Newcastle United performed well last week against Burnley and as such it would be odd for Eddie Howe to make too many changes.
That being said, we are about to kick off a three-game week in the middle of which is a huge game against Manchester United, so Howe's thoughts may be to save some big hitters for that game.
We're thinking, though, that Howe will go mostly unchanged with the only difference being that Nick Pope will be between the sticks this week.
It's harsh on Dubravka who has done well in the last few games, but at the end of the day Nick Pope is first-choice 'keeper and could also get back into the England squad for the Euros if he does well in the final three games. Dubravka is a shoo-in for the Slovakia squad so it's less important that he plays to prove himself.
Nick Pope - Popey made his return to the bench last week and we expect he will step up to the starting lineup this week for the reasons mentioned above.
Tino Livramento - Kieran Trippier may be back on the bench, but he'll certainly not be starting which means Tino will keep his place.
Emil Krafth - Fabian Schar denied he'd be out for the rest of the season, but he'll certainly not be fit for tomorrow.
Dan Burn - Suddenly an absolute rock at the back, moving back to centre-back has done wonders for the stand-in captain.
Lewis Hall - The former Chelsea man will get another chance to show why we've spent so much money on him.
Sean Longstaff - We debated putting Joelinton in from the start but Longy scored last week and it would be harsh to drop him. We'll save Big Joe for Man United.
Bruno Guimaraes - Come on, do we really need to justify his inclusion at this point?
Jacob Murphy - Like Longstaff, the idea of replacing him crossed our minds, but two assists last week can't be overlooked.
Alexander Isak - Will likely sit behind Callum Wilson and roam across the front like an angry tiger waiting to pounce
Anthony Gordon - You just can't drop him this season. Even if his leg was hanging off I'd still want him on the pitch.
Callum Wilson - Like Nick Pope, Wilson could play his way into Gareth Southgate's England squad. Two goals in his last three outings is a good start.
Newcastle's bench will be a tasty affair again with Joelinton, Miguel Almiron, Harvey Barnes and possibly Kieran Trippier available to turn the game or turn the screw depending on how things are going.
Brighton have some big players missing with hat trick hero Evan Ferguson out injured so he won't be able to haunt us like he did at the Amex. They're also missing Solly March, Pervis Estupinian, Kaoru Mitoma and Tariq Lampety.
It's our last home game of the season, so we absolutely must win for the fans. Should Newcastle score they will be the only Premier League side to score in every home game this season too. Howay the lads!
PL | GD | PTS | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
1 |
Liverpool
|
14 | 18 | 35 |
2 |
Chelsea
|
15 | 17 | 31 |
3 |
Arsenal
|
15 | 14 | 29 |
4 |
Manchester City
|
15 | 6 | 27 |
5 |
Nottingham Forest
|
15 | 1 | 25 |
6 |
Aston Villa
|
15 | 0 | 25 |
7 |
Brighton
|
15 | 3 | 24 |
8 |
Bournemouth
|
15 | 3 | 24 |
9 |
Brentford
|
15 | 3 | 23 |
10 |
Fulham
|
15 | 2 | 23 |
11 |
Tottenham Hotspur
|
15 | 12 | 20 |
12 |
Newcastle United
|
15 | -2 | 20 |
13 |
Manchester United
|
15 | 1 | 19 |
14 |
West Ham United
|
15 | -8 | 18 |
15 |
Everton
|
14 | -7 | 14 |
16 |
Leicester
|
15 | -9 | 14 |
17 |
Crystal Palace
|
15 | -6 | 13 |
18 |
Ipswich
|
15 | -13 | 9 |
19 |
Wolves
|
15 | -15 | 9 |
20 |
Southampton
|
15 | -20 | 5 |