Eddie Howe, Manager of Newcastle United, looks on during the Premier League match between West Ham United and Newcastle United at London Stadium on November 02, 2025 in London, England. (Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)placeholder image
Eddie Howe, Manager of Newcastle United, looks on during the Premier League match between West Ham United and Newcastle United at London Stadium on November 02, 2025 in London, England. (Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Newcastle United host Athletic Bilbao in the Champions League on matchday four.
Newcastle are struggling for consistency in the Premier League this campaign, with the 3-1 defeat away to West Ham United on Sunday leaving them 13th in the table.
But the Champions League has proven to be a healthy escape for Eddie Howe’s side, with two wins from their opening three group matches providing a great platform to qualify for the knockout stages.
NewcastleWorld's Champions League coverage proudly sponsored by Morpeth Plumbing & Heating.placeholder image
NewcastleWorld's Champions League coverage proudly sponsored by Morpeth Plumbing & Heating. | NewcastleWorld
After narrowly losing to Barcelona in their opening match, the Magpies have earned convincing back-to-back wins over Union Saint-Gilloise and Benfica to sit eighth in the league phase table.
The top eight advance automatically to the last 16, while clubs ranked ninth to 24th take part in a seeded play-off round.
Meanwhile, Bilbao sit 21st. The Spanish lost their opening two fixtures to Arsenal and Borussia Dortmund before coming from 1-0 down to beat Qarabag 3-1 in the last game.
In terms of Bilbao’s position in La Liga, it isn’t too dissimilar to Newcastle, occupying 11th position.
Newcastle United remain without £86m duo through injury
For the match, Newcastle hope to have Kieran Trippier available after the 35-year-old sat out of the West Ham defeat due to illness. Tino Livramento remains sidelined until after the November international break with a knee issue.
The absence of Trippier and Livramento saw Howe start Emil Krafth at right-back against West Ham, before he moved Malick Thiaw, Jacob Murphy and Sandro Tonali into the position in an attempt to get back into the game.
Left-back has also been a problem area for the Magpies of late. Lewis Hall returned to the matchday squad at the weekend after five matches out with a hamstring issue, but was an unused substitute.
Speaking after the game, Howe explained: “I was very reluctant to put him on. We had no other senior professionals to put on the bench today. If we did, then he wouldn't have been on that, but he's done one training session with us and I don't want to push him too early.”
Read More
That has and is likely to see Dan Burn, a recognised centre-back continue at left-back.
Meanwhile, Howe is struggling to rotate his centre-forward. £69million club-record signing Nick Woltemade has started the last 10 matches in all competitions with Yoane Wissa injured and Will Osula nursing an ankle problem.
Newcastle paid £55m to sign Wissa from Brentford on September 1 but the striker is yet to make his debut after just over a week later, he suffered a posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) injury on international duty with DR Congo.
It is hoped Wissa is closing in on a return to action but that is unlikely to be until after the upcoming international break.
UEFA block Newcastle United quartet from playing v Athletic Bilbao
In addition to Livramento and Wissa, Howe is also unable to name Jamaal Lascelles, Harrison Ashby, John Ruddy and Mark Gillespie in his matchday squad versus Bilbao.
This is because the quartet weren’t named on the 21-man ‘List A’ squad Newcastle submitted to UEFA ahead of the competition getting underway.
UEFA rules allow clubs to submit a ‘List A’ of up to 25 players, if they include four ‘club-trained’ players. But in this instance, the Magpies could only name a squad of 21 due to the lack of club-trained players.
A club-trained player is any player registered with their current club for at least three full seasons between the ages of 15 and 21, regardless of nationality.
Ashby, Ruddy and Gillespie haven’t made an appearance for Newcastle this season, though Lascelles has come off the bench in Premier League games versus AFC Bournemouth and Arsenal.
Continue Reading