“I didn’t recognise Newcastle” – Chris Sutton offers Toon verdict & Brentford prediction
Chris Sutton has been discussing Newcastle United’s trip to Brentford this Sunday and our continued struggles away from home.
The BBC pundit admits he “didn’t recognise Newcastle” when watching our 3-1 defeat at West Ham last weekend, where we looked lethargic off the ball, lacked quality on it and barely tested their goalkeeper, as Sutton points out.
He’s concerned not only by our lack of goals and thinks we’ll struggle to break down a Brentford side who have been tough to beat at home this season, beating Aston Villa, Man Utd and Liverpool, drawing with Chelsea and losing narrowly (1-0) to Man City.
With all of that in mind, Sutton is predicting a stalemate here and no end to our run without a league win on the road.
Speaking to BBC Sport in his latest prediction piece, Sutton said: “I didn’t recognise Newcastle when I watched them lose at West Ham last weekend.
“They were better when they beat Athletic Club at St James’ Park in the Champions League in midweek, but their away form – or lack of it – must be a concern for boss Eddie Howe.
“They are still solid defensively most of the time but scoring goals seems a particular problem for them when they are on the road. I can see why from watching that West Ham game because they just did not work the goalkeeper enough.
“The way Brentford play under Keith Andrews, he is happy to set them up to play on the counter-attack even when they are at home, and I can see Newcastle struggling to break them down too.
“I know I have gone for a few draws already this week, but this game smells of another one to me.”
Sutton’s prediction: Brentford 0-0 Newcastle