West Ham United v Newcastle United
Premier League, London Stadium, Sunday 8 October 2023, 2pm BST
West Ham United return to Premier League action on Sunday with a home test against Newcastle United.
With each team competing in European competition in midweek, both sides will be eager to head into the October international break with another three points secured in the English top flight.
David Moyes’ Hammers beat SC Freiburg 2-1 on Thursday in UEFA Europa League Group A, leaving the Irons with six points from two games played in the competition. Sunday’s hosts sit seventh in the Premier League, on 13 points.
The Magpies, meanwhile, claimed an incredible 4-1 win at home to Paris Saint-Germain on Wednesday in the UEFA Champions League. Eddie Howe’s team are eighth in the Premier League, on 12 points, and have won their last three league matches.
Tickets…
Tickets for this sold out game are still available on the Ticket Exchange, with Season Ticket Holders who cannot attend this fixture relisting their seats for other supporters to buy. Click here to check availability or relist.
Travel…
TfL Jubilee and Central line services are scheduled to operate to Stratford with a good service on Sunday. The Docklands Light Railway is also anticipated to run as normal, with a good service.
However, the Elizabeth Line is due to be partially closed throughout Sunday, with no service being provided between Paddington and Shenfield or Abbey Wood. Replacement buses will be in operation between Stratford and Romford, and also between Shenfield and Newbury Park.
There are also partial closures on the London Overground. Throughout Sunday there will be no service between Upminster and Romford, and there will also be no service available between Stratford and either Shepherds Bush or Richmond until 12pm.
Partial closures are also planned on the Metropolitan, Piccadilly and Waterloo & City lines, and supporters who make use of these services are advised to check their journey before departure.
On c2c services, there are planned engineering works between Upminster and Barking on the Ockendon line. A shuttle service will run between Upminster and Grays, and passengers with a valid ticket can use district line services between Barking and Upminster.
Southeastern Railway have noted they will begin utilising an Autumn timetable from Sunday 8 October, which means some journeys will leave a few minutes earlier. Fans who make use of this service are advised to check beforehand.
Finally, on the Greater Anglia Railway, there are no trains between London Liverpool Street to Shenfield on Sunday due to the same track maintenance work that is affecting the Elizabeth Line. The route between London Liverpool Street and Chelmsford will also be closed all day Sunday, while the route between Stratford and Tottenham Hale will be unavailable until 11.30am.
How To Follow…
Our 2pm kick-off on Sunday has not been selected for broadcast and will therefore not be shown live in the UK, but will be shown across the world by the Premier League's international broadcast partners.
You can follow the action via our live blog on whufc.com and our app and across our social media channels. We will also have highlights and exclusive reaction for you after the final whistle across our website and social media.
Live audio commentary will be available in the UK on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra and worldwide on our official website and app.
Official Programme…
The 116-page publication is the largest in the Premier League and, at just £4 per issue, represents superb value for money for supporters wanting exclusive interviews, attention-grabbing opinions and eye-catching photographs, plus the regular news, columns and statistics and insightful content from across all areas of the Club.
Saturday's issue for the visit of Newcastle United features an in-depth interview and analysis of captain Kurt Zouma, features with Ben Johnson and Joseph Anang, a celebration of Black History Month, and supports the Premier League's No Room For Racism campaign.
With interviews with women's team star Viviane Asseyi and Academy forward Gideon Kodua, plus history, puzzles, statistics and the lowdown on Eddie Howe's Magpies, the Official Programme is packed full of content for you!
The Official Programme is the definitive Claret and Blue publication for West Ham fans and the latest issue can be ordered here.
Team News…
The Irons are without Aaron Cresswell still, as the experienced full-back continues his recovery from a hamstring injury sustained against FK TSC last month.
Michail Antonio (adductor) and Ben Johnson (groin) also missed Thursday's European tie in Freiburg, and it remains to be seen if any of the trio will recover in time for Sunday.
Newcastle will definitely be without Anthony Gordan, who is suspended for Sunday’s match after picking up his fifth yellow card of the season in last weekend’s 2-0 win over Burnley.
Brazilian Joelinton is also expected to be unavailable after going down injured in the same game, while summer signing Harvey Barnes has picked up a foot injury that Eddie Howes believes will keep the winger out until December.
Dutch defender Sven Botman (knee), midfielder Joe Willock (Achilles) and Emil Krafth (ACL) are also big doubts for the Magpies when the visit London Stadium on Sunday, but Callum Wilson could be available after missing a couple of matches due to a 'minor' injury.
Opposition…
Champions League football has returned to St James’ Park, and Newcastle United fans are loving every minute of it.
Eddie Howe took over a Newcastle team that seemed destined for relegation in the 2021/22 season and completely transformed the side’s possibilities, avoiding the drop that campaign before an incredible fourth-placed finish in the Premier League last season, qualifying the Magpies for Europe’s elite competition.
The wealth of the Saudi Arabian majority owners played a sizeable role, of course, but signings over Howe’s reign as manager have been thought-out and strategised.
The quality brought to the team by the likes of Kieran Trippier, Bruno Guimarães and Sven Botman has been added to this summer, with Newcastle completing big-money moves for Harvey Barnes of Leicester City, Tino Livramento from Southampton and, perhaps most surprisingly, Italian international midfielder Sandro Tonali from AC Milan.
An opening day 5-1 thumping of Aston Villa had Newcastle supporters in dreamland again, but three consecutive defeats – versus Manchester City, Liverpool and Brighton & Hove Albion – temporarily curtailed hopes for a repeat performance from last season.
However, three more league wins since, with eleven goals scored and none conceded against Brentford, Sheffield United and Burnley, has brought Newcastle back into the mix at the right end of the table.
Howe’s team are men in form and are now brushing shoulders in the big leagues.
Previous Meetings…
The Hammers and Newcastle have met an incredible 142 times; a run of games that started back in February 1908 when Bill Appleyard's double gave the Magpies a 2-0 victory over the Irons in the FA Cup second round.
Since then, most contests between the two sides have been played out in the top division of English football. Indeed, 50 of the 142 matches played between the two teams have taken place in the Premier League – a run that goes back to 1993 and is interrupted only by a Premier League Asia Trophy pre-season fixture in 2019.
West Ham and Newcastle both appear to go through spells of dominance in this particular fixture, and it is fair to say that Sunday’s visitors have enjoyed the upper hand in more recent outings.
The Magpies have won four of the last eight Premier League matches between the two sides, including a 5-1 defeat for the Irons at London Stadium last time out.
West Ham’s last win over Newcastle came on the opening day of the 2020/21 season when Aaron Cresswell, Saïd Benrahma, Tomáš Souček and Michail Antonio all scored in a 4-2 win at St James’ Park.
Match Officials…
Referee: Peter Bankes
Assistant Referees: Eddie Smart & Nick Greenhalgh
Fourth Official: Michael Salisbury
VAR: Andy Madley
Assistant VAR: Simon Long
Peter Bankes has been appointed as referee for the Hammers' Premier League clash with Newcastle United on Sunday.
The 41-year-old has already been in the man in the middle for one West Ham game this season, as he took the whistle for our 1-1 draw at AFC Bournemouth on the opening day of the campaign.
Bankes has been part of the Select Group 1 of match officials since the 2019/20 campaign, three seasons after being promoted to Select Group 2.
Last season saw Bankes officiate five West Ham United matches in the Premier League. He took charge of the 1-1 draw with Tottenham Hotspur at London Stadium in August 2022, before refereeing the draw with Southampton at St Mary’s Stadium in mid-October.
A third consecutive 1-1 draw followed at St James’ Park when Bankes oversaw the Hammers’ trip to face Newcastle in February, while he was also the referee for the 1-0 win over Manchester United and 3-1 victory against Leeds United in May.
His last outing this season was Tottenham Hotspur's 2-1 victory over Sheffield United in mid-September, when he awarded 12 yellow cards and one red, for the Blades' Oli McBurnie.
He will be assisted at London Stadium by Eddie Smart and Nick Greenhalgh, while Michael Salisbury will be the fourth official.
VAR duties will be fulfilled by Andy Madley, with Simon Long the assistant VAR.
