This Saturday, all eyes are on St. James’ Park as Brighton & Hove Albion travel north to face a Newcastle United side desperate to turn their season around. For the Seagulls, it's a golden opportunity to tighten their grip on sixth place and edge closer to European football.
Fabian Hurzeler’s squad arrives as the Premier League’s hottest team, having collected 13 points from their last 15 on offer. Their recent form is nothing short of impressive, topping the league’s form table since late February. In contrast, Newcastle are mired in a worrying slump—four consecutive league defeats have left Eddie Howe’s men searching for answers after a heavy European exit earlier this season.
A win for Brighton would create some real breathing room in the crowded race for European spots. But history offers a glimmer of hope for the Magpies: they’ve won two of their last three home meetings with Brighton on Tyneside. Still, those remain their only two Premier League victories over the visitors in 17 attempts—a stat that underscores just how tricky this fixture has been for Newcastle.
Last time out: Brighton 2–1 Newcastle (18 Oct 2025, Premier League)
On the team news front, there’s good news for Newcastle. Bruno Guimaraes is fit to start after coming through the Arsenal match unscathed, and Joelinton returns from a yellow-card suspension. Eddie Howe is hopeful Anthony Gordon will shake off a minor groin issue, but Fabian Schär, Tino Livramento, and Emil Krafth remain sidelined. In goal, Aaron Ramsdale could be reinstated after Nick Pope narrowly avoided a red card last weekend.
For Brighton, the injury list includes Adam Webster, Stefanos Tzimas, and Diego Gomez (all knee issues), while James Milner is expected to miss the trip to his former club. Mats Wieffer should keep his place in midfield despite being substituted early against Chelsea, and Solly March is nearing a return—but a start is still off the table for the winger.
Newcastle’s struggles this season are hard to ignore. They’ve lost 16 Premier League games, with seven of those defeats coming at home. Perhaps most tellingly, they’ve dropped a league-high 25 points from winning positions—a statistic that speaks volumes about their fragility. To make matters worse, they’ve conceded nine goals in their last three league outings alone.
With both sides having plenty to play for, this clash at St. James’ Park promises to be a pivotal moment in the season. Will Brighton continue their surge, or can Newcastle finally halt their slide? We’ll find out on Saturday.