At his media briefing on Friday, Eddie Howe outlined details regarding who will and won’t be ready.
The Newcastle head coach confirmed that, as anticipated, Alexander Isak will not feature this afternoon.
Jacob Ramsey will also not be registered in time to play, against the club he is set to leave.
Meanwhile, Howe stated Joe Willock is close to making his injury comeback but is not yet fit enough for selection today.
Other than that, Eddie Howe assured reporters that the remainder of the Newcastle United squad is available.
This gives the chance for Anthony Elanga, Aaron Ramsdale or Malick Thiaw to potentially make their competitive NUFC bows at Villa Park.
Taking all of this into account, here’s how I expect Newcastle’s starting side v Aston Villa to shape up on Saturday:
Nick Pope, Kieran Trippier, Fabian Schar, Dan Burn, Tino Livramento, Sandro Tonali, Bruno Guimaraes, Joelinton, Harvey Barnes, Anthony Gordon, Anthony Elanga
I believe Aaron Ramsdale may eventually become the first-choice keeper this campaign, but Nick Pope should get the nod today.
Although Howe confirmed every defender is available, Lewis Hall and Sven Botman have only recently recovered from injuries and will likely begin on the bench, as they need further time to regain sharpness. New arrival Malick Thiaw is also expected to be among the substitutes.
That leaves a relatively simple decision of Schar and Burn partnering centrally, Trippier slotting in at right-back and Tino Livramento on the left side.
Without Isak and with no striker signing completed, Anthony Gordon is set to operate as a false nine. He’ll lead the line but roam freely. He impressed in pre-season when Howe tested him there. Not ideal, though not the worst solution either.
This allows Harvey Barnes to occupy his natural role on the left flank.
And while Jacob Murphy has performed well in warm-up games, Anthony Elanga is tipped to begin on the right.
With no natural senior striker available (apart from Will Osula, who will sit on the bench), I expect the attacking trio to rotate positions often, with an emphasis on filling the box and capitalising on quality service into dangerous areas.
