It was a somewhat philosophical Eddie Howe that met the press ahead of Tuesday’s FA Cup Fifth Round tie away to Blackburn Rovers at Ewood Park.
 
Still smarting after the manner of the performance served up by his team in Saturday’s humbling at the Emirates, Howe addressed how he felt coming off the back of such a defeat, saying; My initial analysis was very similar to how I feel now. We need to do better in lots of different areas. Normally we do. This was a difficult day for us.
With the other performances there's been a reason for it where we could work out where it came from. Pre-match I thought we'd put in a really good performance. We'd trained well and the plan was right but for whatever reason, every aspect of our game was off.”
 
And indeed, it was as few of the starting eleven of subs used came away with any credit in the bank save for his third-choice keeper Loris Karius who, despite conceding four goals, could not really be faulted for his overall performance; having been called in after Martin Dubravka was taken ill on Friday. Karius was making only his second appearance for the Magpies in 12 months; his last appearance coming in last season’s Carabao Cup final.
 
Howe takes his squad to Ewood Park with doubts lingering over the fitness of Dubravka and Sven Botman, whose recent performances have led to questions over whether there are any lingering injury fears following his surprise return to action so soon after suffering an ACL injury.
 
Speaking directly about Botman Howe said: “He had a very serious knee injury. He's came back to fitness, and I think he's improved with each game, but I think he's still working back to his very best levels. With his injury, we're monitoring it and we're hoping he's able to adapt to Premier League football. It was a very significant knee injury.”
 
“To play PL football, you have to be at your peak physical condition. He's fit to play but it was a significant injury so hopefully with a couple more weeks he'll be back to his best.”
 
“There should be no focus on Sven, the focus should be on the team. There was no one individual that let us down, we all weren't at our best against Arsenal. When you're not at your best against the very best sides, you get punished.”
 
Dubravka meanwhile remains doubtful and had little to say other than ‘We hope that he's improved and hope he's available but at this stage we're not sure.”
 
Another of our long-term absentees Joe Willock returned to first team action on Saturday evening but whether Howe will give him a start against Rovers remains to be seen. Asked specifically Howe’s response was guarded, saying; “it's a difficult one. I'll discuss at length with him. He's done a lot of work behind the scenes to get himself into this position.”
“The first time he came back and scored against Manchester United, we thought that was the moment he was going to have a huge say in our season. Unfortunately, we lost him again. I don't want to speak too soon but he made a really great return, a goalscoring return, and hopefully that's just the start.”
 
Other long term absentees Elliott Anderson and Matt Targett are now back in training, but this game comes too soon to be considered for selection. Nick Pope and Joelinton remain out with no dates set for their return. 
 
The FA Cup is Newcastle Utd’s last shout at silverware this season and this fixtures importance has not bypassed Howe. 
 
“It's a huge game for us. We're absolutely committed to the FA Cup to do well and have been all season. We've had two difficult games away from home to get to this stage and now another one. We've been looking forward to this game, so we know how important it is.”
 
Rovers meanwhile go into the tie with a new manager in John Eustace who replaced former magpie Jon Dahl Thomasson at the helm.
Eustace has overseen one defeat and three draws in is four games since taking over and while championship survival remains a priority, Eustace has noted that the team have a responsibility towards the supporters to do well in the cup.
"Blackburn Rovers have won the cup six times and it's a competition we want to take very seriously. It's another game where we could showcase ourselves and see where it takes us. It's a really exciting game, great for the fans and the players to be up against some of the top players in Europe.
 
"There's no pressure on us, so we want to go out and express ourselves and see where it takes us. Performances are improving since we came in, and we're on a good run at the moment, playing some good stuff." 
 
Competition rules dictate that the result will be settled on the night, with no replays in place for this round of the cup, therefore penalties will decide who goes into the hat for the sixth round should the teams be level after extra time; with the winners allocated ball No1.
 
Match referee is Jarred Gillett. His Assistants are Darren Cann and Wade Smith
And Fourth official is Stephen Martin. VAR is NOT in operation for this fixture.
 
KO is 7.45pm UK time. 
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                

Newcastle Utd came away from The Emirates with exactly what they deserved after putting in a performance that lacked everything that Arsenal displayed on a night to forget. 
 
From minute one to ninety, Arsenal totally dominated in every aspect of the game as they went about their business in a fashion that exemplified their position as title contenders while Newcastle failed to get possession of the ball, never mind out of first gear.
 
Having faced criticism for their performance in midweek when they floundered against Porto in their Champions league tie; Arsenal responded with a performance of high intensity from start to finish that Newcastle simply couldn’t match. 
There was an inevitability about where the points were heading when Sven Botman put the ball into his own net on 18 minutes after Gabriel’s header was saved well by Karius only for it to rebound off Botman as Livramento failed to clear his lines.
That inevitability was compounded on 24 minutes when Newcastle’s defence was again found wanting as Kai Havertz slotted home after some sloppy defending by Fabien Schar.
 
52 minutes and the game was over as a contest when Saka turned Livramento inside out once again before firing his shot across goal and seeing the ball nestle into the bottom corner having gone past at least four statuesque Newcastle defenders in the process.
 
Newcastle simply had no answer to Arsenal’s flowing football and while they did have a short period of possession that resulted in half chances for Alexander Isak and it was no surprise when the ball was once again sitting in the back of Karlus’s goal courtesy of a deflection following a corner dropped into the six yard box by Declan Rice. The goal was first attributed to Lewis Miley but that was soon overruled and awarded to Jakub Kiwior.
 
What did come as a surprise however was Newcastle’s consolation goal on 84 minutes when Joe Willock was on the end of a fine move involving Gordon, the overlapping Dan Burn with the late arriving Willock producing a looping header that flew past Raya and into the far corner.
 
For Michel Arteta it was smiles all round when he spoke to TNT Sports after the final whistle. "Everything was good. The way we started, the aggression, the positivity that we showed in our play from the beginning, the team did not want to stop. They kept going for goals. Today the atmosphere was phenomenal to play against a really really good opponent, so I'm really pleased.”
 
For Eddie Howe however this was as humiliating an evening as he has faced during his tenure at Newcastle, and he must now respond by getting a performance out of his squad when they face Blackburn Rovers in their FA Cup fifth round tie at Ewood Park on Tuesday evening if their season is not to peter out under a chorus of what ifs and ah but’s!
 
Speaking after the game Howe said "They played well, we played poorly. We're very honest with ourselves, the first 45 minutes was not good enough. We were second best and didn't react well under pressure. Sometimes you go away and you're under pressure, but we had to be stronger, withstand the pressure and it led to a disappointing 45 minutes. We can't take too many positives from today.” 
 
“From 45 to when they scored their third goal, we were good and the better team, but the goal kills the game. If we scored the next goal we're back in the game and anything can happen. But we didn't we and conceding the third summed up our recent weeks - we haven't been good enough defensively."
 
For the record perhaps Eddie might like to reflect on the fact that the period in question from 45 minutes until Arsenal scored their third goal was seven; yes, seven minutes.  
 
And if Eddie genuinely thinks that if we scored during that seven minutes the game might have become a bit of a contest then we must question what game he was watching as his team produced nothing of any significance in either that seven minute spell or the other 83 minutes plus time added on, to show that they could compete with the pace, energy or intensity that Arsenal displayed. Humiliated at the back, outpaced and outplayed in midfield and lacking any form of cutting edge upfront sums up their performance.
 
What Eddie also needs to analyse is why we played badly. What was it about his chosen 11 that collectively resulted in such a flat ‘chasing shadows’ performance. Why did Arsenal find it so easy to break through his midfield five with such ease. Why were they incapable of breaking up Arsenal’s play; why did they fail in tracking, marking, tackling, and passing. Why did his defensive unit seem so disorganised that they were incapable of completing the basics and put in a performance that made them appear that they had collectively just met for the first time on the bus on the way to the ground. 
 
He also needs to sit with his backroom team of coaches and analysts and question why his team seemed so unprepared and struggled so badly to handle Arsenal’s set piece threat; particularly as prior to last night’s game Arsenal had scored 11 goals from corners this season. 
A simple piece of research on google would have identified to Howe that Arsenal packs the six-yard box at corners more than any other team in the league; thus, causing disruption for the keeper and his fellow defenders. Their preference is generally the in-swinging corner. Cue Arsenals first and fourth goals. 
 
After such an abject performance all round it would be easy to put this down as simply a bad day at the office. Whether that assessment will wash in the boardroom however is another matter that Howe may soon be forced to grapple with.

Its back on the road time for the Newcastle United faithful as they head to the Emirates to see their team face an Arsenal still smarting from what they perceived as the injustice of their defeat at St James’ Park back in November.
 
While we don’t tend to dwell on what went before, this is obviously not the case in North London and a quick glance at the club’s official website match preview tells its own sour faced story of how big Arsenal’s chip is when it comes to Newcastle United
If you fancy a laugh, just look here. 
https://www.arsenal.com/news/preview-arsenal-v-newcastle-united-0
 
Victory would see Newcastle complete five successive away wins in all competitions; with three coming in the league and two in the FA cup. A win would also see them do the double over Arsenal for the first time since the 1994/95 season.
 
However, the Emirates is not a happy hunting ground for the magpies despite last season’s 0:0 draw as it simply broke a run of 11 successive defeats.
 
The good news coming out of NE1 however is that Alexander Isak and Joe Willock are back in the first team squad and are both in with a shout of selection, while Fabien Schar has recovered from a wrist injury sustained last weekend and is expected to start.
 
Arsenal meanwhile have Thomas Partey, Gabriel Jesus, Oleksandr Zinchenko and Takehiro Tomiyasu all doubtful through a variety of injuries.
 
All Geordie eyes will be on the Newcastle teamsheet when it is released at 7pm to see if Dan Burn retains his place ahead of Tino Livramento or if Howe makes a tactical change to counter the threat of the likes of Bukayo Saka 
 
Speaking to the press ahead of the game Howe said “I'd never go into a game taking a point, I'm just not built that way. We want to win; we will do everything in our power to go there and try to win.
"And we recognise that this is a big test for us. With Arsenal's run of scoring form in the last four games the test for us is to defend better than we have in the last four games while still bringing a threat to the game and being creative. We have been really good in that respect for the last four games. We'll need to bring that as well."
 
The referee for tonight’s game is Paul Tierney. His flag waving Assistants are Neil Davies and Nick Hopton. Fourth official is Manchester’s: Anthony Taylor. 
The VAR hut is manned by Peter Bankes, assisted by Lee Betts. Let’s hope they’ve brought their specs and slide rule.

Newcastle Utd head into Saturday’s fixture rocked by the news that the injury sustained by their striker Callum Wilson in the final minutes of last weekends game against Nottingham Forest will keep him out of action for between 9 and 12 weeks.
 
Wilson tore a pectoral muscle in a tussle with Nottingham Forest defender Moussa Niakhaté and has undergo surgery to repair the damage, and with Alexander Isak still struggling with a groin problem, it is likely that Howe is once more unable to call upon either of his recognised strikers.
 
Addressing his misfortune at being unable to call upon Wilson or Isak, Howe had this to say at his pre match press conference at Darsley Park on Friday morning. “It's hurt us. Two outstanding players who make each other better. Not having the ability to use them together has been a real negative. We have to deal with the news and adapt.”
 
And While Wilson goes under the knife, there was better news regarding Isak as Howe stated that he’s “Probably not [available] for the weekend. He's very, very, very close and looking really good. I'm really pleased with the progress he's made. Mentally he looks good so let's wait and see”.
 
Wilson has managed only 16 appearances this season with eight of those appearances coming off the bench, scoring seven goals in a season blighted first by a hamstring injury followed by a calf problem that kept him out of action throughout January, where he missed five games, including the FA cup ties against Sunderland and Fulham. 
Wilson also missed both champions league ties against PSG. He was also missing for the EFL 3rd Round tie against Manchester City back in September through injury. 
 
His fellow strike partner meanwhile has managed only 17 league games this season, returning 10 goals from 14 starts as he too has struggled with injury. In Isak’s case the problem is a recurring groin injury first encountered in the home tie against Crystal Palace back in October.
 
With Wilson unavailable long term, Newcastle will need to manage the fitness of Isak very carefully if they are going to get the best out of the striker as the season progresses. Let’s just hope coach, player and medical team are all on the same page!
 
Definitely unavailable for selection this weekend are Nick Pope and Elliott Anderson and Matt Targett, while Joe Willock looks close to being discharged from the treatment room and being available for selection. 
 
On Willock, Howe said “He's knocking on the door, very close, looking good and feeling much better. Another huge player that we're desperate to get back. He's close.”
 
Targett meanwhile is now back in light training and could be available for selection by the time Newcastle meet Blackburn Rovers in their FA Cup Fifth Round tie at the end of the month.
There is no word on the progress of long term absentee Joelinton. Jacob Murphy hasn’t trained all week therefore must be marked down at doubtful; although the same was said this time last week about Anthony Gordon and he made the starting lineup against Forest.
 
Eddie Howe will be hoping its fourth time lucky against his old club having faced Bournemouth three times in the Premier League since leaving them, and is winless in all three encounters with two draws and one defeat on his CV.
 
The danger man facing the Magpies is Dominic Solanke who has 13 Premier League goals for Bournemouth this season. However, Solanke has failed to find the net in four of his last five outings and his teams 3-1 loss at Fulham last time out made it five Premier League games without a win for the Cherries: a winless run stretching back to the start of the new year.
 
The other big talking point on Tyneside revolves around Sporting Director Dan Ashworth and whether he will depart the club for a similar role at Manchester United. And judging by Eddie Howe’s response when asked, it would appear that any deal seems to be being negotiated in the press rather than the boardroom.
Asked if there had been contact between the two clubs concerning Ashworth moving to Old Trafford, Howe said, "Nothing as far as I'm aware. Obviously, it's been in the news a lot and usually with these things that means something is going to happen. But as we speak now, we've had no contact. It's an unusual situation. I'm used to speculation around players, but this is different”.
 
And indeed, it is. As Sporting Director Ashworth has been operating at Board level where strategic decisions are developed, influenced, and made. Transfer policy, club finances, the impact of the Premier League’s Profit and Sustainability rules, player contracts and sponsorship deals; both current and planned.
 
Allowing Ashworth to simply move to a competitor is not a simple case of him emptying his desk and walking out of the door and while officially Manchester Utd have yet to approach Newcastle will play hardball when it comes to any negotiation leading to Ashworth’s departure "Of course," Howe told reporters. "It goes without saying that we're very protective of what's ours, whether that's players or staff. If people do eventually move on to other clubs, then there's a process to go through before; that is reality."
 
The match Referee for this 3pm kick off is Michael Salisbury, with Richard West and Akil Howson in the supporting roles as his two flag waving assistants. The Fourth official patrolling the technical area is Oli Langford, while the VAR hut will be manned by Rob Jones; assisted by Simon Bennett.

Eddie Howe’s Newcastle Utd lived up to their recent billing as the new Entertainers as they came away from the City Ground Nottingham with three points on a rain-soaked evening that produced five goals. 
In what was a back and forth encounter Howe’s team lead twice in a hectic first forty fiver minutes only to be pegged back by a resolute and fast paced Nottingham Forest side hell bent on doing the double over the magpies and in so doing stopping the blip that had seen them pick up only one league point out since the turn of the year; a far cry from the first two games under Nuno Espirito’s management when they gained back to back win’s against Newcastle Utd and Manchester Utd over the Christmas period.
 
Twice Newcastle went ahead with goals from Bruno Guimarães and Fabien Schar, only to be pegged back by strikes from Anthony Elanga and Callum Hudson-Odoi; the latter goal coming on the stroke of halftime.
 
Newcastle’s opener in the 10th minute came from a clever corner routine that saw Almiron play short to Kieran Tripper who whipped in a fine ball towards the far post where an unmarked Guimaraes had timed his run to perfection. The Brazilian, with both feet off the ground placed his shot beautifully with the outside of his right foot past a despairing Mat Sels; a finish that brought back memories of a similar though slightly more acrobatic finish by Paolo Di Canio all those years ago. A goal described at the time as a wonder goal!
 
Forest were level on 26 minutes when Morgan Gibbs White, seeing the entire Newcastle midfield stranded up field played a sublimely weighted pass that split the Newcastle defence into the path of the on running Anthony Elanga, whose paced saw him outrun both Dan Burn and Sven Botman before sliding his shot past the onrushing Martin Dubravka.
 
On 43 minutes Newcastle were ahead again from a free kick which was floated into the Forest box where it was met by Sven Botman. The Dutchman duly headed the ball into the path of Fabien Schar who fired past Sels to restore the lead.
 
It looked at this point that Newcastle would go into half time with a 2:1 lead but with 6 minutes of added time being played Callum Hudson Adoi, picked the ball up on the left edge of the penalty area and with nobody in a blue shirt closing him down he watched as his speculative effort on goal took a deflection off Lewis Miley to wrongfoot Dubravka and nestle into his net.
 
So; 2:2 at half time and while the travelling black and whites went for a well-earned drink to replenish their parched throats; those at home were left to question the performance not of their team but of the shockingly biased and hyper critical co-commentary Sky Pundit Andy Hinchcliffe. A man hell bent on pinning any negative word he could find on the magpies’ chests.
 
And the tv viewing public were not saved from such talk from Sky’s half time punditry aas the critical opinion of Issy Christensen and Jamie Redknapp saw both struggle to have a good word to say about Newcastle’s performance so far. Christensen in particular described Bruno’s exquisite goal as a “safe finish, just guiding the ball back across the goal” while Redknapp nodded like a little dog sitting on the dash of his father’s car as daddy conducted an impromptu piece to camera from the driver’s seat.
 
Apparently, these so-called experts get well paid too!
 
The second half started much like the latter part of the first, with Forest eager to gain the upper hand in their efforts to gain three points but they were not going to get any assistance from referee Anthony Taylor who waved away their demands for a penalty in the 60th minute after Taiwo Awoniyi ran into Dubravka's outstretched arm and claimed in doing so that the keeper had caused him to tumble down and miss out on a goalscoring opportunity. Both Taylor and his colleagues in the VAR booth disagreed. 
 
With the game starting to stretch Eddie Howe made a tactical switch that saw Guimarães move inside from the previous left midfield berth that he had previously occupied as Harvey Barnes replaced Almiron and that tweak saw the Brazilian begin to exert even more of his presence on the game in a forward central midfield role that he had in the first half down the left.
 
And six minutes later the move paid off when the Brazilian Picked off a poor pass from Elanga towards the static Gibbs White. before steadying himself, looking up and picking his spot past the forest keeper from the edge of the box.
 
Howe made a further tactical change in the 81st minute replacing Lewis Miley with Tino Livramento bringing in some fresh legs and the opportunity tighten up the back line should Forest come searching for their third equalizer of the game.
 
But that search wasn’t forthcoming, and Newcastle saw out the remaining minutes with ease; even bringing on Emil Krafth for Anthony Gordon in time added on.
 
Bruno was rightly named man of the match for what was a wonderful performance. Two goals; a grin as wide as the Tyne and fears of any release clause forgotten in the joy of watching him simply exude his wonderful presence in a Newcastle shirt.
 
The Victory lifted Newcastle up to seventh in the table 11 points off fourth placed Spurs and speaking after the game Bruno told Sky Sports "We have to get Europe again, try for Champions League, I know it's difficult but definitely for Europa League."
 
And Captain Kieran Tripper, who had a fine game reiterated Bruno’s opinion saying Newcastle have a "never say never" attitude towards qualifying for Europe's premier competition.
 

Newcastle Utd travel to the East midlands on Saturday to face Nottingham Forest in the televised 5:30pm game courtesy of Sky Sports.
 
And while Howe’s team are coming into the game after a relatively successful run of results the situation is slightly different for Forest head coach Nuno Espirito Santo whose side has won only two of their past 12 league matches, earning one point out of a possible nine in 2024.
 
However, they are looking to do the double over the Magpies having come away from their boxing Day visit to St James’ Park with all three points in a 3:1 win. Victory would see them achieve this feat for the first time since their 1977-78 title-winning season under the great Brian Clough. 
 
But if history is an obstacle, then Forest will be aware that Newcastle are unbeaten in seven top-flight visits to the City Ground since a 2-1 defeat there in May 1987.
 
Also at stake is the fact that Newcastle Utd are vying to win four consecutive away matches in all competitions for the first time since November 2016 when they were in the Championship. They last managed it as a top-flight club in November 2003.
 
The big blight on Newcastle’s season to date has been injuries and that is no different this weekend, with Anthony Gordon ruled out with an ankle injury and Alexander Isak still struggling and unavailable due to a groin problem. 
 
Joe Willock, Elliott Anderson, Matt Targett, Jamaal Lascelles remain unavailable along with Nick Pope, Joelinton and Sandro Tonali. 
 
On a positive note, Callum Wilson suffered no adverse reaction from being thrust into the team following Gordon’s withdrawal at half time last weekend, has train all week and looks likely to be in the starting lineup when Howe names his team at 4:30pm on Saturday afternoon.
 
And another positive is that Harvey Barnes is also available for selection having been out since August with a foot injury.  Speaking of Barnes, who scored after coming on last weekend against Luton Town, Howe said “He's worked incredibly hard. He's had a lot of frustration because he was working hard but was feeling sensations in his foot. What a finish that was. He only had a small part of the goal to aim for and he finished it brilliantly. That moment summed up what we've missed. We haven't had those options”.
 
Forest meanwhile will be without former magpie Chris Wood through injury and club captain Joe Worrall who has joined Besiktas on loan until the end of the season. International commitments rule out Ibrahim Sangare, Willy Boly (both Ivory Coast) and Ola Aina (Nigeria) as their relative countries face each other in the AFCON final on Sunday.
 
The big football talking point on tyneside this week has been whether Howe needs to make a tactical change and restore the speedier and more mobile Tino Livramento in place of Dan Burn in the left back berth. Opinions vary and Howe had this to say when questioned on the matter of Dan Burn’s position within the team by the media at his pre match press conference on Friday morning.
 
I understand it happens. Everyone has an opinion. Dan has been such a big player for us. He's pivotal to how we play in lots of different ways.
That's why he was such a big miss when we lost him to injury. He's also a huge leader in the group. A very big presence. He's been an incredible signing for me and much better than I could have hoped. He's still helping galvanise the group. I can't speak highly enough of him”.
 
Howe also praised Livramento saying: “He's an outstanding player. That's why I fought so hard to sign him. His best years are ahead of him. I'm the biggest fan of him. His primary position is RB and he's fighting with Kieran. But he will no doubt get his time and hopefully play a lot of games for this club.
I love him at left-back as well. I think he's done extremely well there. He's been incredible in that position”.
 
Match Referee is Anthony Taylor. His Assistants are Gary Beswick, Adam Nunn. Fourth official is Darren Bond. VAR is overseen this weekend by Tony Harrington and his assistant Darren Cann.
 
Enjoy the game
 

Newcastle Utd returns to action on Saturday afternoon when they face Luton Town at St James’ Park in what is a 3pm GMT kick off.
 
The Magpies will be hoping to extend their winning formula with a home win after successive wins on their travels against premier league opposition. 
 
With the transfer window now closed for the remainder of the season a relieved Eddie Howe will be happy to now get on with the task of keeping that run going, collecting league points, and keeping the pressure on those teams around them.
 
Speaking ahead of the closing of the window closing, Howe was quoted as saying "I expect to be finished for the window," 
"I think there's now very little time left to be able to do anything, whether in or out. That's where it stands”.
"I don't think we have the ability to do anything. As far as I know at the moment, there's nothing going to happen, although there's still time left."

​One player who did depart was Isaac Hayden who has joined QPR on loan while the only incoming deal has seen youngster Alfie Harrison joining the club from Man City on a deal until 2026.
Howe was absent from press match press conference duties due to feeling unwell and his place was taken in the hot seat by Jason Tindall, giving the awaiting press corp an opportunity to discuss his nickname, his role in setting up the post-match photo opportunities that accompany each victory; the importance of pre and post-match handshakes between coaches and the soon to be hot topic of chocolate for shirts. It seems the northeast press have a long way to go before Pulitzer Prizes wing their way to Tyneside!
 
Given the injuries that have blighted the season, with upwards of half of the squad being unavailable over the last few months it is testimony to Howe and his backroom staff that the team is still within touching distance of a European slot as well as reaching the last 16 of the FA Cup. 
 
And Tindall was able to say that Harvey Barnes is not far from being available for selection while Joe Willock is just a few steps behind in his recovery. Elliott Anderson however remains unavailable as he continues his recuperation from a stress fracture to his back.
 
Tuesday’s encounter at Villa Park saw Alexander added to the injury list when he left the field on 43 minutes to be replaced by Miggy Almiron and while early indications suggested the injury is not serious, Isak was not expected to make the line up on Saturday afternoon. However, Tindall indicated that a late call will be made on the Swede just before the team sheet has to be handed in.
 
And the brighter news on the strikers continues with Tindall reporting that Callum Wilson getting closer to full fitness. He could make the bench
 
Luton Town arrive on Tyneside fresh from a resounding 4:0 trouncing of Brighton on Tuesday evening with Elijah Adebayo claiming a hat-trick in a game that saw the Hatters lift themselves out of the relegation zone.
 
Pulling the strings for Luton is former Everton, Chelsea, and England midfielder Ross Barkley while hat-trick hero Elijah Adebayo, who was ­playing in League Two three years ago is certainly one to watch.
 
Two returning former Magpies in the Luton squad are Tim krul and Andros Townsend.
 
The Referee for this fixture is Tom Bramall and his Assistants are Mat Wilkes, Mark Scholes and Fourth official: Oliver Langford. 
The VAR hut will be manned by Michael Salisbury. Assisted, if that is the operative word, by Akil Howson.
 
Enjoy The Game.