West Ham United v Newcastle United
Premier League, London Stadium, Wednesday 5 April 2023, 8pm BST
West Ham United welcome Newcastle United to London Stadium in the Premier League on Wednesday evening.
The fixture was originally scheduled to be played in September 2022, but was postponed and rearranged following the passing of HM Queen Elizabeth II.
The Hammers are unbeaten at home this calendar year, having taken eleven points from Premier League wins over Everton, Nottingham Forest and Southampton and draws with Chelsea and Aston Villa, and beaten AEK Larnaca in the UEFA Europa Conference League round of 16.
Cup draws have seen the Irons play nine away games since the turn of the year, in contrast, and David Moyes' side will be on the road again twice next week, to Fulham on Saturday and KAA Gent in the UECL quarter-finals next Thursday.
A win for West Ham over the Magpies would take the Londoners up to 12th in the table - the highest position the Hammers would have occupied since late October.
Newcastle are having a fine season, having finished as runners-up in the EFL Cup and launched a sustained challenge for European qualification under Eddie Howe.
The Magpies kick-off Wednesday evening in third place in the Premier League table, ahead of Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United on goal difference.
Tickets...
Tickets for this sold out game are 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...
Some northbound Greater Anglia services into Essex after the final whistle will be terminating further south than normal.
The 23.02 London Liverpool Street to Ipswich service will terminate at Colchester. Passengers for Manningtree and Ipswich should change at Colchester.
The 23.48 London Liverpool Street to Colchester services will be replaced by a bus service between Witham and Colchester.
The 00.18 and 00.46 London Liverpool Street to Colchester services will be replaced by a bus service between Witham and Colchester.
Service alterations are also planned on c2c.
Due to Network Rail undertaking track maintenance work between Barking and London Fenchurch Street from 20.40, services will be diverted to start from/terminate at London Liverpool Street.
From 22.45, the engineering work will extend out to Upminster, meaning the last through service will be the 22.25 from Liverpool Street-Shoeburyness. After this time, these services will be diverted via an alternative route and will call additionally at Grays. A shuttle service will run between Grays-Upminster and Upminster-Pitsea via Laindon.
c2c tickets will be accepted on London Underground District line services between Tower Hill and Barking, and Jubilee line or Docklands Light Railway services between West Ham and Stratford.
On London Overground, the last westbound train from Stratford will be at 23.44 (to Richmond).
How to Follow...
Wednesday's game will be broadcast live by Sky Sports in the UK, and will be shown across the world by the Premier League's international broadcast partners.
You can listen to commentary in the UK on talkSPORT and BBC Radio London 94.9FM and worldwide on whufc.com and our official app.
You can also 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.
Official Programme…
West Ham United's 116-page Official Programme for Wednesday's Premier League fixture is available to order online now for just £4, plus £1.49 postage and packaging*.
Copies will be sent via first-class post. Full-season subscriptions are also available, including all Premier League, FA Cup and EFL Cup home issues, from just £119, from the Club's official West Ham Programmes shop.
Team News...
West Ham United manager David Moyes has no known fresh injury concerns going into Wednesday's game. Gianluca Scamacca missed Sunday's win over Southampton with a sore knee.
Newcastle United boss Eddie Howe will be without Miguel Almirón (thigh) and Emil Krafth (ACL), while Joe Willock felt his hamstring during Sunday's win over Manchester United. Ryan Fraser is not involved in the first team at present.
Opposition...
It was Newcastle United's intention to challenge the 'elite' this season. And while the Magpies may have thought that a long-term goal ahead of 2022/23, Eddie Howe's side may already be close to disrupting the status quo just 18 months into his tenure.
The Carabao Cup runners-up head to east London hoping to finish in the top four come May. You have to say that they are in the mix as the Premier League approaches its conclusion. UEFA Champions League qualification is the target on Tyneside.
What is clear is that the results in 2022/23 show a team that is on the up. Compared to the one that parted ways with Steve Bruce nearly 18 months ago, it is barely recognisable.
This season, under Howe, no side has lost fewer games than Newcastle. Their three league defeats in 2022/23 is a tally shared only with leaders Arsenal. The Gunners, Manchester City, Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United are the only sides to win more league matches than the Magpies’ 13.
As such, it has been a remarkable turnaround under the former AFC Bournemouth boss. Remember, when Howe arrived on Tyneside, Newcastle were 19th and winless. Expectations of what he should achieve were tempered. Instead, the opposite. Talk about a change of fortunes. It has been remarkable, really.
Obviously, the Magpies’ recruitment and new owners have contributed to the turnaround. Your defence will always improve when you bring in Kieran Trippier, Matt Targett and Dan Burn in one window. Bruno Guimarães’ arrival saw relegation talk disperse last year.
Add a busy summer window, when signings such as Alexander Isak, Sven Botman and Nick Pope added further quality and it was clear Newcastle were not here to mess around in Howe’s first full season at the helm. The addition of Anthony Gordon for £45m in January showed that European football was the minimum target. The top-four remains the aim.
The question now is whether or not the Magpies can get over the line. They are battling for that final UEFA Champions League spot alongside Manchester United, Liverpool, Tottenham Hotspur and Brighton & Hove Albion. For Newcastle fans, it has been a long time coming to be challenging at this end of the table. However, performances give confidence that the team is not too far from regularly challenging the so-called ‘big six’.
But, as the title of overachievers shifts to expectation, the pressure now intensifies. The club fell narrowly short of a first major domestic trophy since an FA Cup win in 1955, and they do not want this season to peter out. After a 2-0 defeat by Manchester United in the Carabao Cup final, Newcastle will hope narrow margins are not the difference between UEFA Champions League football come May.
Travelling to London Stadium then, Howe and company will be buoyed by recent wins over Wolverhampton Wanderers, Nottingham Forest and Manchester United. These points have pushed the Magpies back into third.
Further wins could bring history to Tyneside over the next month. And while fans may be surprised at the speed of the turnaround should they get there, there is a genuine feeling that Newcastle are ready to disrupt the status quo.
Previous Meetings...
West Ham United gained four points from their meetings with Newcastle United last season, 2021/22, having drawn 1-1 at London Stadium and triumphed 4-2 in the North East back on the opening day of the campaign.
The Hammers and Magpies also met on the opening weekend of the previous season, when second-half goals from Callum Wilson and Jeff Hendrick sent the Irons to a disappointing 2-0 defeat at London Stadium in September 2020.
Overall, the two sides have met 48 times in the Premier League since 1993/94. West Ham have won 14, Newcastle have won 22 and 12 have ended in draws.
In all competitions, our biggest ever win over Newcastle was the famous 8-1 First Division success achieved by the Boys of '86. Alvin Martin scored a hat-trick against three different goalkeepers, including England forward Peter Beardsley, at the Boleyn Ground on 21 April 1986.
Overall, the two clubs have met 140 times since February 1908, with the Magpies holding the all-time advantage with 57 wins to the Hammers’ 43, with 40 draws.
Match Officials...
Referee: Craig Pawson
Assistant Referees: Marc Perry & Scott Ledger
Fourth Official: Chris Kavanagh
VAR: David Coote
Assistant VAR: Derek Eaton
