Mark Lawrenson reveals why he won't back Sheffield United to beat Newcastle United this weekend

The first full bill of Premier League fixtures in over three months is set to take place this weekend, with an eye-catching, fully-televised programme of matches taking place behind-closed-doors.
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Sheffield United opened the top tier's return earlier in the week, with a 0-0 draw against Aston Villa that saw the Blades denied a clear goal, after a technology error failed to spot that Oliver Norwood's looping free-kick had crossed the line.

This weekend, the Blades travel to the North East to take on Newcastle United, a side who have defeated them in their last four meetings.

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Writing his weekly prediction piece for BBC Sport, Mark Lawrenson, who correctly suggested United would draw their game with Villa, opted for another share of the spoils, picking a 1-1 draw between the Blades and the Magpies.

(Photo by Clive Mason/Getty Images)(Photo by Clive Mason/Getty Images)
(Photo by Clive Mason/Getty Images)

Justifying his choice, Lawro wrote: "Sheffield United did not really look like scoring for long periods against Aston Villa and, sadly for them, everyone who mattered missed it when they did get the ball into the net.

"I don't see many goals being scored in this set of fixtures anyway, but especially not at St James' Park."

While the pundit believes it's likely to be a rather drab affair, his competitor for the week, Sports Team drummer Al Greenwood, backed the Blades to run out 3-0 winners, and said: "I think playing already will help Sheffield United get into their stride a bit."

With nine games left, Chris Wilder's side still have an excellent chance of qualifying for Europe, with Champions League and Europa League places still up for grabs.