This weekend sees Newcastle United return to St James's Park in a bid to find their first win of the 2015/16 Premier League campaign as they square up against Arsenal in the Saturday lunch time kick off.

The Magpies picked up their first competitive victory of the season against Northampton Town on Tuesday evening, but the Gunners are likely to provide tougher opposition than the Cobblers whilst Newcastle will have to be at their finest if they are to pick up their first three points.

However, Steve McClaren will have taken plenty of positives since his side went out with a whimper away to Swansea two weeks ago. Tuesday's 4-1 stroll past Northampton was preceeded by a hard-earned point away at Old Trafford, a feat few teams will probably be able to brag about come the end of the season.

Returning Players

More positives come in the shape of returning players for the Magpies, with Moussa Sissoko possibly returning from the groin problem that kept him sidelined for Newcastle's previous two fixtures. The pacey French midfielder's mood will be buoyed by a recall to national duties for up-coming fixtures against Portugal and Serbia.

Another returning figure will be Daryl Janmaat on the right of Newcastle's defence. The Dutch international played a key role in the 4-1 league cup victory on Tuesday evening and Newcastle fans will be relieved to see their defence once again at its full complement as their side look to earn back-to-back Premier League clean sheets for the first time since November 2014.

Furthermore the addition of Florian Thauvin to the side has given fans a reason to be excited about Newcastle's options going forward. The former Marseille winger has every right to expect a place in the starting line-up against Arsenal following his scintillating performance on Tuesday evening, where he scored one goal for himself before supplying three for other team mates.

Arsenal's Difficult Start

With Newcastle feeling confident going forward, Arsenal may be feeling slightly nervous at the back, as their bid to become champions has got off to a stuttering start. 

Their first-choice defensive pairing of Per Mertesacker and Laurent Koscielny are still unlikely to feature through illness and injury respectively. However, youngsters Gabriel Paulista and Calum Chambers managed to shut out Liverpool on Monday evening, albeit with a helping hand from Petr Cech, and the Gunners will be happy with another opportunity to prove their worth in the first team.

At the other end of the field, Arsenal have found it difficult to score goals in the early stages of this season, causing boss Arsene Wenger to criticise his players' shooting, labelling it as 'cynical'.

He's every right to be concerned as his side have scored with just 5% of their shots so far this season, currently the lowest conversion rate in the league. But with the likes of Alexis Sanchez and Olivier Giroud to name just a couple, it's clear the Gunners have more than enough in their locker to turn that stat on its head.

History

The last seven fixtures between these two sides have gone the way of Arsenal, with Newcastle failing to take any points from the Gunners since the opening game of the 2011/12 season. This stat has caused the majority of pundits to predict Saturday's game following recent form, but the Magpies will see their current attacking positivity as well as Arsenal's make-shift defence and poor strike record as an opportunity to rectify those figures.

Both sides will be keen to give their campaign the shot in the arm they'll feel they need to build upon their somewhat indifferent starts, which has the potential to create an open and attacking affair. Nevertheless Arsenal might feel they have enough going forward to prove the pundits right, despite Newcastle's recent encouraging signs.

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