Newcastle United boss Steve Bruce promises a strong side despite having 10 players injured.
The Magpies lost four players against Leicester City due to injury on New Year’s Day. Jetro Willems, Fabian Schar, Jonjoe Shelvey and Javier Manquillo all came off against the Foxes which saw the Magpies play with 10 men for a lot of the second half.
Paul Dummett, Ciaran Clark, Jamaal Lascelles, Allan Saint-Maximin, Matt Ritchie and DeAndre Yedlin are other casualties for Newcastle but the latter two have a chance of making the squad. Bruce seemed gutted about the injuries but was still confident of playing a strong side against the lower league side on Saturday.
He said: “We’ll play as strong as we possibly can. I said when I walked through the door that the FA Cup is the FA Cup. I would love to be able to freshen us up and do this, that and the other, but when you’ve got injuries there’s always an opportunity.”
“I think Longy (Sean Longstaff) came in this time last year because of injuries, and look what’s happened to that boy. We’ve still got to be strong, do our best, and see if we can progress to the next round,” Bruce said.
Longstaff’s stock has certainly gone up since being introduced into the squad last year. A few other Magpies youngsters could get a chance this weekend but with a number of injured players expected to return very soon, it is unlikely that they will get the same kind of opportunities as Longstaff did last season.
A win tomorrow will certainly increase the levels which is necessary for the club after just one win in their last five league games. As important as a win is, the last thing Bruce will want at this point is more injuries which could force him to be a lot more conservative with his starting lineup despite his promise of playing a strong side.
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