After Monday’s momentum killer that well and truly burst the bubble of three straight wins, it’s time to get back on track as we head towards a busy run of festive fixtures.
It could’ve been a different story against West Ham had we capitalised on our fast start or taken one of those chances created before the break, but our second-half display was abysmal, worryingly weak, lacking in ideas and defensively a mess.
It was a concerning up-and-down display that summed up the stop-start nature of our season so far where goals are a concern; only Southampton, Everton and Crystal Palace have scored less and, at this stage last season, we’d scored more than double the 13 registered in our 12 games so far.
But, while one defeat can halt momentum and see familiar concerns return to debates on social media, a win over Palace on Saturday could get us back into the top-six and send us into next Wednesday’s clash with Liverpool on a high.
**Howe’s pre-match comments**
Howe on West Ham defeat – _“For the first 60 minutes, I thought the performance was pretty good. There was a lot of reflection, a lot of analysis and a lot of work done on the training ground since.”_
Howe on our away form – _“We have to be positive in every respect. The league is still so tight and consecutive wins can elevate you. Our last away performance was very strong, and I see no reason we can’t deliver that again.”_
Howe on Marc Guehi _– “It is very difficult to comment too deeply on him._ _Marc is somebody we respect, he is a very good player.”_
Howe on Sandro Tonali **–** _“Sandro has been good and he’s trained really well, especially this week._ _He did really well against Forest \[when coming on as a sub\] when the game was in the balance._ _He played a big part in moving that game towards us._ _He is doing himself no harm in training.”_
Howe on improved squad depth – _“It is a position we weren’t in at all last season._ _Certainly you want that squad depth, especially this \[coming\] month._ _December will be crucial. Intense period._ _We need that squad choice because naturally we’re going to pick up injuries along the way.”_
**Team news**
Bruno Guimaraes (glute) and Joe Willock (leg) could both be fine and will be assessed after Friday’s training session, with Howe confirming that neither issue is ‘serious.’ The fact Lewis Miley is in line to play for the U21s suggests both Bruno and Willock should be OK, as I can’t see Miley playing the night before our game if we’re light in midfield.
Dan Burn is back from a one-game ban, but Joelinton and Fabian Schar are walking the suspension tightrope on four yellow cards. If they are booked at Palace, they’ll miss next Wednesday’s home clash with Liverpool.
For Palace, they’ll be boosted by the return of star man Ebere Eze and striker Eddie Nketiah, but Adam Wharton, Chadi Riad and Matheus Franca remain out injured. Daichi Kamada will miss out through suspension.
**Predicted XI:** _Pope – Livramento, Schar, Burn, Hall – Tonali, Guimaraes, Willock – Gordon, Isak, Joelinton._
It’s clear that Burn will come straight back in at centre-back, with Kelly not covering himself in glory for either goal in that dismal defeat to West Ham.
That change feels nailed on, but it’s less obvious what Howe will do in midfield. Will he stick by Longstaff? Could Tonali return to the side? Does Willock deserve another start after struggling before he picked up a knock on Monday?
Personally, I think we could revert back to the left side that started our last away game at Palace, meaning Joelinton and Willock dovetailing once again. However, I think we could see Tonali come in down the right, offering that extra bit of quality on a tight Selhurst Park pitch and that bit more pace to track Eze at the other end.
In attack, Gordon on the right is not ideal, but he was subdued on Monday and hasn’t stamped his authority on this side as he did last season. Barnes is an option if we opt to move Joelinton back to midfield in Willock’s place, but he offered very little from the bench in midweek.
**Match prediction:** Crystal Palace 1-1 Newcastle
With Eze back for Palace and familiar issues resurfacing earlier this week in a defeat that disrupted the momentum we’d been building, this is a banana skin fixture against a Palace side battling to stay up.
Hopefully we can bounce back with the sort of away performance that saw us boss an in-form Forest side a few weeks back, I just fear this has a low-scoring draw written all over it.
Howay the lads!