Focus Fixture: Can Newcastle get closer to ending trophy drought

Blackburn welcome Newcastle to Ewood Park for their FA Cup clash on Tuesday night. They are still awaiting their first win under John Eustace and will need to be at their very best to beat Eddie Howe’s side.

The Form

This will be Eustace’s second home match in charge of Blackburn. They drew 1-1 at home to Norwich at the weekend. The former Birmingham manager arrives with a solid reputation. Most feel he was unfairly dismissed by the Blues earlier in the season with the team knocking on the door for a place in the playoffs. There is no chance of him steering Blackburn to those heights this season but he will want to end the season on a high note.

Blackburn are currently 16th in the table. There are five teams between themselves and the relegation zone. However, the gap to the bottom three is just four points so wins are vital in the closing months of the season. 

This will be Blackburn’s third home tie in the FA Cup. They have beaten Wrexham 4-1 and Cambridge 5-2 to get to this point. They were favourites in both of those clashes so this match is a very different prospect.

Newcastle suffered a 4-1 defeat at the hands of Arsenal. They had just three shots in the match as they were comprehensively beaten by the title contenders and were fortunate to score with an xG of just 0.16.

Eddie Howe’s side managed to qualify for the Champions League last season but they have failed to build on that success. Injuries have played their part but sitting 10th in the Premier League will disappoint those involved with the club.

The Magpies beat Fulham 2-0 on the road in the last round of the FA Cup. They won 3-0 against their great rivals Sunderland in the third round and will fancy their chances as they face Championship opposition once again. This competition is now Newcastle’s only hope of ending their lengthy trophy drought. They haven’t won a domestic trophy since the 1954/55 season but success is surely just around the corner with the club owned by the Saudi Public Investment Fund.

The Runners and Riders

Hayden Carter, Joe Rankin-Costello and John Fleck are out for Blackburn. Harry Leonard is in with a chance of playing as he faces a late fitness test.

Newcastle’s injury list is starting to shorten but they are still missing several key players here. Loris Karius is likely to be in goal with Nick Pope and Martin Dubravka out. Callum Wilson is also missing in the attack. Howe is also without Joelinton, Matt Target and Elliot Anderson.

What They Said

John Eustace may be awaiting his first victory in the hot seat at Blackburn but he was happy with his side’s display against an in-form Norwich. Eustace said, "I thought it was a very good performance against one of the top teams in the league at the moment."

Eddie Howe cited his team’s lack of consistency as a problem following the defeat against Arsenal but did praise the character of his squad. He said “It’s a difficult period for us. We’re inconsistent, you never quite know what you’re going to get, which is never a good thing from my perspective. We did score a good goal at the end and we did show character in the second half but that first half was disappointing.”

Tip

The first of our bets for Balckburn vs Newcastle is for the visitors to win by a two-goal margin. This bet is available at 2.14 on the Asian handicap market.

Newcastle have the perfect opportunity to put the misery of their trip to the Emirates behind them. Eddie Howe was full of praise for Arsenal and acknowledged it has been a difficult period for his club. A comfortable win over Blackburn and safe passage to the next round of the FA Cup would go a long way towards raising morale.

The Magpies have been in fine scoring form in their six away matches in all competitions in 2024. They are averaging 2.33 goals in those games despite facing the likes of Arsenal, Liverpool and Aston Villa. The defeat to Arsenal was the first time they have failed to score at least two goals in a match in this calendar year. With Isak returning to full fitness, I expect them to record a comfortable victory here.

Blackburn were beaten 2-0 when they took on Premier League opposition in the League Cup earlier in the campaign.

Recommended Bet: Newcastle -1 Asian handicap at 2.14

Bet Builder Tip

In our longer odds bet builder, we are backing Newcastle to win the game and both teams to score in the match. Eddie Howe’s side will not be complacent as they hunt sown cup success but the home side are capable going forward. 

Blackburn have scored in their last nine matches at Ewood Park across all competitions with an average of 2.22 goals per game. Newcastle are a step up in quality but I’m happy to back Eustance’s men to find the net as part of this bet.

Newcastle have already faced Championship opposition in the FA Cup this season. They won the corner cunt 5-0 as they coasted past Sunderland. Since Eddie Howe became boss, Newcastle are averaging 9.25 corners per game and conceding just 1.5 in their cup matches against sides who have played in a lower division. As a result, I’m backing Newcastle to have at least three more corners using the -2.5 corner handicap here.

Recommended Bet: Newcastle To Win, Both Teams To Score & Newcastle -2.5 Corner Handicap at 5.30