Newcastle United - Manchester City: Time for Sterling to shine

Newcastle United host Manchester City at St James' Park early on Saturday.

Newcastle

The Magpies are off to a decent start to the season, residing at 14:th place with 15 points from 13 games. Nevertheless, the performance data under Steve Bruce's reign is rather bleak.

Statistics

Only 1 team have created fewer shots than Newcastle so far in the Premier League this season, Newcastle creating on average 10.38 shots per game. Only 2 teams have created fewer shots on target than Newcastle so far in the Premier League this season, Newcastle creating on average 3.46 shots on target per game.
Only 5 teams have conceded more shots than Newcastle so far in the Premier League this season, Newcastle conceding on average 14.85 shots per game. Only 7 teams have conceded more shots on target than Newcastle so far in the Premier League this season, Newcastle conceding on average 5.00 shots on target per game.

Looking at the last 4 games - against Wolverhampton, West Ham, Bournemouth and Aston Villa - Newcastle have conceded 15.50 shots and 5.50 shots on target per game. That's above the league average of 13.00 and 4.51 respectively, and one of the worst defensive numbers in the league right now.
Against the quick Aston Villa attack on Monday evening, Newcastle's defensive marking looked quite sloppy and the Newcastle defenders made a rather slow and clumsy impression sometimes.

Manchester City

Pep Guardiola's men find themselves in the unfamiliar 3rd spot, 9 points behind league leaders Liverpool. Qualifying for the Champions League knockout stage in mid-week, the Sportcity club can focus wholeheartedly on the domestic league for a couple of weeks.

Statistics

No other team have created more shots than Manchester City so far in the Premier League this season, Manchester City creating on average 21.08 shots per game. No other team have created more shots on target than Manchester City so far in the Premier League this season, the Sky Blues creating on average 6.92 shots on target per game.
No other team have conceded fewer shots than Manchester City so far in the Premier League this season, Manchester City conceding on average 7.62 shots per game. 5 teams have conceded fewer shots on target than Manchester City so far in the Premier League this season, Manchester City conceding on average 3.69 shots on target per game.

Looking at the last 4 games, Manchester City have created on average 21.0 shots and 5.00 shots on target per game - above the league average of 13.00 and 4.51 respectively and that include games against Liverpool and Chelsea, two of the best defensive teams in the league.

Sergio Agüero is the one player creating the most shots in Manchester City, closely followed by Raheem Sterling. Agüero has created on average 3.5 shots per game (2.8 from within the penalty area) and Sterling has created on average 3.1 shots per game (2.6 from within the penalty area).
Sergio Agüero will miss the game on Saturday and in the Argentinean's absence, it's plausible that Sterling will play an even greater part in the away team's onset.

Check out more Premier League stats here!

Conclusion & Betting Tips

Newcastle is one of the teams conceding the most shots and shots on target in the Premier League, the defense looking somewhat haphazard when facing high-speed teams.
Manchester City is the team creating the most shots and shots on target in the Premier League, Raheem Sterling producing the best attacking numbers.
My First Betting Tip is Raheem Sterling to Score.
Stake at 3/10 units.
My Second Betting Tip is Raheem Sterling to Score at least 2 goals.
Stake at 1/10 units.

Check out more odds on Newcastle United - Manchester City here!