Newcastle and Tottenham will face each other in their Premier League curtain-raising fixture at St James' Park on Saturday at lunchtime.
Both clubs have had eventful summers with off-pitch happenings taking up most of the headlines, with Magpies boss Rafael Benitez insisting that he has been satisfied with the club's transfer business while Mauricio Pochettino welcomed no new incomings at Spurs.
The north London side have called on the vast majority of their star turns, despite many having only recently returned from their post-World Cup holidays, and they will be expected to better their third-placed finish from last season in 2018-19.
| Game | Newcastle vs Tottenham |
| Date | Saturday, August 11 |
| Time | 12:30pm BST / 7:30am ET |
TV Channel, Live Stream & How To Watch
In the United States (US), the game can be watched on NBC Sports or on the NBC Sports app .
| US TV channel | Online stream |
|---|---|
| NBC Sports | NBC Sports app |
In the United Kingdom (UK), the game can be watched live on Sky Sports or streamed live online using the Sky Go app .
| UK TV channel | Online stream |
|---|---|
| Sky Sports | Sky Go app |
Squads & Team News
| Position | Newcastle players |
|---|---|
| Goalkeepers | Dubravka, Darlow |
| Defenders | Yedlin, Dummett, Lascelles, Clark, Schar |
| Midfielders | Shelvey, Hayden, Diame, Ki, Ritchie, Kenedy |
| Forwards | Murphy, Atsu, Perez, Rondon, Muto, Joselu |
Magpies boss Benitez had new arrivals Yoshinori Muto and Salomon Rondon in contention, but Florian Lejeune is ruled out after undergoing surgery.
Newcastle XI: Dubravka, Clark, Yedlin, Lascelles, Dummett, Shelvey, Kenedy, Ritchie, Diame, Ayoze, Joselu.
Subs: Darlow, Maquillo, Schar, Ki, Atsu, Muto, Rondon
| Position | Tottenham players |
|---|---|
| Goalkeepers | Lloris, Vorm, Gazzaniga |
| Defenders | Trippier, Walker-Peters, Alderweireld, Vertonghen, Foyth |
| Midfielders | Rose, Sanchez, Davies, Dier, Dembele, Eriksen, Sissoko |
| Forwards | Alli, Son, Moura, Llorente, Kane |
Pochettino had nine players competing in the final weekend of the World Cup 2018 in Russia who only returned to training in north London on Monday.
Stars such as Harry Kane, Dele Alli, Jan Vertonghen, Hugo Lloris and Toby Alderweireld may not be fully match-fit for the Premier League opener, but are required from the off. Meanwhile, Victor Wanyama is suffering from a knee injury while Erik Lamela picked up a thigh concern during pre-season.
Tottenham XI: Lloris, Aurier, Sanchez, Vertonghen, Davies, Dier, Sissoko, Eriksen, Dele, Lucas, Kane.
Subs: Vorm, Alderweireld, Walker-Peters, Amos, Dembele, Son, Llorente.
Betting & Match Odds
Newcastle are priced at 14/5 to win the home tie according to dabblebet , while a draw is available at 23/10. Spurs' odds of winning are up at 4/1.
Match Preview
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Spurs became the first team since the Premier League introduced transfer windows to not welcome any new summer signings into their squad as the 2018 deadline passed. Though Pochettino was keen on a move for Jack Grealish , Aston Villa insisted that he was not for sale.
The north London side were successful in tying down deals for the head coach himself this summer as well as club talisman Harry Kane, but the fact that they were the only side – let alone top-four side – to not enhance their team will be a worrying detail heading into the new season.
Jose Mourinho bemoaned Manchester United's lack of transfer incomings but even he was able to contend with welcoming the likes of Diogo Dalot and Fred. Liverpool spent the most this summer, landing the likes of Alisson, Naby Keita, Fabinho and Xherdan Shaqiri, while Manchester City strengthened with signing Riyad Mahrez and Chelsea made moves for Jorginho and Kepa.
A large majority of Tottenham players have only just returned to training, but Pochettino retains full faith in them.
Meanwhile, Benitez's Newcastle are arguably in their own state of turmoil, as the Spaniard and captain Jamaal Lascelles had to pen an open letter to fans urging them to unite and continue to give the club their unwavering support.
The Magpies boss was initially critical of his club's inability to sign the players he wished for earlier in the summer, but he ended the window with seven new signings – bringing in Rondon and Federico Fernandez shortly before the end of the transfer window.
"Doing good business in a transfer window is about ending the window clearly stronger than when you started and we believe we have done this," the letter read .
"The view we all share is that we have a better squad now than the one that finished 10th last season and all involved have worked tirelessly to make this happen."
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