'Will be fine': Paul Merson has predicted who he thinks will win on Sunday - NUFC or Chelsea

Newcastle United travel to London this weekend for a 2pm Kick-off on Sunday at Stamford Bridge as they take on Chelsea for the first game of two against the Blues.

Sunday's Premier League clash will be closely followed by the Carabao Cup game at St James' Park on Wednesday.

Given Chelsea's squad of 8000 players we expect that Sunday and Wednesday's starting XIs will be very different with Enzo Maresca more likely to field a stronger lineup on Sunday in the Premier League.

Two points separate the two teams in the League table with Chelsea on 14 and Newcastle stuck on 12 after their defeat to Brighton at the weekend.

Both sides really need a win to keep their seasons on track. Newcastle probably more so as the fanbase is starting to crack slightly owing to some bad performances and a seeming inability to score from open play.

Unfortunately, Paul Merson isn't expecting that the Magpies will have a good time on Sunday as he predicted the score for Sportskeeda.

“I just hope Chelsea don’t become flat track bullies. They failed to win against City and Liverpool. Well, you could say they did play well at Anfield last weekend but they ended up losing even then! Cole Palmer never touched the ball in that game. This is the problem Chelsea are going to have now, teams will stop Palmer and they have to find solutions.

“Chelsea will be fine against teams like Newcastle, who blow hot and cold all the time. Enzo Maresca’s men need a win quickly because they’ve dropped outside the top four now. If Aston Villa win this weekend and Chelsea don’t get three points against Newcastle, that widens the gap further.

“I liked it when Romeo Lavia and Moises Caicedo played together against Liverpool because it kept Chelsea defensively solid. But then they couldn’t get the ball out to Palmer. Enzo Fernandez is definitely a better passer of the ball and can do that more often compared to the other two. And in all honesty, if Palmer doesn’t touch the ball, Chelsea aren’t winning many football matches!”

"Merson’s prediction: Chelsea 3 Newcastle 1"

Hardly an inspiring write up from the former Arsenal man. Hopefully the lads can go out there and prove him very, very wrong.

We'd happily take a 1-0 win at Stamford Bridge on Sunday followed by a hammering on home turf on Wednesday to continue on in the Carabao Cup.

I wonder if Merson thinks we're going to get a penalty on Sunday. Otherwise, how else are we going to score?