Newcastle United might have lost against Manchester City last time out in the Premier League, but Eddie Howe will be delighted with his side's application and will be confident of emulating last season's success and forging ahead with another prosperous year.
The Magpies qualified for the Champions League with a fourth-placed finish, and opened their 2023/24 account with an incisive 5-1 victory over Aston Villa at St. James' Park.
Howe's side did indeed lose 1-0 at the Etihad Stadium last week, but the performance was promising once again and now, returning to home turf, the Tyneside team await Liverpool, with Jurgen Klopp's side looking to reclaim the Champions League spot Newcastle have swiped.
What is the Newcastle team news vs Liverpool?
Ahead of this afternoon's anticipated tie, Howe said that he hopes for barrelling midfielder Joelinton to be available against the Reds despite suffering a knock against Manchester City.
The 45-year-old also revealed that while Joe Willock is "making good progress" as he recovers from a hamstring problem, the former Arsenal starlet is still not ready for match day consideration.
The club's versatile signing Lewis Hall, who completed a £35m move from Chelsea earlier this week (on an initial loan), could also make his debut for the club, though the teenage talent is lacking match fitness and is unlikely to start.
Harvey Barnes is yet to make his full debut for Newcastle after his £39m acquisition from relegated Leicester City last month, and having impressed through his two cameos thus far, might finally earn his chance.
Will Harvey Barnes start against Liverpool?
While Leicester suffered relegation from the Premier League last year, Barnes was one of the standout stars and posted 13 goals in the top flight and was hailed as a "livewire" by pundit Alan Hutton.
It was this clinical ability and directness that persuaded Howe to bolster his ranks with the dynamic ace, who offers a different kind of threat to the mercurial Allan Saint-Maximin, who joined Al Ahli for £23m in July.
Barnes' qualities were showcased most emphatically as he entered the fray in the 68th minute against Villa, replacing Anthony Gordon, and stamping his mark with a match-best Sofascore rating of 8.5, clinching a goal and assist and making two key passes.
The Chronicle's Lee Ryder remarked that the performance "justifies" Howe's decision to demand the transfer, and while he was benched once again against the Citizens, he completed 92% of his passes and unleashed a shot on target during his second appearance in black and white.
Against Liverpool, Newcastle are going to have to take their chances to bypass Alisson's goal, and given that Barnes ranks among the top 5% of attacking midfielders and wingers across Europe's top five leagues over the past year for goals per 90, as per FBref, they would certainly have a good chance of doing so with him on the pitch.
The £80k-per-week phenom, who has been described as "incredible" by former boss Brendan Rodgers, must now be provided the platform to shine, and while he does not boast the finest record against the Merseyside outfit, scoring just once from seven outings, he could now be in position to wreak havoc against Klopp's squad.
Barnes is a player who has scored once despite only playing 56 minutes of Premier League action for the Toon, and considering that he has been dubbed “unbelievable” by Klopp, it's clear that Newcastle's forthcoming opposition fear the qualities at the 25-year-old's disposal.
With Newcastle now in a position to push for three points against an outfit of Liverpool's ilk, Howe must opt to give Barnes his first start since joining this summer, and by making such a move, the home side might just conclude the evening affair in rapture.