Paul Merson is struggling to pick a winner between Brighton and Newcastle United this weekend.
Eddie Howe’s side are back in Premier League action after the international break, attempting to make it three wins on the bounce in all competitions after beating USG and Nottingham Forest.
It will be a tough game for Newcastle United, whose record at the Amex Stadium is not great. To make matters worse, Lewis Hall is injured.
However, Jacob Ramsey should be available after his ankle problem, while Anthony Gordon and Nick Woltemade will be full of confidence after scoring for England and Germany respectively.
As for Brighton, they head into the game with an identical Premier League record to Newcastle. Fabian Hurzeler’s team have picked up nine points from their opening seven games, and are expected to add another to their tally against the Magpies on Saturday.
Paul Merson says Brighton vs Newcastle United will be a draw
That is according to Paul Merson, who has given his verdict on what the score will be when Brighton face Newcastle United this weekend.
The former Arsenal forward has told Sportskeeda that he thinks it will be a draw, while also praising Woltemade for his start to life at St James’ Park since becoming Newcastle’s most expensive signing.
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“Brighton have turned a corner now,” he said.
“I would say Newcastle are also starting to find a bit of rhythm. I thought Arsenal destroyed Newcastle even though it was just 2-1. But they have bounced back quite well after that loss, scoring six goals and conceding none in the next two games since then.
“Nick Woltemade has done really well at Newcastle. It was an absolutely unbelievable penalty from him against Forest last time out. If you put the ball in the box, he will score goals. It’s as simple as that. Woltemade’s a big lad, a real handful and he couldn’t have started any better in my opinion. When you go to a club like Newcastle, you have to start well and he has settled in quicker than snow!
“This will be a decent game to watch because Brighton have managed to get some results in really difficult games recently. I feel these two teams are very similar to each other. So it’s tough to pick a clear winner here.”
Merson’s prediction: Brighton 2 Newcastle United 2.
Harvey Barnes challenges Yankuba Minteh for the ball during Brighton vs Newcastle United.
Photo by GLYN KIRK/AFP via Getty Images
The last time Newcastle United beat Brighton away
History is not on Newcastle United’s side ahead of Saturday’s game at the Amex Stadium.
Since the Seagulls started playing there, they have only suffered defeat to Newcastle once. That was in the Championship, when Rafa Benitez’s title chasers came from behind in dramatic fashion to secure a key victory in the race for promotion.
Mo Diame scored the flukiest goal ever on that night, before Ayoze Perez bagged the winner in February 2017.
Since then, the Magpies have lost three times and drawn five at the Amex.
History is on Brighton’s side, with Hurzeler beating Howe twice last season, including a dramatic FA Cup tie at St James’ Park.
Newcastle United vs Brighton head to head record
Newcastle win 11
Brighton win 15
Draw 11
Newcastle will be out for revenge, as they look to pick up where they left off before the international break.