Newcastle vs West Ham – News and Probable Lineups

On Sunday evening, West Ham United will play what could be their last Premier League away match for at least a year, as they take on Newcastle United at St James’ Park.

If Nuno Espirito Santo’s team falters and Tottenham Hotspur secures a victory against Chelsea during the week, the visitors’ relegation to the Championship may be confirmed before the season finale.

Match overview

Before gameweek 36 commenced, Newcastle had a slim chance of being pulled into the relegation battle, but a draw away against Nottingham Forest assured that the Magpies would avoid a disastrous drop to the Championship.

Nevertheless, the persistent issues resurfaced for Eddie Howe at the City Ground, where an opener from Harvey Barnes was matched by a former teammate, Elliot Anderson, resulting in a 1-1 draw. This means the Magpies have let slip an astonishing 27 points from winning positions in the 2025-26 season.

No team in the Premier League has squandered more points after taking the lead than Newcastle, who would remarkably still be in the title race had they maintained their advantages in all those matches, yet Howe’s squad finds itself languishing in a mediocre 13th place in the league.

This season, Newcastle has not only dropped more points from winning situations than any other team but also has the fewest points gained after trailing – just three – while conceding 20 goals in the last 15 minutes of match play, which is unprecedented.

However, gathering four points from the last two outings is an improvement compared to their collection in the five previous top-flight matches, and strikingly, Howe’s team has scored at least twice in 13 of their 18 Premier League home games in 2025-26, including four of the last six.

Without a goal in their last two fixtures, a West Ham side may benefit from adopting Newcastle’s attacking approach, but Nuno Espirito Santo’s squad could feel understandably disappointed that their scoring drought persisted against league leaders Arsenal last week.

A deflected attempt from Leandro Trossard made the difference in a slender 1-0 victory for the Gunners, but VAR once again sparked controversy late in the game as Callum Wilson’s goal was disallowed for a foul committed by Pablo on David Raya.

The Arsenal keeper was also being held by Jean-Clair Todibo, and while there was a consensus among players, analysts, and referees that Raya was fouled, the discussions post-match highlighted concerns about consistency and the ‘clear and obvious’ standard in technology.

This VAR decision could have far-reaching implications for both the title race and the relegation battle, as the Hammers, currently 18th, find themselves two points behind Tottenham Hotspur and must secure a win on Sunday to maintain any hopes of finishing 17th on the final day.

The outlook is concerning for the Hammers, having gone three Premier League away games without scoring and potentially facing their fourth match without finding the net for the first time since May 2015 – notably, the final match of that sequence was at Newcastle.

Conversely, the Hammers managed a 2-0 victory at St James’ Park in this fixture last season and also defeated the Magpies 3-1 at home in November, putting them on the brink of achieving just their third Premier League double over their opponents.

Team News

Newcastle made headlines recently with Anthony Gordon’s continued exclusion from the starting XI, and Howe’s remarks about “looking at the future” indicate that the winger – who has allegedly reached a verbal agreement with Bayern Munich – will again be on the bench.

That said, Barnes is likely to replace Jacob Murphy after scoring a goal as a substitute against Forest, marking his 16th goal of the season across all competitions and his 21st direct contribution for 2025-26.

Lewis Miley (calf), Emil Krafth (knee), Tino Livramento (groin), and Fabian Schar (ankle) remain sidelined, while Howe has no new injury worries from gameweek 36.

Similarly, West Ham is expected to field a nearly identical squad for this penultimate matchday, but winger Adama Traore is uncertain after missing the defeat against Arsenal due to a quadriceps injury.

Santo’s switch to a 3-4-2-1 formation almost bore fruit against the league leaders, suggesting a similar approach could be on the cards, with the only significant selection dilemma for the manager presenting itself in the attack.

Although Wilson’s celebrations last weekend were ultimately in vain, the former Newcastle player has found the net against one of his old clubs this season, scoring twice against Bournemouth back in November.

Only two players have ever scored twice against two former clubs in one Premier League season – Chris Wood x Newcastle and Burnley and Nicolas Anelka x Arsenal and Manchester City – yet Wilson is likely to miss out to Taty Castellanos in this scenario.

Newcastle United probable starting XI:

Pope; Hall, Thiaw, Botman, Burn; Tonali, Guimaraes; Barnes, Ramsey, Joelinton; Osula

West Ham United probable starting XI:

Hermansen; Todibo, Disasi, Mavropanos; Wan-Bissaka, Soucek, Fernandes, Diouf; Bowen, Summerville; Castellanos

In each of Newcastle’s last nine matches held at St James’ Park, both teams have managed to score, with the home crowd now simply hoping for the final whistle to end this forgettable season.

The increasingly desperate side of the Irons could therefore end their scoring drought on Sunday, but a win may still be unattainable for the low-scoring visitors, who would then need to rely on Chelsea for favorable results on Tuesday night.