Newcastle will play the German Side Bayer Leverkusen at their home ground on Saturday in another pre-season friendly match before the Premier League kicks off next week.
Newcastle vs Bayer Leverkusen – Match preview and team news
- Date: Saturday, 15th August.
- Kick-off: 3pm BST.
- Venue: St. James’ Park, Newcastle.
Newcastle team news
Newcastle United head into their next pre-season fixture under new manager Matthias Jaissle with a mix of injury boosts and setbacks.
The Magpies are managing the return of Fabian Schär and Lewis Miley, who are both nearing full fitness following groin and fibula injuries and could feature for limited minutes today.
However, Tino Livramento remains sidelined with a severe calf and knee ligament injury, undergoing rehabilitation in the United States and ruling him out of the upcoming Premier League opener.
Left-back Lewis Hall is a late fitness doubt due to a minor knock, leaving Dylan Charlton on standby to start.
In attack, summer signing Bazoumana Touré is expected to start on the left wing, while Anthony Elanga has recovered from a recent injury scare to occupy the right flank.
This fixture serves as a crucial integration period following the high-profile summer departures of Anthony Gordon and Bruno Guimarães.
Bayer Leverkusen team news
Bayer Leverkusen approach this Tyneside friendly adjusting to life under new head coach Carles Martínez Novell while balancing several squad absences.
Midfielder Robert Andrich will miss the trip to England entirely; despite scans clearing him of serious structural damage after an injury against Sevilla, he remains on an isolated individual training program.
Youngster Montrell Culbreath is also ruled out following a knock in that same Sevilla fixture, and forward Eliesse Ben Seghir remains unavailable due to a lingering hamstring issue.
On a positive note, Nathan Tella and Axel Tape have returned to full training and are available for selection after missing recent pre-season matches.
Key figures Victor Boniface and Aleix García, who started on the bench during the recent friendly defeat against Nottingham Forest, are expected to feature heavily at St James’ Park to build vital match sharpness ahead of the new Bundesliga campaign.
Form
Newcastle
Newcastle United have endured an inconsistent pre-season campaign, resulting in a 40% win rate over their last five games. The Magpies secured victories against Darlington (3-0) and Valencia (2-1), but struggled with structural changes under Matthias Jaissle. They suffered a heavy 4-1 defeat to Bristol City and enter today’s fixture fresh off a disappointing 3-1 loss against Everton, highlighting defensive vulnerabilities and finishing inefficiencies.
Bayer Leverkusen
Bayer Leverkusen have shown stellar summer form, winning five of their six pre-season matches while racking up 19 goals. Under Carles Martínez Novell, they dominated opponents with victories over Sevilla (2-1) and Rot-Weiss Essen (3-0). Their perfect run was only recently snapped on Wednesday by a narrow 2-1 defeat to Nottingham Forest, where Patrik Schick continued his hot streak by scoring his fourth goal in three games.
Predicted lineups
Newcastle: Hornicek; Shahar, Thiaw, Botman, Charlton; Bamba, Joelinton; Elanga, Wissa, Toure; Osula
Bayer Leverkusen: Blaswich; Vazquez, Bade, Belocian, Gutierrez; Fernandez, Garcia; Poku, Maza, Terrier; Boniface
How to watch Newcastle vs Bayer Leverkusen?
DAZN UK is providing a live video stream of the pre-season fixture for DAZN subscribers in the United Kingdom.