Newcastle United have already ensured that they will play European football in some form in the 2025/26 campaign after they won the League Cup before the international break.
The Magpies beat Liverpool 2-1 at Wembley in the final last month and that victory secured them a place in the Conference League, as well as their first piece of silverware in 70 years.
Eddie Howe’s side can move up in the European pecking order before the end of the current campaign, though, as they compete for a place in the Europa League or the Champions League by finishing higher up in their domestic division.
The Magpies are currently sixth in the Premier League table and sit two points behind Chelsea in fourth place, with ten matches left to be played and one game in hand over the two teams above them.
Newcastle can take another step towards a top four finish in the division this evening when they welcome Brentford to St. James’ Park, with the chance to move above Chelsea – who do not play until Thursday – with a win.
Despite flying down to South America to play for Brazil during the international break and racking up plenty of miles, Bruno Guimaraes should be one of the first names on the teammsheet against the Bees.
Why Bruno Guimaraes is a guaranteed starter for Newcastle
The Brazil international, who played one game for his country – against Colombia – at the end of last month, has started all 28 of his appearances in the Premier League for the Magpies this season.
In fact, Guimaraes has started all 97 of his Premier League games for the club since the start of the 2022/23 campaign, having started 11 of his 17 outings in the second half of the 2021/22 season after joining from Lyon.
This shows that the Brazilian maestro, ignoring the very early stage of his career in England, starts whenever he is available and that is why the midfielder should be in the starting line-up this evening.
Assists
0.22
Top 11%
Expected Assisted Goals
0.19
Top 18%
Passes into final third
5.05
Top 19%
Passes into penalty area
1.97
Top 8%
Progressive passes
7.32
Top 8%
Key passes
1.32
Top 32%
Shot-creating actions
3.38
Top 34%
As you can see in the table above, Guimaraes has been among the best passers in the Premier League as a midfielder this term, ranking highly among his positional peers in a host of key passing and creative metrics.
One Magpies player who does not rank as favourably in those metrics, however, is Italy international Sandro Tonali, who has had an up-and-down time at St. James’ Park.
Why Sandro Tonali can be a liability in possession
The former AC Milan star is, essentially, in his first full season on Tyneside after returning from his ban and has started 18 of his 26 appearances in the Premier League this term.
Tonali offers plenty of grit and hard work in the middle of the park, winning 53% of his duels and making 2.4 tackles and interceptions per game, but his use of the ball has left a bit to be desired.
The Italian ace ranks within the bottom 49% or lower of midfielders in the Premier League for pass accuracy (83%), progressive passes per 90 (4.11), Expected Assisted Goals per 90 (0.03), and shot-creating actions per 90 (2.19).
This suggests that Tonali has struggled with the ball at his feet in the top-flight this season, by failing to find his teammates at an efficient rate without creating much for the team.
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The 24-year-old battler played the full 90 minutes against Liverpool in the League Cup final and lost six of his seven duels, whilst completing just 67% of his attempted passes.
In front of their home support this evening, Newcastle may want more quality in possession to put themselves on the front foot against Brentford and that is why Tonali should be ruthlessly axed from the starting line-up by Howe, who should replace him by finally unleashing Lewis Miley from the start.
Why Lewis Miley should finally be unleashed
The 18-year-old dynamo has had an injury-disrupted campaign, missing nine matches with a foot injury, and has only started one of his eight appearances in the Premier League this term.
Miley did, however, start 14 of his 17 outings in the division last season, in what was his breakthrough year at senior level, and that showed that he does have the capability to play week-in-week-out as a starter in the top-flight.
The teenage sensation’s only start in the Premier League so far this term came in a 4-3 win over Nottingham Forest back in February, as he started alongside Guimaraes and Joe Willock.
Minutes
90
Goals
1
Pass accuracy
81%
Key passes
1
Duels won
6/11
Tackles + interceptions
4
Dribbled past
0x
As you can see in the table above, the England U19 international made the most of his chance to impress, by scoring a goal and catching the eye with his defensive work.
Miley, as shown in the highlights above, scored Newcastle’s first goal in the match with a terrific touch and finish inside the box to make it 1-1, as he showcased his quality and composure in the opposition’s third.
The Magpies academy graduate has not played enough minutes to qualify for ranking this season, but he did rank within the top 15% of midfielders in the Premier League last term for assists (0.22) per 90 – with three assists in 14 starts.
Miley, who was described as “very special” by journalist Mark Carruthers, is a midfield player with the potential to offer a threat at the top end of the pitch with his goalscoring touch, as shown in his only start this season in the league, as well as his creative ability, as evidenced by his form last term.
This means that the 18-year-old ace could be the perfect player to come in and partner Guimaraes in midfield, as they both have on-ball qualities that Tonali has failed to show consistently during his time on the pitch this season.
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It is now down to Howe to ruthlessly ditch the Italy international from the starting line-up in order to finally unleash Miley alongside Guimaraes, as the pair could be fun to watch with their respective qualities in possession.