Having won their first league game of the season at the 15th attempt against Burnley last Saturday, Newcastle will be looking to form a winning habit going into the festive period as they travel to a Leicester City side who were knocked out of the Europa League on Thursday.

The Magpies are three points off safety with a game in hand on 17th-placed Watford after the Hornets' 2-1 defeat to Brentford on Friday night. They will also be facing a Foxes side who might be low on confidence, having won just one of their last six league outings as well as their elimination from the Europa League after a 3-2 defeat to Napoli.

Furthermore, Brendan Rodgers' side have shipped 13 goals in their last six matches in all competitions and will be without a handful of key players after a viral outbreak at the East Midlands club, making it the ideal opportunity for Newcastle's frontline to pounce and add to the Magpies' tally of 17 goals in the Premier League.

It has also been reported that winger Ryan Fraser has overcome a hamstring issue after missing the win over Burnley. Miguel Almiron was the man to step in for the Scotsman that day, so there is no reason why the Paraguayan should lose his place after a performance which went down a treat with many  members of the Toon Army.

On the chalkboard

It is fair to say that the 27-year-old has been underwhelming since joining Newcastle from Atlanta United in January 2019 for a then-club record fee of around £20m. A return of 13 goals and five assists in 105 appearances is rather tepid, but there is certainly an opportunity for Almiron to get into the Newcastle team now, with Eddie Howe still in the early stages of his tenure at St James' Park.

Against Burnley, the £74k-p/w attacking midfielder had an 82% passing accuracy, as well as making three tackles and successfully completing 100% of his dribbles (per SofaScore). It was a solid performance and a decent foundation to build upon in an attempt to be a regular starter under the former Bournemouth boss, who has said of the Paraguayan: "When you give someone an opportunity you want them to take it and I thought Miggy did that. His energy is very infectious and I thought his work rate from a defensive perspective was very good. Also he had really good moments going forward.

Like Almiron, the aforementioned Fraser is yet to score for the Magpies this season. However, the Scotland winger hasn't been particularly impressive of late, with SofaScore rating the performance in his last game, a 1-1 stalemate with Norwich City, at a lowly 6.4/10.

None of United's wide men have been particularly impressive this season, which is why Almiron is certainly within a shout of getting a frequent run in the team. The Paraguayan just needs to take whatever opportunities come his way.

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