English Premier
2012-01-15 - Newcastle United vs QPR
A Sports Betting Pick by Auls
Football: English Premier League
Sunday 15 January 2012 - Kick Off 1:30pm
This game is live on TV
Newcastle United
Alan Pardew recognised a few weeks ago that this was going to be a difficult time for his side as they were not going to bring in new personnel but were going to lose talisman Demba Ba to the African Cup of Nations. However, after progressing through to the 4th Round of the FA Cup last week, Newcastle will feel they can get by without their top scorer for the next couple of weeks.
A 0-0 draw for Liverpool on Saturday means Newcastle United are given the opportunity to move into 6th place in the Premier League if they can pick up the 3 points here. A win here would also mean they pull to within 4 points of Chelsea in the final Champions League spot as the dream of reaching Europe's top table remains alive. Newcastle are 5-3-2 at home this season, scoring 15 goals and conceding 11.
Newcastle come into this game having won 3 of their last 4 games in all competitions, including their last 2 at home. The fans will be hoping they can see another performance like their last one in the Premier League here when they dismantled Manchester United 3-0. The Magpies had failed to win their previous 3 games at home before the last 2 wins, and they have had just 2 clean sheets in their last 6 here.
Alan Pardew has a little bit of a headache in the forward line as Sammy Ameobi is out for the long haul, while Demba Ba is at the African Cup of Nations. Chiek Tiote is also absent at the African Cup of Nations, while Hatem Ben Arfa is pushing for a start after scoring a very impressive individual goal last week against Blackburn Rovers.
QPR
It almost came out of left-field, but QPR decided to get rid of Neil Warnock as the manager on one day, and had replaced him with Mark Hughes soon after. This is a big decision from Tony Fernandes as Rangers have begun slipping down the table, and reports suggest a spending spree is in the offing which means new players will need to be integrated into the starting line up.
The slip down the table has seen the side enter the relegation zone courtesy of a Blackburn Rovers win over Fulham on Saturday. QPR have 17 points this season, meaning they are 1 point behind Wolves and below Blackburn due to an inferior goal difference. Rangers have had more success on the road than at Loftus Road this season, going 3-1-6 so far, scoring 10 goals and conceding 18.
The final straw for Neil Warnock was seeing his side draw 1-1 with Milton Keynes in the FA Cup last weekend, even that result secured by a late equaliser from Heldur Helguson. That result meant the team had failed to win any of their last 9 games in all competitions and they had lost 6 of those games. QPR have picked up 1 point from their last 4 away games in the League.
Adel Taraabt has left for the African Cup of Nations, while Joey Barton and Alejandro Faurlin are both out through suspension and injury respectively. Federico Macheda is in the squad as he searches for his first goal since moving on loan from Manchester United, while there are plenty of players playing for their shirts with a number of new signings being touted in the media.
Head to Head
The game between the two teams finished 0-0 at Loftus Road earlier this season, but there were plenty of chances for goals in that game.
Games at this ground have generally seen a few goals scored, with 4 of the last 5 ending with at least 3 goals ending on the scoresheet.
Both sides have scored in this game in the last 6 meetings at this ground.
Prediction
This could be a fairly entertaining start to 'Super Sunday' as both sides are likely to play attacking football in the bid to pick up the 3 points on offer.
Newcastle United have struggled for clean sheets at home in recent games, ever since Steven Taylor was ruled out for the season in fact, and so I imagine QPR will get chances.
The midfield injuries is a concern for me for Rangers, but I think the honeymoon period of playing for a new manager will get them through this game, while some of these players have a point to prove with new signings likely to be brought in during this transfer window.
Even without Demba Ba, I think Newcastle have enough threats going forward to suggest they will get chances in this game, while the likes of Hatem Ben Arfa can create that bit of magic that can be required in games like these.
With both sides looking to push forward, I can see this game ending with at least 3 goals scored, as many of their recent meetings here have done.
The Statistics :
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The Pick :
Newcastle United 2-1 QPR
