Newcastle Preseason Match Against Everton in Edinburgh

Newcastle step up their preseason work on Wednesday with a trip north to Edinburgh, where they face Premier League rivals Everton at Scottish Gas Murrayfield Stadium.

It’s their fourth public friendly of the summer, and they arrive with a little momentum. The Magpies edged Valencia 2-1 at Mestalla last time out, a win built on sharp finishing from Yoane Wissa and the first clear signs of Matthias Jaissle’s ideas taking root. Three warm-up games remain — including this one — before the serious business begins against Liverpool on August 23.

Jaissle’s early imprint

Results still sit in the back seat. This stage is about legs, patterns, and partnerships. Jaissle, only in his second game in charge, continues to mould a squad that has barely had time to catch its breath since his arrival.

He is expected to tweak the side that started in Spain. Wissa has kicked the door open for a starting place, his two goals against Valencia staking a strong claim to be part of the first-choice group when the Premier League kicks off. Every minute now matters for him.

Anthony Elanga, though, won’t be part of the equation in Edinburgh. The winger picked up an injury against Valencia and is set to miss out, a small early setback in a summer where opportunities are being handed out and judged quickly.

A Premier League yardstick

The opposition raises the bar. Facing another top-flight club, even in July and even on neutral turf, offers a more honest measure of where Newcastle stand than routine run-outs against continental visitors.

Everton arrive with more minutes in their legs. David Moyes’ side have already played five preseason fixtures and come into this one on the back of a 3-1 defeat to Stuttgart. That loss underlined how much work still lies ahead for them, but it also means they are battle-hardened, closer to full rhythm, and desperate to respond.

Moyes, like Jaissle, is still shaping his squad, trimming, testing, and searching for the right blend before the competitive campaign begins. Edinburgh becomes another proving ground.

Murrayfield stage, Premier League tempo

For Newcastle, the demands are clear: maintain the fitness work, sharpen the press, and see whether the Valencia performance was a starting point rather than a one-off. For Everton, it’s about a reaction after Stuttgart and a statement that their preseason trajectory is pointing upwards, not drifting.

The setting is grand, the stakes are soft, but the implications are real. With Liverpool looming on August 23, every run, every rotation, every selection call at Murrayfield nudges Newcastle’s season one step closer to definition.

How much will this night in Edinburgh tell us about where Jaissle’s Magpies are heading? We’re about to find out.