Newcastle boss Eddie Howe has confirmed that two of his star players are set to miss the upcoming Premier League tie against Manchester United on Sunday afternoon.
After Manchester United’s pending Europa League clash with Olympique Lyonnais, the Red Devils will travel to St. James’ Park for their Premier League fixture against Newcastle United on Sunday.
It has been a historic campaign for the Magpies as they have ended a 70-year-long trophy drought after defeating an uninspired Liverpool in the Carabao Cup final. However, the final few games of the season for the club turning out to be a real challenge due to injury woes.
On the other hand, injuries have haunted Rúben Amorim’s side as well. The Portuguese manager barely has many options left on his side as the season-ending is in the bay.
Eddie Howe’s recent statements about Newcastle missing out on key players will be a massive boost for the United fans as they face Newcastle this Sunday.
Newcastle set to miss £65m duo
Newcastle defeated Leicester City on Monday to move in to the 5th position in the Premier League table. Eddie Howe’s side have their eyes on the Champions League qualification next season. Their next hurdle in that path, they meet Amorim’s United this Sunday.
The 20-time Premier League winners have struggled with consistency this season. There’s no doubt that Amorim’s side have been the subject to scrutiny on multiple occasions by the club legends and the United loyals.
However, in a boost for Amorim, Howe has confirmed that both Joe Willock and Anthony Gordon will miss the fixture. Newcastle signed Willock for £25 million from Arsenal in 2021, while Gordon joined for an initial £40 million from Everton in January 2023.
Speaking about the injuries, Howe said: “Anthony wasn’t close [to playing against Leicester]. He hasn’t been able to train with us yet.
“He’s still feeling the effects of that tackle with England. We hope that we may see him soon, but I’ve got no certainty on that.”
Further, after Newcastle confirmed that Willock had missed the Leicester fixture due to a concussion, Howe later confirmed that “Joe’s concussion means I don’t think he will make the weekend.”
What’s next for the Red Devils?
While the injury woes of Newcastle United are certainly a boost for Amorim’s side, as of now their focus is on the Europa League fixture.
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United meet Lyon this Thursday, and they look forward to having a first-leg advantage in this quarter-final fixture before welcoming Paulo Fonseca’s men to Old Trafford seven days later.
They travel to St. James’ Park three days after the Lyon tie for their Premier League fixture. A win in the first leg of the European fixture will surely add the momentum to their side for Sunday.
Although United sit firmly 13th in the league table, Amorim will be looking to use the Premier League to create momentum ahead of their fight to head to the Europa League final next month.
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