By Anthony Marshall - Newcastle United Club Reporter

Newcastle United kick off their 2012/13 Barclays Premier League campaign with a home match against Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday evening (5.30pm kick-off).

It means the sides who finished fifth and fourth in the table last time round go head to head on the opening day of the new season, and Magpies boss Alan Pardew will be looking to make a winning start to the new term.

Spurs have a new boss in Andre Villas-Boas and had the upper hand over United last season, with a 2-2 draw on Tyneside last October followed by a comfortable 5-0 victory at White Hart Lane in February.

STAT ATTACK
Saturday's meeting is the 147th match between the two clubs and the 135th in the league. United have scored more goals against Tottenham (58) than any other team in the Premier League. In the 36 games between the clubs in the Premier League, 11 goals have been scored.

TICKET NEWS
Tickets for this fixture are still available and can be purchased by visiting the Box Office at the Sports Direct Arena, the Official Club Stores in Eldon Square or at the Metrocentre, calling 0844 372 1892 or by clicking on the button below

LAST MEETING
February 11, 2012 - Tottenham 5 (Assou-Ekotto 4; Saha 6,20; Kranjcar 34; Adebayor 64) Newcastle 0

Tottenham (4-4-2): Brad Friedel; Kyle Walker, Michael Dawson, Ledley King (Ryan Nelsen 75), Benoit Assou-Ekotto; Niko Kranjcar, Luka Modric, Scott Parker, Gareth Bale (Aaron Lennon 67); Emmanuel Adebayor, Louis Saha (Jermain Defoe 67)

Newcastle (4-4-2): Tim Krul; Danny Simpson, Mike Williamson, Fabricio Coloccini, Davide Santon; Gabriel Obertan (Shane Ferguson 46), Danny Guthrie (Peter Lovenkrands 86), James Perch, Jonas Gutierrez; Demba Ba, Papiss Cisse (Dan Gosling 68)

FULL RECORD v TOTTENHAM
P146 W53 D32 L61 F215 A231

FORM GUIDE
(Last six games - all competitions, including pre-season friendlies)
Newcastle - LWDWDD
Tottenham - LWWWDD

LAST LINE-UP
Newcastle (v Cardiff, pre-season friendly): Tim Krul; Danny Simpson, Steven Taylor (Dan Gosling 63), Fabricio Coloccini (Mike Williamson 46), Davide Santon; Ryan Taylor (James Perch 28), Cheick Tiote (Romain Amalfitano 71), Sylvain Marveaux (Haris Vuckic 46), Jonas Gutierrez; Gabriel Obertan (Adam Campbell 84); Shola Ameobi

Tottenham (v Valencia, pre-season friendly): Brad Friedel; Kyle Walker (Kyle Naughton 77), William Gallas, Jan Vertonghen, Benoit Assou-Ekotto; Jermaine Jenas (Rafael van der Vaart 61), Jake Livermore (Thomas Carroll 88); Aaron Lennon, Gylfi Sigurdsson (Harry Kane 80), Gareth Bale (Andros Townsend 77); Jermain Defoe

TEAM NEWS
Newcastle - Summer signings Vurnon Anita and Romain Amalfitano are in line to make their debuts, having arrived from Ajax and Stade de Reims respectively. United have doubts over Hatem Ben Arfa, Demba Ba, Cheick Tiote, Yohan Cabaye, Papiss Cisse and captain Fabricio Coloccini, while the fixture should come too soon for Sammy Ameobi, who is suffering from a hamstring complaint.

Tottenham - Ex-Newcastle midfielder Scott Parker is ruled out through an Achilles problem, while goalkeeper Heurelho Gomes is also sidelined by injury. Giovani Dos Santos (muscle) and Gareth Bale (back) were both reported to have knocks, but should be available for selection. Midfielder Luka Modric is on the verge of completing a switch to Real Madrid, so will not travel, but Gylfi Sigurdsson and Jan Vertonghen should make their Spurs debuts.

A WORD FROM BOTH CAMPS
Sylvain Marveaux, Newcastle winger: "Tottenham is a good one to start with. We are at home, and it's a big game against a big team who will be up near the top in the Premier League this season. I'm really looking forward to it and I hope the fans will help us like they do every week."

Kyle Walker, Tottenham defender: "To go to Newcastle is always going to be tough but I feel the additions have made the squad stronger, a new gaffer coming in has put his mark on the team and the way we're playing, I think we're going to do well next season. If you asked me now if I wanted a draw, I'd probably say 'no, I want to win'."

REFEREE
Martin Atkinson (Yorkshire) - 2011/12 record: 40 games, 146 yellow cards, 11 red

PLAYED FOR BOTH TEAMS
Sebastien Bassong, Sol Campbell, Stephen Carr, Les Ferdinand, Ruel Fox, Paul Gascoigne, Jim Iley, Jermaine Jenas, Kevin Scott, Chris Waddle, Jonathan Woodgate

FANCY A FLUTTER?
To find the best odds for Saturday's match, thanks to our Official Betting Partner Bet Butler, click here.

DID YOU KNOW?
Tottenham have only won once on their travels during 2012, while Newcastle have suffered just one defeat at home during the current calendar year.