Hello there! Welcome to Sports Mole's live text coverage of this afternoon's Premier League encounter between champions Manchester City and Newcastle United at St James' Park. We should have some team news through for you shortly...

NEWCASTLE: Krul; Janmaat, Williamson, Coloccini, Dummett; Anita, Colback; Sissoko, Cabella, Gouffran; Riviere

NEWCASTLE SUBS: Elliot, Haidara, S Taylor, Abeid, Obertan, Aarons, Perez

Newcastle boss Alan Pardew has been a busy boy in the transfer window this summer, and four of his recent signings go straight into the starting XI. Daryl Janmaat, Jack Colback, Remy Cabella and Emmanuel Riviere are all given the nod, while senior players such as Fabricio Coloccini, Vurnon Anita and Yoan Gouffran are also included.

MAN CITY: Hart; Clichy, Kompany, Demichelis, Kolarov; Fernando, Toure, Nasri, Silva; Jovetic, Dzeko

MAN CITY SUBS: Caballero, Boyata, Zabaleta, Milner, Fernandinho, Navas, Aguero

Not too many surprises from Man City boss Manuel Pellegrini this afternoon, with the Chilean naming plenty of the players that played key roles in the team winning the title last season. Like Newcastle, the Blues have been active in the transfer window this summer, though Fernando is the only new boy to claim a place in the starting lineup. Joe Hart gets the nod over Willy Caballero in goal, while Sergio Aguero occupies a spot on the bench.

It's been a fairly low-key summer for Man City, despite spending nearly £60m in the transfer market. There was some rancour from Yaya Toure at the end of last season, but the midfielder's future looks to now be sorted at the Etihad Stadium. The Ivorian is sure to be another important player for the Blues this campaign as they look to win their third title in four years.

Man City boss Manuel Pellegrini: "This Premier League will be exactly the same as the last one. Five or six teams have very strong squads. I think that we have a stronger squad than last season. We are ready to start. Maybe some players need more days to be 100%".

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Newcastle boss Alan Pardew: "It was fairly obvious that [owner Mike Ashley] listened to me at the back end of last year and the support I've had in terms of the new signings is exactly what was needed. I've nothing to moan about now in terms of what's happened this summer. We've got a strong squad, perhaps the biggest and best I've ever had in terms of options, so we're in a great position."

The #NUFC players are out warming up in front of the Gallowgate End. 40 minutes 'til kick-off! #NEWMCI pic.twitter.com/AEGQ7qotlD — Newcastle United FC (@NUFC) August 17, 2014

UPDATE! Today's early kickoff has ended at Anfield, where Liverpool have beaten Southampton 2-1. The Reds made hard work of it, but Daniel Sturridge's late goal has given them a win on the opening weekend of the season. You can read our match report here.

HEAD TO HEAD: It's Newcastle who have the better record when it comes to past meetings between these teams, winning 66 matches compared to Man City's 59. Meanwhile, the sides have played out a total of 36 draws.

While Newcastle have the better head-to-head record, Man City have dominated this fixtures in recent years. The Blues have won the last 10 matches against the Magpies. The last five games have seen Man City score 15 goals.

If you've got a spare couple of minutes before kickoff, why not check out our very own video preview of this afternoon's encounter?

PRE-SEASON FORM

NEWCASTLE: WWLWDW
MAN CITY: WWWLLL

Yaya Toure scored more league goals (20) from midfield than any other player in Europe's top 5 leagues last season. pic.twitter.com/ccU02CHjo2 — Squawka Football (@Squawka) August 17, 2014

It should be noted that a a tribute is scheduled to be paid before kickoff for John Alder and Liam Sweeney, the two Newcastle fans who died in the recent Malaysia Airlines disaster. Flowers have already been laid outside of the stadium from both sets of supporters, while the respective captains of the two teams are due to lay wreaths in the centre-cirle shortly before the match starts.

Around 10 minutes to go until kickoff and St James' Park is filling up nicely. You can always expect the Newcastle supporters to make plenty of noise when watching their team at home, while Man City will also be well represented today.

PREDICTION TIME! So, how do you see this one going? Newcastle are sure to have a spring in their step following a number of new arrivals over the summer, but that Man City starting lineup is full of world-class players. Here at Sports Mole we expect the visitors to come away with the points thanks to a 2-1 victory.

Here come the teams! For those of you who are interested, it's a gloriously sunny day in the North East.

Coloccini, Kompany and the families of John Alder and Liam Sweeney walk onto the pitch to lay wreaths in a lovely tribute to the two departed Newcastle fans.

KICKOFF! It's a white-hot atmosphere inside St James' Park as Man City get us underway. Can the champions start the defence of their title with a win? We're about to find out!

CHANCE! Nearly an early goal from Dzeko, but the striker is denied by Krul. A dinked ball over the top of the Newcastle defence found the Bosnian, only for his first-time flick to be batted away by the Magpies shotstopper.

Despite that early opening for Man City, it's been a fairly even start to the game. Newcastle are looking confident on the ball, with Cabella seeing plenty of it so far. However, the hosts are yet to trouble their opponents in the final third.

This match has started at a decent pace, with both sides showing plenty of urgency during the opening few minutes. Man City are just about on top at the moment, though Newcastle are breaking with speed when they can.

A bit of a worry there for Newcastle as Jovetic chases Dzeko's flick-on, but Krul does well to come off his line quickly to gather the ball. Nasri then tries his luck with a stinging effort from 25 yards which Krul pushes away from danger. Man City are starting to turn up the heat a bit.

Newcastle have done well to stifle Man City in these last few minutes, passing the ball around the midfield in order to gain a bit of possession. That said, Alan Pardew's side are still yet to properly test Hart in the opposition goal.

1 - Newcastle have won just once in the last five seasons in their opening match (D2 L2). Nerves. — OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) August 17, 2014

Now it's Newcastle who are starting to ask one or two questions of their opponents. Cabella in particular is continuing to see a fair bit of the ball for the hosts, drifting into wide positions before darting inside. Newcastle playing with plenty of width at the moment.

Both teams have cancelled each other out during the past few minutes. A lot of the game is being played in midfield with a real battle for possession taking place. Newcastle create something of a half-chance as Riviere bursts forward, but the debutant can only hit a tame shot well wide of the goal from about 30 yards.

Newcastle are certainly passing the ball about with lots of confident. The hosts are sweeping it about across the whole of the pitch, doing their best to stretch Man City. Janmaat receives the ball on the edge of the box before trying to clip it in towards Riviere, but he gets too much on it and it goes out of play.

Another encouraging moment for Newcastle sees Sissokho run at the Man City defence before attempting a threaded pass through to Riviere. However, the visiting defence does enough to hold the Newcastle striker off and Hart comes to collect.

The two managers are down in their technical areas, casting their eyes over the action. You have to say that Alan Pardew will probably be the happier of the two at the moment. His team has given a good account of themselves during the opening half an hour, showing plenty of energy and commitment. Riviere is in the thick of it again, receiving the ball on the edge of the box before slicing his effort wide of Hart's post.

YELLOW CARD! The first booking of the game goes the way of Man City's David Silva for a cynical trip on Anita. Few complaints there from the visitors.

This has been a really good spell for Newcastle. They're putting lots of pressure on Man City, forcing the visitors into one or two mistakes. Cabella is looking impressive, running at the opposition defence whenever he can and giving them a number of problems. It's just a shame that his hair looks so ridiculous.

That is a clinical goal from the champions, who take the lead through David Silva. A long ball over the top finds Dzeko, allowing the striker to flick the ball into the path of Silva. The Spaniard then takes a touch before drilling the ball low past Krul. Ruthless stuff from the visitors. It's against the run of play, but they will not mind one bit.

How will Newcastle react to going behind? They can take lots of encouragement from their display so far, but conceding when they were on top is surely going to dent their morale.

Poor stuff from Dzeko there. The Man City striker had the chance to spray the ball out wide as the visitors looked to break, but his pass had too much on it and went out of play. He acknowledges his error by raising an apologetic hand towards Kolarov on the left wing.

Two minutes added time at the end of the half...

Referee Martin Atkinson blows the half-time whistle to bring an end to an entertaining opening 45 minutes of football at St James' Park. Newcastle have been impressive so far, but it's Man City who lead thanks to David Silva's goal.

It will be interesting to see how Newcastle recover from going behind considering that they were on top when Man City opened the scoring. The Magpies have not really created too many clear-cut chances so far, but they have given them plenty to think about. In particular, Cabella has been a handful.

UPDATE! Today's early kickoff at Anfield saw Liverpool beat Southampton 2-1. The Reds made hard work of it, but Daniel Sturridge's late goal gave them a win on the opening weekend of the season. You can read our match report here.

4 - David Silva's last four goals for Man City have all come away from home (as have 5 of his last 6 in all comps). Tourist. — OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) August 17, 2014

While Newcastle have something of a mixed bag on their bench, Man City have the likes of Fernandinho, Navas and Aguero on theirs. Manuel Pellegrini will surely introduce one or two of those if he feels the need to crank up the pressure on the home side.

SECOND HALF UNDERWAY! The teams are back out for the second half and it'll be Newcastle to get us back underway. No changes from either manager at the break.

CHANCE! Chaos reigns in the Man City box as the champions struggle to deal with a corner, but they eventually manage to clear the danger. That could easily have ended with a Newcastle equaliser.

Newcastle will be pleased with the way that they've started this second half. The hosts are looking to get themselves back in this match as soon as possible. However, they will be aware that Man City have lots of quality when it comes to counter-attacking football.

YELLOW CARD! Another booking for Man City here as Demichelis is penalised for taking down Cabella. The summer signing continues to be a nuisance for the champions.

CHANCE! First proper opening of the second half for Man City as Jovetic works some space before hitting a shot about 25 yards from goal, but his effort flies wide of Krul's right post. The visitors will be eager to double their advantage and put this game to bed.

YELLOW CARD! Man City receive their third booking of the afternoon thanks to Kolarov's foul on Riviere out on the right touchline.

CHANCE! Nearly an equaliser for Newcastle! Following Kolarov's foul on Riviere, Colback whips the resulting free kick into the heart of the Man City box before Dummett heads over with Hart nowhere to be found. A warning sign for Manuel Pellegrini's team.

Man City have started to show a bit more dominance in these last few minutes, probing around the Newcastle box in search of a second goal. The Magpies have struggled to get on the ball since that opportunity for Dummett, though they're still very much in this match.

SUBSTITUTION: Newcastle's first change of the afternoon sees Anita replaced by Obertan.

CHANCE! Man City come close to making it 2-0 as the ball is clipped in towards Dzeko, but the striker heads over from about eight yards after jumping above his marker. A yard or so lower and that was probably going in.

Newcastle aren't looking particularly dangerous right now, though that's mainly because Man City are doing a good job pressing them high up the pitch. The Magpies are having to resore to a few long balls forward, allowing the visitors to win back possession easily.

This match has seen plenty of frantic passages of play today, but now it's been reduced to a slower pace thanks to Man City's desire to keep the ball and keep Newcastle at bay. The Magpies need to stay focused because the champions can turn on the style in an instant.

SUBSTITUTION: A change for Man City now as Jovetic is taken off for Fernandinho. It's clear from that move that Manuel Pellegrini wants his team to tighten their grip on the midfield.

CHANCE! Man City win a free kick on the edge of the Newcastle box that Toure steps up to take, but the Ivorian whips his effort inches over the crossbar. Meanwhile, the home side make a change as Aarons replaces Gouffran. A little over 15 minutes remaining for the hosts to get something out of this match.

YELLOW CARD! Man City skipper Kompany is the latest name to go into the book for a trip on the advancing Colback. Cabella takes the resulting free kick about 25 yards from goal, though he can only fire straight into the wall.

YELLOW CARD! Another booking now, this time for Newcastle's Janmaat for a foul on Fernandinho. The break in play gives Man City the chance to make a change, with Milner taking the place of Nasri.

Newcastle are making sure that Man City are not having it all their own way as we head into the final 10 minutes of this contest. Alan Pardew's side are still alive, though time is running out for them.

SUBSTITUTION: Man City's final change of the afternoon sees Aguero enter the action in place of Dzeko. The players that Manuel Pellegrini has at his disposal is quite incredible. Meanwhile, Perez replaces Riviere for Newcastle.

CHANCE! What a moment that could have been as Perez breaks free of the Man City defence before seeing his effort deflected inches wide of the target. The resulting corner causes one or two problems for the champions, but they manage to get it clear in the end.

Newcastle are pushing hard for an equaliser now as we approach the full-time whistle. The home fans are urging their fans on, as you would expect. Do the Magpies have a goal in them? It would be hard to say that they don't deserve come away from here with something.

YELLOW CARD! Yet another booking goes the way of Man City, this time to Fernando for a trip on Sissoko.

Four minutes of added time indicated by the fourth official...

CHANCE! Oh, Sissoko really should do better there! The ball drops to the midfielder on the edge of the box with no one around him, but his rushed effort sails high over the crossbar. A bit more composure there and it could be 1-1.

Newcastle are made to pay for that earlier miss as Aguero wraps up the points for the champions. The Argentine ran through on goal before seeing his initial effort saved by Krul. However, he reacted quicker than Coloccini to blast home the rebound. Game over.

And there you have it. They were made to work for it in the end, but Man City start the defence of their Premier League title with a 2-0 win over Newcastle. David Silva opened the scoring in the first half before Sergio Aguero came off the bench to seal the victory late on.

That's all from our live coverage of this afternoon's contest, but you can keep up to date with all of the post-match reaction throughout the course of the evening here on Sports Mole. Thanks for your company and we hope to see you again soon. Goodbye!