, Aug. 23 at 4:30 PM BST / 11:30 AM ET / 8:30 AM PT
Venue: St James' Park, Newcastle upon Tyne
- English TV: USA Network
- Spanish TV: Telemundo
- Streaming: Fubo, Sling Blue, Hulu + Live TV, DirecTV Stream
- Referee: Stuart Attwell
Newcastle vs Liverpool Lineups & Injury News
Newcastle vs Liverpool Predicted Lineups
Predicted lineups: Both sides are projected in a 4-2-3-1. Newcastle's is heavily rebuilt, with Lukas Hornicek projected ahead of Nick Pope in goal, Amar Dedic at right back days after signing from Benfica, and Aladji Bamba alongside Jacob Ramsey. Liverpool now have Jeremy Jacquet next to Virgil van Dijk rather than loan arrival Ronald Araujo, with Isak at striker.
Newcastle UnitedNEW
LiverpoolLIVNewcastle UnitedPredictedLiverpoolPredictedNewcastle predicted starting XI (4-2-3-1): Lukas Hornicek; Amar Dedic, Malick Thiaw, Sven Botman, Lewis Hall; Aladji Bamba, Jacob Ramsey; Anthony Elanga, Yoane Wissa, Harvey Barnes; Will Osula
Liverpool predicted starting XI (4-2-3-1): Alisson; Jeremie Frimpong, Jeremy Jacquet, Virgil van Dijk, Milos Kerkez; Ryan Gravenberch, Dominik Szoboszlai; Rio Ngumoha, Florian Wirtz, Cody Gakpo; Alexander Isak
Check the Premier League injury table and the player news feed before kickoff because there are still some questions.
Newcastle Lineup Notes
Jaissle's Thursday briefing tightened up a picture that had looked more promising midweek. Livramento rejoined full training Wednesday, then got ruled out anyway: "it is too early to say on Tino, he was partially involved, but we need to be smart with his progress now. We need to wait until he is 100 percent fit." That is the calf problem he picked up with England at the World Cup, and RotoWire has him down for the Tottenham game on Aug. 29. Joelinton is the other confirmed absence, with a targeted return in early September. Jaissle: "Joelinton is out for a couple of weeks. I am really confident that he will be back as soon as possible."
Two more are unresolved, and it's load management rather than injury. "We need to see how Burn and Lewis Miley are, we need to be smart with the load management," Jaissle said, which covers his new club captain and a midfielder still completing his recovery from a broken leg. Miley wasn't expected to start regardless. Burn took the armband on Aug. 15 after Guimaraes left, and Fabian Schar came through 90 minutes against Strasbourg alongside him.
Dedic being projected at right back a few days after signing is a vote of confidence, not a last resort. Jaissle coached him at Salzburg and said Thursday that the defender is "ready" and "is a perfect addition to the squad, he is versatile in his approach and our playing style. A good fit, especially given our time together at Salzburg." He signed a five-year deal on Aug. 18 as Newcastle's sixth senior addition of the summer.
The sales are still the bigger story. Guimaraes went to Arsenal for 75 million pounds, Tonali to Tottenham for 100 million and Anthony Gordon to Barcelona for 69.3 million, with Kieran Trippier leaving on a free. In came Bazoumana Toure from Hoffenheim for around 42 million, Bamba from Monaco for around 35 million, Dedic for 30 million and Hornicek from Braga for around 26 million. One detail worth knowing: Hornicek being projected ahead of Pope is a selection call, not an injury. Pope is fit and has chosen to stay and compete, but Newcastle spent roughly 50 million pounds on two goalkeepers this summer and Hornicek started the Leverkusen friendly.
Liverpool Lineup Notes
The center back next to van Dijk has changed since midweek, and it's earned rather than forced. Jeremy Jacquet, the 20-year-old signed from Rennes for 55 million pounds plus add-ons, started the final friendly against Como and scored, and he's now projected to open the season in the back four. Ronald Araujo, who arrived on a season-long loan from Barcelona on Aug. 11 with a 55 million euro option to buy, played his 45 minutes off the bench in that same game and drops to the bench here.
Either way, this is a thin group. Ibrahima Konate left for Real Madrid on a free, Conor Bradley is out until late September after knee surgery, Giovanni Leoni is working back from an ACL injury and Joe Gomez is out with a muscle problem into the end of the month. Curtis Jones is gone from the equation for a different reason: he had been managing a hip issue, but Iraola confirmed Friday that a move to Inter Milan is happening. "Curtis is a good player but I understood this. He is coming for some years in the same situation, so I knew from that moment it was a situation that could happen, and it looks like it's going to happen."
Up front, Hugo Ekitike is out until 2027 after rupturing his Achilles against Paris Saint-Germain in April, which leaves Isak carrying the line on his own. Mohamed Salah is gone too, having left as a free agent and signed for Trabzonspor this month after nine years and 257 goals. Andrew Robertson left for Tottenham on a free. Cody Gakpo scored and assisted against Como, and Rio Ngumoha, who is projected to start wide right, scored the stoppage-time winner at St James' Park in this exact fixture last August.
Newcastle vs Liverpool Head-to-Head Record
These clubs have met 192 times going back to 1893, with Liverpool leading 96 wins to Newcastle's 51 and 45 draws. The current run is more relevant: Liverpool are unbeaten in their last 19 Premier League meetings with Newcastle, winning 14 and drawing five. Newcastle did beat them in the 2025 League Cup final, so it isn't a hex, but they haven't done it in the league in a long time. Last season Liverpool won 3-2 here through Ngumoha's stoppage-time goal and 4-1 at Anfield in January. Each of the last three league meetings at St James' Park has been decided by a stoppage-time goal.
Tactical Analysis & Formations
Newcastle's problem is that the three players who made their midfield work are all unavailable or gone. Guimaraes and Tonali were sold, Joelinton is out until September, and what replaces them is Bamba, a 20-year-old signed from Monaco three weeks ago, next to Jacob Ramsey. Jaissle's football at Salzburg and Al Ahli was aggressive and vertical, which suits a St James' Park crowd on opening day, but he has had 17 days with this group. Newcastle have lost three of their last five warm-ups, including 1-2 at home to Leverkusen and 1-3 to Everton.
Liverpool have their own version of the same problem in defense, where a 20-year-old making his league debut for the club is projected to partner van Dijk, and their own version of continuity in attack, where Wirtz, Gakpo and Isak have a season together behind them. Iraola presses high, which is the tactical hinge here: Newcastle will want to play through it and hit Barnes and Elanga in behind, and Liverpool's back line is new enough that one mistake is plausible. But Iraola was also unbeaten in six Premier League meetings with Newcastle while at Bournemouth, and Liverpool are unbeaten in their opening league fixture in each of the last 13 seasons.
Isak is the subplot that could decide it. He registered 28 goal contributions in his last 26 home Premier League appearances for Newcastle and then managed three goals in a full season at Liverpool. He'll get a hostile reception, he'll get chances, and how he handles the afternoon is probably the single biggest variable in the game.
Newcastle vs Liverpool Odds
Liverpool are short favorites away from home and Newcastle sit around +300 in places, which is a wide spread for a fixture this lopsided historically. The market has barely reacted to Jaissle's team news, with Newcastle a shade shorter at DraftKings and Liverpool unchanged. Check prices again once the Burn and goalkeeper calls are known.
| Sportsbook | Newcastle | Draw | Liverpool |
|---|---|---|---|
| BetMGM | +250 | +280 | -115 |
| DraftKings | +270 | +300 | -110 |
| FanDuel | +280 | +280 | -115 |
| bet365 | +300 | +270 | -112 |
| Kalshi | +279 | +279 | -116 |
Odds as of August 21. For more markets and the rest of the matchweek, see RotoWire's soccer betting page and the best sportsbook promos.
Our Premier League Gameweek 1 betting preview is now live, as well.
Key Matchups
Alexander Isak vs Malick Thiaw and Sven Botman
The reunion is also the matchup that decides the game. Isak knows this defense, knows this stadium and knows exactly the runs that worked here for three seasons. Thiaw and Botman are a physical pairing who will be happy to make it a wrestling match, and Botman in particular is comfortable defending in behind. What Isak did not have last season was a functioning supply line while Liverpool restructured around him; what he has on Sunday is Wirtz between the lines and Gakpo and Ngumoha stretching the width. If he's going to have a season, this is the afternoon to start it.
Aladji Bamba vs Ryan Gravenberch
This is where Newcastle's summer gets tested. Bamba is 20, cost around 35 million pounds from Monaco and is being asked to do the job two established internationals did last season, with Joelinton unavailable to share the load. Gravenberch is one of the better ball-carrying No. 6s in the league and Iraola's press is designed to force turnovers exactly in that zone. If Bamba and Ramsey can't hold the middle, Liverpool won't need many phases of possession to be dangerous, and St James' Park will get nervous quickly.
Set-Piece Takers
Set-piece responsibility for both clubs comes from RotoWire's Premier League set-piece takers guide, which covers all 20 teams for 2026-27.
Newcastle
- Corners & free kicks: Lewis Hall, Lewis Miley, Jacob Murphy, Anthony Elanga, Fabian Schar
- Penalties: Nick Woltemade, Will Osula
Liverpool
- Corners & free kicks: Dominik Szoboszlai, Cody Gakpo, Florian Wirtz, Alexis Mac Allister
- Penalties: Dominik Szoboszlai, Alexander Isak
With Bruno Guimaraes gone, Newcastle's penalty and free-kick hierarchy is genuinely unsettled, and Miley being a game-time decision thins the corner list further. Liverpool's is unsettled too with Salah gone.
Newcastle vs Liverpool Prediction
Newcastle sold their three best midfielders, hired a manager 17 days ago and are without Joelinton and Livramento on top of it. Liverpool have a new manager too, but their spine in attack is intact and their record in this fixture and in season openers is about as strong as records get. St James' Park will make it uncomfortable for an hour and Newcastle will get a goal from a wide area or a set piece. But a midfield of Aladji Bamba and Jacob Ramsey against Iraola's press is the kind of mismatch that stops being survivable once the game stretches, and Liverpool have the finishers to punish it more than once.
Score Prediction: Newcastle 1-3 Liverpool
Upcoming Fixtures
Newcastle go to Tottenham next before a trip to Leeds. Liverpool host their next fixture at Anfield with the Isak question hopefully answered one way or the other.
For the rest of the matchweek, see RotoWire's Premier League predicted and confirmed lineups, the injury table, team stats and the EPL draft kit.
