Eddie Howe claims Newcastle United are missing 'outstanding' duo as two ruled out of Everton clash
Everton vs Newcastle United: The Magpies boss spoke to the media ahead of their Premier League clash at Goodison Park.
Eddie Howe has revealed Newcastle United are likely to be unchanged for their clash with Everton at Goodison Park.
The two sides meet on Saturday evening and Sean Dyche’s side will hope for a repeat result of the same fixture last season, which saw them triumph 3-0 in December 2023. With last weekend’s win over Crystal Palace giving them a huge boost, they will be full of confidence heading into this game.
Fans may feel even more confident after hearing Howe’s press conference as he revealed that star player Alexander Isak remains out injured and won’t return until after the international break - the same goes for his back-up Callum Wilson as the Magpies don’t have a natural striker available.
He claimed that both are ‘outstanding’ players who have been a big miss. “I don't think they've been fit together for a long time. I think it's had a negative effect on us as a team, of course, they're two outstanding players.
“But also I think to themselves, they almost need each other, I think, to help propel them to their best performances because there's nothing like that pressure of someone eyeing up your shirt or in some sense, playing with you, because I think when they played together, they've done really well together. We haven't seen it as much as we would have liked.”
However, they are likely to have the same eleven available from their draw with Manchester City last weekend. Howe confirmed that both Fabian Schar and Nick Pope ‘should be ok’ for this one while they are hoping that Kieran Trippier will be able to play.
In terms of Everton, Dyche spoke to the media yesterday to update fans on his side’s fitness issues. Having welcomed back key starter Jarrad Branthwaite last weekend, news broke yesterday that he had sustained a minor quad issue during training and is a major doubt for the game. With Michael Keane starting five of the six games this season, it is likely he will come into the side instead of summer signing Jake O’Brien - which is a huge blow.
Other than that, captain Seamus Coleman remains out of action, with Nathan Patterson also still building up his fitness meaning either James Garner or Ashley Young will start at right-back. Strikers Armando Broja and Youssef Chermiti are also out but Broja could return in November after the latest news.