· 21 August 2025, 18:00
**Newcastle United host Liverpool at St James' Park on Monday night, live on Sky Sports - Kick-off is at 8 pm.**
Making everybody wait until Monday night for this one is borderline cruelty, given how hyped this game is going to be.
Newcastle versus Liverpool is always one of the best fixtures on the Premier League calendar in a regular season, but after a summer of fighting over Alexander Isak, there's an added layer of spice to this one.
TNT Sports started hyping it up as soon as the full-time whistle blew at Villa Park last Saturday, asking the Newcastle players what they expected the atmosphere to be like.
Who needs a striker when you have Big Dan Burn? (We do. We need a striker)
Paul Merson predicts a share of the spoils on Monday night
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Paul Merson mentioned it immediately in his score prediction for [Sportskeeda](https://www.sportskeeda.com/football/news-paul-merson-predicts-manchester-city-vs-tottenham-newcastle-vs-liverpool-premier-league-gw2-fixtures), where he was unable to separate the two sides.
> "Thanks to Alexander Isak, this has become the spiciest game of the season! It's a massive acid test for Liverpool at St James' Park. I was impressed with Newcastle against Villa last weekend. Sandro Tonali was different class and if they had a proper centre-forward, they would have won that game easily. I suppose that's why the fans are so angry with Isak, Newcastle are not a bad team anymore!"I fully understand Isak's feelings, but the circumstances at Newcastle have changed. They are in the Champions League now and they're not in a situation where they must offload him for £100 million to balance their books. This is an ambitious club and they want to keep their best players."But if you are Newcastle, you have to sort this out at the earliest. What if Isak decides he won't play for the club, if he isn't sold? They would have to keep paying him for doing nothing at least until January. So it's best to get rid of him and bring in someone else. He's not the first player to do it, happens every year! We have Yoane Wissa doing the same at Brentford. Isak is a bigger name and that's why it's making all the headlines here."It will be an insane atmosphere on Monday night, no doubt about it. This is a hard test for Liverpool against Newcastle's midfield. Liverpool made it an end-to-end game against Bournemouth because they knew it suits them. Even though they conceded twice in that game, they still scored four goals. But if Newcastle can keep things tight and be solid in midfield, which I think they will, it won't be easy for Liverpool."Arne Slot's men are always going to be a bit open on the right side because of Jeremie Frimpong's attacking nature. Teams are going to work out how to get around that side and that will be a worry for Liverpool. Harvey Barnes could enjoy a lot of freedom on that flank here. I think Anthony Gordon will once again start centrally, even though it doesn't suit him completely. Don't get me wrong, he's a quality player and has troubled Liverpool in the past. But I just think it's best when he comes inside from a wider position."I believe Newcastle can cause problems to Liverpool. This should be an entertaining watch, won't want to miss it for anything in the world!
>
> "**Prediction**: Newcastle United 2-2 Liverpool"
We'd take a 2-2 draw
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With no striker, going up against the Premier League champions, we'd absolutely snatch your hand off if you offered us a 2-2 draw ahead of the game. Goals and shared spoils sound like a good night to us.
If we had a striker on the pitch, we'd be more confident of a win. The St James' Park atmosphere is going to make life very difficult for Arne Slot's men.
Whatever the score, it's going to be one for the ages.