PREVIEW | Aston Villa vs Newcastle - team news, lineups, predictions | OneFootball

Aston Villa and Newcastle kick off their 2025/26 Premier League campaigns with a head-to-head at Villa Park this Saturday, live on TNT Sports 1 from 12:30.

It’ll be Villa’s 112th season in the competition, while the Magpies clock up their 95th. Both sides come in off the back of contrasting pre-season results - Unai Emery’s men wrapped things up with a confident 2-0 win over Villarreal, while Eddie Howe’s side slipped to a 2-0 defeat against Atlético Madrid.

The last time these two met, Villa ran out emphatic 4-1 winners, and there’s no shortage of motivation this time around. Newcastle edged the Villans out of fifth place last season on goal difference to snatch a Champions League spot, so the home side will be eager to land an early blow on the team that denied them.

The Fan Zone

Neil Dunworth (For The Love of Paul McGrath): Aston Villa’s off-season has been predominantly a game of "keep what we have," and in the main, they have been successful in that.

Saying that this weekend’s opponents have just signed Jacob Ramsey, the most high-profile sale so far this season, and it goes to show how important Champions League qualification can be. Newcastle got it on the last day of the season, and Villa didn’t and that has dictated Aston Villas offseason immensely

Saying that Aston Villa fans can be optimistic given the pre-season they have had. Ollie Watkins has been firing, as has Malen. Villas’ additions of Marco Bizot as back-up keeper and talented Ivorian International Evann Guessand are very promising. 18 year old Dutch forward, the brilliantly named, Zépiqueno Redmond, along with the off-season emergence of Youth League and Cup winners Tristan Rowe, George Hemmings, and Jamaldeen Jimoh Aloba, make the squad selection hard, so I have gone with what I would do on Saturday at 12:30.

This game will be tough as Newcastle have a fantastic balance to their first 11, but Newcastle haven’t had an ideal off-season either, so I think Villa might be catching them at the right time. That, along with Villa’s great home record, could see them sneak this.

Prediction: 2-1

Daniel Oliveira (Playmaker Stats editor): You’d think Champions League football would have the Toon Army bouncing, but Newcastle seem a bit stuck in the mud.

That late surge last season nicked fourth place off Aston Villa, but with it comes a heavier workload and a squad that already looks stretched. Midweek trips across Europe will test the depth they’ve got - or rather, haven’t got.

The summer’s been messy. Plenty of big targets have ended up elsewhere, and the Alexander Isak saga’s been hanging over the club like a grey cloud, with no sign of clearing.

As far as preparations go, it’s been pretty flat. Just one win in pre-season, and you can’t shake the feeling the Magpies might be in for a rough old start to the season.

Prediction: 3-1

Predicted lineups

Aston Villa: Marco Bizot, Matty Cash, Pau Torres, Ezri Konsa, Lucas Digne, Boubacar Kamara, Youri Tielemans, Donyell Malen, John McGinn, Morgan Rogers, Ollie Watkins

Newcastle: Nick Pope, Kieran Trippier, Dan Burn, Sven Botman, Tino Livramento, Joelinton, Bruno Guimarães, Sandro Tonali, Anthony Elanga, Anthony Gordon, Harvey Barnes

Unavailable

Aston Villa

Newcastle

Last starting XIs

Aston Villa ( vs Manchester United 2025-05-25): Emiliano Martínez, Ian Maatsen, Pau Torres, Matty Cash, Ezri Konsa, Amadou Onana, Boubacar Kamara, John McGinn, Marco Asensio, Ollie Watkins, Morgan Rogers

Newcastle ( vs Everton 2025-05-25): Nick Pope, Dan Burn, Sven Botman, Fabian Schär, Tino Livramento, Sandro Tonali, Bruno Guimarães, Jacob Murphy, Alexander Isak, Harvey Barnes, Anthony Gordon

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