Predicted Newcastle team v Tottenham – These two changes

Looking at this Newcastle team v Tottenham.

Eddie Howe and his team looking to make it six Premier League wins in seven games.

Those very uplifting performances and wins against Wolves, Forest, Man U, West Ham and Brentford, followed by that setback at Aston Villa.

So what can we expect the Newcastle team v Tottenham to be?

As a starting point…

This was the Newcastle team v Aston Villa:

Pope, Trippier, Schar, Botman, Burn, Bruno,, Joelinton, Murphy, Willock, Gordon, Isak

Emil Krafth is still on the injured list and Eddie Howe confirmed on Friday that ASM is still in France, as he manages a hamstring issue, but the Head Coach saying the winger is expected back at the training ground next week. Whilst Ryan Fraser continues to train with the Under 21s.

Other than that though, it appears that the Head Coach is going to have a pretty much full squad to choose from. With Eddie Howe confirming that the likes of Bruno Guimaraes, Sean Longstaff and Miguel Almiron are all available.

Nick Pope made some great saves to keep Newcastle in the game last weekend and indeed keep the score down, as Villa played well from first minute to last.

As to who plays in front of him, I think it is business as usual.

On Friday morning Eddie Howe was asked about the possibility of bringing Matt Targett in and said that he wouldn’t rule it out. However, at the same time, the Head Coach said that having a settled back four was a big advantage and he wouldn’t make the decision to break it up lightly.

I think for such a massive match as this one, I don’t think Eddie Howe will rest Burn. Maybe midweek at Everton we could see it happen with three games in a week?

To be honest, I wouldn’t be at all surprised if / when Targett is given a start, that we could even see Botman as the one given a rest and Burn moved inside for a match. Not saying Botman should be left out but I think maybe more likely that as a young player in his first Premier League season, Howe could see him as the one to be given a break.

With Bruno given a clean bill of health, we can expect to see him and Joelinton start for sure.

Up front, I think Alexander Isak is clearly the first choice striker and with Eddie Howe very unlikely to play both, Callum Wilson will be on the bench. With Newcastle playing Sunday / Thursday / Sunday, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Wilson start against Everton and Isak come off the bench, with Eddie Howe rotating and trying to ensure he keeps all his squad available and at their most effective.

Like most of his teammates, Joe Willock wasn’t great at Villa, however, I think he starts on Sunday.

Leaving two spots in the starting eleven.

For my money, Eddie Howe appeared to make clear that Sean Longstaff will definitely play against Tottenham. The Geordie midfielder had started 22 PL matches in a row before dropping to the bench at Villa as illness had prevented him training.

Miguel Almiron was back from injury last weekend and looked bright when he came on.

Again, such a big game against Tottenham, I think Eddie Howe will want the players on the pitch who have been the ones he has relied on week in week out.

So I think Anthony Gordon and Jacob Murphy will make way, as Almiron and Longstaff come back in.

So my predicted Newcastle United team v Tottenham:

Pope, Trippier, Schar, Botman, Burn, Bruno, Joelinton, Longstaff, Willock, Almiron, Isak