Nick Woltemade of Newcastle United arrives at the stadium prior to the Premier League match between Newcastle United and Everton at St James' Park on February 28, 2026 in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. (Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images)placeholder image
Nick Woltemade of Newcastle United arrives at the stadium prior to the Premier League match between Newcastle United and Everton at St James' Park on February 28, 2026 in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. (Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Newcastle United illness blow confirmed ahead of kick-off against Manchester United.
St James’ Park has been a fortress for the Magpies under Eddie Howe but head into the game on the back of three consecutive home defeat in the Premier League.
While there has been success in cups, with a FA Cup fifth round tie at home to Manchester City and two-legged last 16 Champions League tie against Barcelona to look forward to, Eddie Howe’s side have rarely got going in the league.
Heading into the final 10 matches of the campaign, Newcastle’s hopes of qualifying for Europe are hanging by a thread as they sit 12 points behind the top five and eight points below seventh.
When Wallsend-born Michael Carrick took interim charge of Man United in January, the two teams were level on points. Now the Red Devils are 15 points clear with Carrick winning six and drawing one of his seven games in charge.
But Newcastle have had Man United’s number on Tyneside of late, and they will hope that continues tonight.
Newcastle United illness blow confirmed
A bizarre situation at the weekend saw Jacob Ramsey taken off shortly before half-time. The midfielder - who scored in the opening 45 minutes - appeared to be vomiting as he prepared to step onto the field.
On a positive note, Ramsey is in the squad for the visit of Man United, however, club-record signing Woltemade is confirmed missing due to a sickness bug.
“Jacob was in yesterday training fine,” Howe told reporters on Tuesday. “A quick recovery from him. There’s obviously something, an illness, potentially there in the squad because Nick Woltemade has come down ill and we haven't seen him for a couple of days. Let’s see - we’ll give him every chance.”
Nick Woltemade in focus at Newcastle United
Woltemade’s absence comes at a time when the German has been under intense scrutiny.
An electric start at St James’ Park saw the German net four goals in his first five Premier League matches. However, the goal trail has dried up, with Woltemade netting just once in his previous 18 games across all competitions. He has also started the recent matches in midfield.
“I speak to the players, not necessarily on a daily basis but I'll be having meetings with them throughout the week on various things usually associated with their game and trying to help them review games. I've done a lot of that with Nick.
“Nick's in a relatively decent place with his game. It's so funny how one performance or one bad game can suddenly bring a string or a cloud around a player. Nick's performances, if you look at them again with a more holistic viewpoint, I think he's been excellent in recent games.
“I've been pleased with him. Yes, he's maybe not getting the goals that he was in the early season but I think his all-round game is better than it was. I'm sort of oblivious, as I said so many times before, to the outside opinion.
“I would be saying the same as the national team manager, not necessarily to relax but to carry on, enjoy your football, play your way. He's got outstanding qualities. I think he'll only get better for us as time goes on.”
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