Joe Willock and Harvey Barnes of NEWCASTLE UNITED will not be available until the beginning of January at the earliest.
Willock is now out with an Achilles injury, while Barnes suffered a foot injury in the early stages of Sheffield United’s eight-goal hammering in September.
The pair are still a long way from full training, with Eddie Howe not expecting them back in the first-team fold until the new year.
Howe said: “Joe is in a period where he’s had a couple of injections in his Achilles, which has been a long-standing problem for him.
“It’s a difficult injury and we’re obviously in the process of getting him back fit, but I don’t think he’ll be back this side of January.
“That will be the same for Harvey. He didn’t have surgery on his foot. The specialist felt he would be okay, and we’re still hoping it will not be longer term and he won’t need an operation, but we’re still in that phase where we’re going to see whether he’s going to come back or not.”
On a more optimistic note, Howe believes Anthony Gordon will be cleared to play in Newcastle United’s home game against Fulham tomorrow afternoon.
Gordon had hamstring strain during Wednesday’s home loss to AC Milan and was replaced midway through the second half as the Magpies were eliminated from the Champions League.
The injury is still a concern, but as a rapid healer, Howe believes the winger will be able to play at St James’ Park tomorrow.
“Anthony is usually very quick at recovering from different things,” Newcastle’s head coach stated, “so we’ll see how he is today.”
Howe will be without suspended full-back Kieran Trippier, who received his fifth booking of the season in last weekend’s loss to Tottenham.
However, Dan Burn came on as a second-half substitute in the defeat to AC Milan, and he might earn his first start since the beginning of November this weekend.
Howe said: “It’s massive having Dan back. It’s not just the player, it’s the character too. It’s the leadership skills you get in the dressing room, and his vast experience as well.
“He’s allowed us to play a certain way. Dan’s been an important part of what we’ve done, and we’ve missed him since he’s been away.
“We’ve missed him physically too. There’s no denying his physical strengths and capabilities, particularly with set-plays for and against, so he’s been a big player for us.”
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