The season is barely a month old, and there’s already been some bad luck for Newcastle United in terms of injuries.
Yoane Wissa, having missed barely any games in four seasons with Brentford, returned from international duty with a knee injury and is set to be missing for at least the next month.
That, coupled with Jacob Ramsey being ruled out for a number of weeks, has already left Eddie Howe pondering making some big decisions ahead of what will be one of the biggest games of his tenure as manager.
Fortunately however, Hansi Flick is in a similar situation, as he could be without one of his biggest names on Thursday night, in what will be a massive boost to our chances for all three points.
In a club statement, Barcelona have confirmed that Lamine Yamal is a doubt for this week’s trip to Tyneside, revealing that he’s currently unable to train.
Barca’s statement said: “Lamine Yamal is experiencing discomfort in the pubic area and is currently unable to train or play. His return to training will depend on how his condition evolves.”
Speaking to the media ahead of Barcelona’s league clash against Valencia, Flick also confirmed that Yamal would miss out on last night’s game, which they went on to win 6-0, casting doubt over his involvement in our Champions League meeting at St James’ Park.
Yamal was exceptional for Spain over the international break, but Flick comments that he didn’t play at 100% fitness for his country, and he hasn’t since trained with the club.
Criticising the choice to play Yamal, the German stated: “Spain gave him painkillers and even when they were winning they made him play. This is not taking care of the players. I’m very sad about this.”
It’s another big blow to Flick’s potential lineup, as he’s already without starting left back Alejandro Balde, and Dutch midfielder Frenkie de Jong remains a doubt as he too isn’t set to play Sunday’s game against Valencia.
After another clean sheet in Saturday’s game 1-0 win over Wolves, our defence mostly picks itself: Tino Livramento, Dan Burn and Nick Pope are three of Howe’s most trusted stars.
From there, it’s a coin flip over whether the returning Lewis Hall or experienced Kieran Trippier gets the other full back slot. And as for right-sided centre back, then Howe has Fabian Schar, Malick Thiaw and Sven Botman all at his disposal.
As for the visitors, Raphinha and Ferran Torres have played each of the first four games of their La Liga title defence so far, so they seem like they would be a lock for Thursday night.
Who Flick sees as the third man is interesting however: Robert Lewandowski has only just come back from a hamstring injury, whilst Marcus Rashford is still finding his feet in Spain. Could a surprise be on the cards and Danish star Roony Bardghji be picked to play against our defence?