Newcastle United boss Eddie Howe is considering ringing the changes for the FA Cup clash against Brighton & Hove Albion with his defensive rearguard in need of a freshen up.
Both Fabian Schar and Dan Burn are in need of a rest with Emil Krafth on standby to return to the starting XI on Sunday afternoon at St James’ Park. It remains to be seen whether Dutchman Sven Botman will make it for the clash against the Seagulls but Howe is hopeful of his return alongside potentially Joelinton with both badly missed in recent games.
When asked about Botman and Joelinton returning, Howe told Chronicle Live: “I think they’ll be there or thereabouts for Sunday. That would be a massive boost. It’s difficult to say because they haven’t trained with the team yet, but fingers crossed.”
Another Newcastle star who seems to have been held back in recent games with the FA Cup in mind is midfielder Sean Longstaff. The North Shields lad was handed just a cameo role in the 2-0 defeat at Anfield but could start on Sunday.
Longstaff played the full game in the 3-2 win at Birmingham City in round four and ended the game as captain. The 27-year-old has been dealing with the disappointment of missing out to Lewis Miley and Joe Willock in recent weeks amid Joelinton’s absence.
The likes of Matt Targett, William Osula, Harvey Barnes and Miley will also be in the mind of the manager as Newcastle bid for a place in the quarter-finals and aim to keep another road to Wembley open. A victory on Sunday would put Newcastle into the quarter-final, with the draw taking place on Monday night.
Howe reflected: “We need to find our best rhythm again, we have a few players out missing hopefully we can get them back. Big games, big moments in our season. We’re still in both cups and we want to stay that way.”
Newcastle have rang the changes in both of their FA Cup ties so far. Osula started against Bromley and Birmingham, and could make it a hat-trick on Sunday with Alexander Isak’s injury concerns and Howe looking to manage the workload of Callum Wilson and Anthony Gordon.
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