Date: Saturday 23rd AugustCompetition: Premier leagueVenue: Villa ParkKick-Off: 12:45 Head-to-head League Record: Aston Villa wins 7, Newcastle wins 8, draws 6. The opening game of the Premier League weekend pits Paul Lambert's Villains against Alan Pardew's Magpies at 12.45pm, with the latter looking to recover from their opening day loss to Man City. Villa meanwhile won away at Stoke, thanks to an imperious defensive performance by new signings Aly Cissokho, Philippe Senderos and key man Ron Vlaar. If Newcastle want to come away happy it is that back line that will have to be broken down. With Siem De Jong back in the squad and in contention for his debut, goals might come easier, but Newcastle still look a little light up front. At the tail end of last season Newcastle lost five straight away games, and Pardew will be looking to turn that tide. The good news in that respect is that Paul Lambert's home record in the past two years has been poor, and that Newcastle have won on their last two visits to Villa Park and have done some great work in the transfer market so far. Sadly for Lambert, Villa have scored just one goal in six of their last seven Premier League games against the Magpies. Team News Siem De Jong is back to fitness, but Cheick Tiote is out with a mysterious injury - amidst talk of a move to Russia - and Papiss Cisse is still weeks away from a return. Meanwhile defenders Ryan Taylor, Mapou Yanga-Mbwia, Curtis Good are all out with Davide Santon now ruled out until November. Hatem Ben Arfa remains out in the cold, but loan striker Facundo Ferreyra played for the reserves on Monday and scored, and should be on the bench. For Villa, new signings Joe Cole and Carlos Sanchez should see their debuts against Newcastle after missing out last week at Villa Park on Saturday. Jores Okore is back, but might find it hard to force his way into the team after recovering from the cruciate knee ligament injury that ruled him out last September just four appearances into his Villa career. Strikers Christian Benteke (Achilles) and Libor Kozak (broken leg) are both still out. SourceLikely Line-Ups Aston Villa: Guzan; Hutton, Vlaar, Senderos, Cissokho; N'Zogbia, Westwood; Delph, Richardson, Weimann; Agbonlahor. Newcastle: Krul; Janmaat, Coloccini, Williamson, Dummett; Colback, Anita; Sissoko, De Jong, Cabella; Riviere. Who do you think will win? Share your thoughts below in the comments thread.
