The Toon Tribune: Can Newcastle outwit the Foxes?

On Sunday, Newcastle United face a trip to Leicester City in their next Premier League fixture, with the Magpies hoping for a repeat of their recent success at the King Power Stadium.

Newcastle have a promising recent record away at the East Midlands club, emerging victorious on both of their last two trips, with both victories holding great significance. 

Last season United came away with a 1-0 victory courtesy of Ayoze Perez’s superb first-half header, following tidy footwork from Matt Ritchie on the left-hand side. The Magpies defended firmly throughout and took their chance when it mattered, with the Foxes struggling to break Newcastle down. 

This win epitomised the nature of former manager Rafael Benitez in what was a memorable night for the 3,000+ travelling supporters who were magnificent throughout and kept on singing over half an hour after the full-time whistle was blown. The result was key in solidifying Newcastle’s position in the Premier League

In the 2017/18 season, Perez again netted the winner in a 2-1 win. The Spaniard’s sublime lob over Kasper Schmeichel doubled United’s lead after Jonjo Shelvey’s first-half strike gave Newcastle the advantage. Leicester halved the deficit in the latter stages of the game through Jamie Vardy, however the Magpies held on to take them to 38 points and within touching distance of guaranteed safety. 

In the match, United’s fighting nature was summed up by a notable spell of play; there was a succession of 50-50 challenged in which the Magpies won the ball on every occasion. Each challenge was met by a roar from the travelling supporters, who celebrated every tackle as if it was a goal. 

The Toon will hope to continue their mini streak at the King Power Stadium, while they are also in need of points having won only once this season. Ironically, Ayoze Perez - the player who scored the winner on their last trips - now plays for Leicester. The United backline will need to keep Perez quiet to prevent any sort of Leicester success. 

A sold-out away end is again imminent, with the Toon Army hoping for a happy trip home from the East Midlands for a third successive season.