Toon Face Mourinho & Benfica at SJP

Newcastle head into this fixture with our momentum dented after losing 2-1 at Brighton.

As Lochinvar pointed out on the blog yesterday, a win on Saturday would have taken us to within three points of Liverpool. A win tomorrow night would keep us well on course in the CL after that cracking 4-0 win at USG. Lose, and we'll be on the back foot.

Will Eddie rotate... and if so... who?

Eddie rarely comes in from criticism but playing Jo and Bruno after their energy sapping time in the air on international duty, along with Tonali, Gordon and Woltemade, definitely impacted the performance at Brighton.

Woltemade apart, with his superb goal, none of the other four were on top form.

And the fact, is other than the back four, and at RW, the rest of the team has remained virtually unchanged in every game bar Bradford in the LC. Add in the internationals and travelling and it's no surprise that some players were fatigued and below par.

That was especially true in midfield with our engine room not firing on all cylinders.

Injuries have also robbed us of Tino and Hall and the lack of pace of Tripps and Burn was exposed by Brighton and especially by Minteh. More food for thought for Eddie.

So, will Eddie rotate, and if so, who? Tell us your opinions.

After two opening defeats Benfica need to go for a win

A third defeat would make qualifying for the next stage slim to zero, so Mourinho has to go for the win. That could work in our favour.

Mourinho typically sets his teams up to contain and hit the oppo on the break but he might just be more adventurous in this game. Either way, if the Toon score first Benfica will have to go for it and that could open up the game to our advantage.

We've previously played Benfica three times with two defeats and a draw being the results.

I think we'll break the win duck this time and I'm sticking my neck out and going for a 3-1 win.

Comments welcome.

PS. Eddie's Bingo will be a real challenge for this game.

Enter your prediction on the Bingo thread and keep other game comments on this one.

Next Post: Eddie's Benfica Bingo

Last Post: Brighton Hoodoo Continues