Cardiff V Newcastle Barclays Premier League Match 5 -October 2013.Cardiff manager Malky Mackay has an almost fully-fit squad at his disposal.
Striker Andreas Cornelius is the only absentee, having not yet recovered from a troublesome ankle injury.Watch Cardiff V Newcastle Live, Watch Cardiff V Newcastle Live Stream, Watch Cardiff V Newcastle Free Live Stream, Watch Cardiff V Newcastle Online, Watch Cardiff V Newcastle Online Free, Cardiff V Newcastle Live, Cardiff V Newcastle live stream Online.
Newcastle boss Alan Pardew may recall midfielder Yohan Cabaye, who was dropped to the substitutes' bench against Everton on Monday.
Shola Ameobi is fit again after illness and he could be joined in the squad by Steven Taylor and Jonas Gutierrez, who have overcome hamstring problems.
MATCH PREVIEW
This fixture proves just how quickly fortunes can change in football. Sixteen months ago Newcastle were finishing fifth in the Premier League and were only four points off a Champions League place. At the same time, Cardiff came sixth in the Championship, 13 points behind automatic promotion, before going to lose to West Ham in the play-offs.
Now they meet in the top flight, with Cardiff having a point more on the board than Newcastle.
Malky Mackay's side are searching for their third win of the season already, while Alan Pardew's team are looking to avoid a third straight defeat.
The visiting manager will once again wonder which Newcastle team will turn up. Will it be the one that performed so poorly and without any passion in the first-half at Everton on Monday? Or the one that had previously injected some belief with back-to-back victories, including an impressive away win at Aston Villa.
Only Sunderland have conceded more goals than Newcastle so far and defensive work will have been at the top of the priority list this week. The importance of getting a result in this match is only heightened by the fact that Newcastle's next four fixtures are against Liverpool, Sunderland, Chelsea and Tottenham.
Spurs are the only side to win at Cardiff so far, and they were pushed all the way. I was lucky enough to be at Cardiff's first game at home this season and witnessed a deserved win over Manchester City. The atmosphere that day was electric and it won't be a venue where many will bank on points this season.
Cardiff seem to have carried their home momentum from last season, when they took 51 points from a possible 69 in the Championship, and their confidence and belief will only have been increased with the late win at Fulham last week.
Newcastle have to do better or it could feel like an extremely long international break.
MATCH FACTS
Head-to-head
These two sides last met in the top flight in the 1960-61 season. Cardiff won 3-2 at home but were thrashed 5-0 at St James' Park.
Newcastle have won their last six meetings with Cardiff in all competitions, most recently a 5-1 home victory in the Championship in February 2010.
Cardiff City
Cardiff have lost just three of their 26 home games in the league since the start of the 2012-13 season (W16, D7).
They have scored a Premier League joint-high of three goals from corners this campaign.
Their win over Fulham last week was their first away win in the top division since November 1961.
No side has scored or conceded more goals in the 90th minute or later of their Premier League games this season than Cardiff (three).
Craig Bellamy will again have the chance to become the first player to score for seven different clubs in the Premier League.
Newcastle United
Newcastle's last 10 goals have all been scored by French players. In March/April 2004, Frenchmen scored 12 league goals in succession for Arsenal.
The Geordies have won just three of their last 23 Premier League away games, losing 13 of these matches.
Senegalese striker Papiss Cisse has now gone 12 league games without a goal.
The Magpies have conceded a league-high three headed goals this season so far.