New managers, new beginnings

Newcastle United and Liverpool begin the new Premier League season at St James' Park on Sunday, with both clubs starting a new era under fresh management. Matthias Jaissle takes charge of Newcastle for the first time in a competitive fixture, while Andoni Iraola leads Liverpool into battle at the start of his tenure on Merseyside.

The match kicks off at 4:30 p.m. ET (9:30 p.m. BST) at St James' Park, with Stuart Attwell as referee and James Bell on VAR. The teams' meeting comes just over a year after Liverpool won at the same venue with a 100th-minute goal from Rio Ngumoha, while the Reds claimed a 4-1 victory at Anfield in the reverse fixture.

Injury-hit build-up for both sides

Newcastle will be without midfielder Joelinton for the opening weeks of the season after he suffered a groin injury. Jaissle confirmed the news, saying the Brazilian was “for sure out for a couple of weeks,” though he declined to go into further detail, adding that specialists would be involved in his recovery.

Tino Livramento has also been ruled out after sustaining a training-ground injury in the United States during pre-season. Jaissle said it was “for sure, too early” for the full-back to return, despite Livramento completing one partial training session. Joe Willock is a doubt with a groin injury sustained in the friendly against Strasbourg, while Dan Burn is not in the squad after an ankle injury that could keep him out for up to six weeks, as reported by some outlets.

Liverpool travel north with several long-term absentees. Conor Bradley, Hugo Ekitike and Giovanni Leoni continue to miss out after suffering serious injuries last season. Bradley is not expected to return until 2027, while Ekitike is projected to be sidelined for several months. Leoni suffered an ACL injury last September and could face a year out. Joe Gomez is also out until next month with a muscle injury; Iraola said in pre-season that it would be “impossible” for the defender to return for the start of the campaign.

Team news and predicted lineups

Iraola made his intentions clear by naming an unchanged starting XI from the side that beat Como 2-0 in their final friendly. Jeremy Jacquet comes into the lineup for his competitive debut, partnering Virgil van Dijk in central defence. Jeremie Frimpong and Milos Kerkez start at full-back, with Dominik Szoboszlai and Ryan Gravenberch preferred over Alexis Mac Allister in midfield. Rio Ngumoha, who scored the dramatic late winner in this fixture 12 months ago, starts on the right wing, with Florian Wirtz and Cody Gakpo supporting striker Alexander Isak. Federico Chiesa and Harvey Elliott are among those not in the matchday squad, while youngsters Trey Nyoni, James McConnell and Lewis Koumas are on the bench.

Newcastle's lineup under Jaissle includes three new signings, with Lukas Hornicek in goal. The defence is marshalled by the experience of Malick Thiaw and Sven Botman, while Amar Dedic makes his full debut at right-back. Lewis Hall completes the back four. Aladji Bamba and Jacob Ramsey start in midfield, with Sean Steur also in the side. Anthony Elanga, Yoane Wissa and Harvey Barnes support striker William Osula, who starts ahead of Nick Woltemade. Nick Pope is not in the squad amid ongoing speculation about his future.

A changing of the guard at Anfield

Sunday's match represents a significant moment for Liverpool, who begin a season without any of Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane or Roberto Firmino in the squad for the first time since 2015. Salah, who scored 10 goals on opening matchdays during his time at the club — a Premier League record — now plays for Trabzonspor. The trio scored 488 goals between them for the Reds, with Salah contributing 257, Mane 120 and Firmino 111.

With Salah's departure, Cody Gakpo is now the top scorer in Liverpool's current squad with 50 goals. The club invested heavily last summer, signing Isak, Wirtz and Hugo Ekitike for a combined £320 million. Ekitike impressed before rupturing his Achilles in April, and is expected to be available for the second half of the season.

Captain Van Dijk has called for a squad capable of competing on all fronts. "We need a squad that is able to compete on all four fronts," he said this week, adding, "Let's see what these last couple of weeks of the transfer window brings and then let's go for it."

Liverpool have yet to make a statement signing this summer, though reports suggest growing confidence that a deal for Paris Saint-Germain winger Bradley Barcola could be struck. PSG are said to value Barcola at around £145 million, while Liverpool are hoping to negotiate closer to £100 million. The Reds explored a move last summer but chose not to pursue it to avoid blocking Rio Ngumoha's pathway. Liverpool have also seen a £50 million bid rejected for Yan Bukamba, and they remain interested in other targets.

Prediction

With both teams missing key players and still adjusting to new managers, the match could go either way. While Liverpool's attacking quality should give them the edge, Newcastle's home crowd could make the difference. The prediction from Sports Illustrated is a 2-2 draw, while Sports Mole has tipped Liverpool to win 2-1.