Why Newcastle United vs Manchester United is kicking off at 8pm

Manchester United will head into tonight's clash away to Newcastle United in good Premier League form and looking to make it four wins in a row.

The Magpies host Erik ten Hag's side at St. James Park coming off the back of a 4-1 thrashing of Chelsea while United go into the tie on the back of a Champions League draw with Galatasaray where they twice surrendered a two goal lead to draw 3-3. The Reds did win their last top flight fixture though, seeing off Everton 3-0 at Goodison Park to record a fifth win in six Premier League games.

United's televised trip to the north east is at the unusual but not uncommon 8pm kick off time tonight. Here's why it is in the late night slot.

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The short answer is a combination of the game being picked for television broadcast, with TNT Sports showing the match, and the club's midweek Champions League fixtures.

The game wasn't always slated to be played so late on Saturday evening. The fixture was moved from an original spot of 3pm to a much later start due to both sides playing in Europe midweek and the television coverage.

TNT Sports would usually broadcast the 12:30pm kick-off on a Saturday but they have alternated to 8pm due to the European commitments of both teams. Newcastle and Man United's trips to Paris and Turkey respectively, meant they can’t play in the early slot as this would not allow significant time to recover.

The 8pm game now also means there has been no game at all selected for the 12:30pm kick-off. However, this isn't the first time United have been moved to the late shift on a Saturday evening with the club's clash with Burnley back in September also receiving