Rochdale v Newcastle United: FA Cup third round – live!

45 min: Yedlin shakes his hips and sits down Keohane. He shimmies into the box and dinks a cross towards Muto, but the delivery isn’t in the same class as the run. Rochdale clear.

43 min: This is a little better from Rochdale, as Rathbone embarks on a rococo ramble down the inside-left channel, Krafth and Fernandez both unwilling to tackle him as he enters the box. But Rathbone’s close control lets him down, just as it looks like he’s opened up a little channel to cross. A little promise to take into the second half, perhaps.

42 min: Camps tries to stir the crowd by shooting from 30 yards. The ball dribbles apologetically wide of the right-hand post. Dubravka wanders over to watch its serene progress.

41 min: Newcastle have done an excellent job of silencing the home crowd. The atmosphere was bubbling at kick-off, but it’s eerily calm now.

39 min: Yedlin bursts into the box from the right. He’s got the opportunity to shoot from a tight angle, but unselfishly opts to tee up Muto on the penalty spot instead. Muto smacks his shot straight at Sanchez when he really should score … but then take nothing away from the keeper’s brave stop. Newcastle would have been worth a two-goal lead, but Rochdale are hanging on in there.

38 min: O’Connell looks for the Beckenbauer inside, and sashays up the middle of the park. It’s a fine run, spoilt only by the pass he then clumps into the stand out on the right, while attempting to release Ryan on the wing.

36 min: Newcastle continue to dominate possession. They’re in a patient mood right now, stroking it about, hither and yon, happy to wait for an opening to present itself. Eventually Atsu tries to reach the byline on the left for the 300th time this afternoon, but Matheson gets in the road and ushers the ball out for a goal kick.

34 min: A corner for Newcastle out on the right. Sanchez claims it, but knackers himself by clattering into the newly arrived Matheson as he leaps. After a brief period of medical attention, he’s good to go again.

32 min: Magloire has been run ragged in the right-back position, and he’s replaced by Luke Matheson, who you will remember as a 16-year-old scorer at Old Trafford back in September. Matheson went back to school the day after momentarily stunning Manchester United in the League Cup. He’s 17 now. All grown up.

30 min: Joelinton’s not hiding, to be fair, despite his dismal scoring record. Hayden knocks one in from the left; Newcastle’s number nine rises under severe pressure from O’Connell and Sanchez, winning a header but sending it over.

29 min: Atsu is burning it up down the left, but Yedlin isn’t doing too badly out on the other flank. He drops a shoulder to win a corner. Almiron’s set piece nearly finds Hayden, but Rathbone does enough to relieve the pressure.

27 min: Newcastle continue to ping it around in a progressive style. It’s an open and entertaining match, though the visitors are experiencing the lion’s share of the fun. Very much so. They’ve hogged 74% of possession so far.

25 min: Long-distance efforts at either end. First Rathbone has a pop from distance; it flies harmlessly high and wide. Then Matty Longstaff has another dig, but this one deflects off his own man and out for a goal kick.

23 min: 2019 wasn’t Joelinton’s year. Will 2020 be better? On the evidence so far, possibly … possibly not. He embarks on a glorious swerving run down the middle of the park, sending Williams off to the shops for the paper and 20 Bensons. He’s just got Sanchez to beat! So far, so good. Then he opens his body to sidefoot into the bottom left … and rolls the ball dismally wide, bothering only a nearby ballboy. Shame, because that was a fine run.

22 min: More space for Atsu, who has the run of Spotland this lunchtime. He lifts a cross into the middle, hoping to find Joelinton, but Sanchez claims. Rochdale are struggling to retain possession.

20 min: Now it’s the Newcastle end in full voice. Blaydon Races. Oh me lads. Newcastle fully deserve this lead, they’ve been marvellous so far.

It had been coming, and it’s right that it’s the excellent Atsu who sets it up. He romps down the left yet again, cuts back yet again, and Almiron is on hand to whip a glorious shot into the roof of the net from 12 yards.

16 min: The Rochdale fans launch into a hearty chorus of the English folk standard Robbie Savage Is A Wanker. It’s usually the sort of thing the TV technicians turn down, but this time, for some reason, BT Sport don’t bother. Full Dolby surround sound, turned up to 11. Once more with feeling.

15 min: Yedlin drops a shoulder to skate past Keohane down the right, and should do better with his cross upon reaching the box. Rochdale clear, but it’s beginning to look like a matter of time before Newcastle score the opener.

14 min: Atsu is getting all sorts of room down the left. He reaches the white line and pulls back for Matty Longstaff, who takes a touch and sees his eventual shot deflected over the bar by the alert O’Connell. The resulting corner comes to nothing.

12 min: Yedlin crosses from the right, having been sent skittering down the wing by Sean Longstaff. His low cross is intercepted and hoicked clear by O’Connell, with Joelinton lurking. Newcastle are showing plenty of menace in these opening exchanges.

10 min: Hayden swings a cross in from a tight spot out on the left. It’s a decent ball, met by Joelinton’s header. Newcastle’s number nine aims for the top left, but doesn’t quite get enough purchase on the effort. But the Toon are soon coming straight back at Rochdale, Atsu again reaching the byline on the left and cutting back for Joelinton, who still can’t add to his season’s haul of one goal.

8 min: Rochdale get their attack going for the first time this afternoon. Camps makes his way down the left and scoops inside for Henderson, who hooks a harmless effort well wide right from the edge of the box.

7 min: Krafth channels his inner Trent Alexander-Arnold, spraying a gloriously ambitious right-to-left pass towards Atsu on the left wing. Atsu reaches the byline and cuts back. The ball breaks right to Krafth, who had kept on trucking. Krafth’s looping cross is snaffled by Sanchez. But that move was both pretty and dangerous. Nice football from Newcastle.

5 min: Atsu wins the second corner of the match, bursting down the left and playing the ball off Magloire. Sean Longstaff tries again, and this delivery isn’t much better, easy pickings for Sanchez.

4 min: Yedlin rolls a cute pass across the face of the Rochdale box in the hope of teeing up Matty Longstaff. Camps nips in to block and clear before the renowned Manchester United botherer is able to take a whack on goal.

3 min: Sean Longstaff takes a short one, and makes an awful balls of it. After Newcastle noodle about in the futile style, Rochdale clear their lines.

2 min: Early signs that Newcastle aren’t in the mood to hang about. Almiron turns on the jets and bustles down the left, winning the first corner of the game.

And we’re off!

Wolverhampton Wanderers
Newcastle United get the ball rolling, to great cheers. The visitors stroke it around the back awhile. Krafth launches it long for Joelinton, but the ball sails harmlessly through to Sanchez in the Rochdale goal.

The weather is miserable. Rainy and cold. Greater Manchester in winter. But it’s not dampening the spirits of a packed Spotland. A cracking third-round atmosphere, exactly as it should be. Out come the teams, with the hosts wearing their blue and black striped tops. Newcastle are in third-choice old gold with black trim, the spit of Wolves. A classic look, even if it’s not theirs. We’ll be off in a minute … one minute later than usual. Heads up.

Steve Bruce talks to BT Sport. “Newcastle’s recent history isn’t great reading. We want to have a cup run, if we can, so why not? I experienced it a few years ago at Hull. The first thing to do is get over today. There’s a couple of kids on the bench, but the team selection has been pretty easy because we are where we are, and we’ve got what we’ve got. Let’s hope we’ve got enough today. Everybody loves an underdog, that’s why the TV cameras are here. But that’s why the FA Cup is the competition it is.”

Some pre-match reading. Paul Wilson talks to Rochdale manager Brian Barry-Murphy.

Rochdale are just four points above the relegation places in League One. But they won their last match, 2-1 at Accrington, and make only one change to their starting XI. MJ Williams comes in for the injured Paul McShane. (Does anybody else have this earworm?)

Newcastle are missing Jamaal Lascelles, Allan Saint-Maximin, Jonjo Shelvey, Jetro Willems, Fabian Schar, Javier Manquillo, Paul Dummett and Andy Carroll … but still name a strong XI, with seven international players in it. They make five changes to the team that was trounced by Leicester, with Emil Krath, Christian Atsu, both Longstaffs and, despite a broken hand, DeAndre Yedlin starting.

Rochdale: Sanchez, Magloire, Williams, O’Connell, Keohane, Ryan, Rathbone, Dooley, Camps, Baah, Henderson.
Subs: McLaughlin, Andrew, Lynch, Wilbraham, Gillam, Tavares, Matheson.

Newcastle United: Dubravka, Krafth, Fernandez, Hayden, Yedlin, Matthew Longstaff, Sean Longstaff, Atsu, Muto, Almiron, Joelinton.
Subs: Ki, Ritchie, Lejeune, Darlow, Allan, Sorensen, Cass.

Referee: David Coote (Nottinghamshire).

Apologies to Newcastle United supporters for bringing it up yet again, but the definitive FA Cup third-round tie is this one. Ronnie Radford, Ricky George, Supermac, John Motson, kids in parkas, all that.

So what are the chances of Rochdale stunning the Toon like Hereford United did back in 1972? On the face of it, they’ve got a job on their hands. Newcastle might be struggling in the Premier League right now, having lost three of their last four matches, but the Dale have lost three of their last four too, and those in League One. Additionally, today’s hosts have only beaten a top-flight side once in 16 FA Cup ties, against Coventry City back in 1971.

However, the third round of the FA Cup is the third round of the FA Cup, and so hope is never lost. For a start, Newcastle have only won one of their last 16 away fixtures in the FA Cup. Goliath might not be that confident when he comes to town. And any trepidation they feel will surely be ramped up when they remember Rochdale’s brave performance at Old Trafford four months ago – they held Manchester United to a 1-1 draw in the League Cup before going out on penalties – and the Dale’s 2-2 draw with Spurs in the fifth round of this competition back in 2018. These minnows have form as botherers supreme.

Can the Dale pull off a shock? Or will Newcastle prevail as they dream of winning the famous old competition for the first time since 1955? We’ll find out soon enough. It’s on!

Kick off: 12.31pm GMT. Heads up.