Eddie Howe was present at the Newcastle United Foundation Awards dinner on Tuesday night, where he was inducted into the club’s Hall of Fame after four years of brilliant work on Tyneside.
At the event, Howe spoke to a few members of the local media, briefly chatting to BBC Newcastle’s Matthew Raisbeck and Sky Sports’ Pete Graves.
Along with discussing our work behind the scenes over the break and Saturday’s big test at home to Man City, the boss offered an update on the fitness of Anthony Gordon, Nick Pope, Sandro Tonali, Tino Livramento, Lewis Hall and Yoane Wissa.
Speaking to Raisbeck, Howe revealed that Gordon is ‘touch and go’ for Saturday, but Tonali and Pope are fine and Livramento and Hall are both being nursed back, although Hall’s chances look improved after a strong international break with England’s U21s.
Wissa is ‘still out’ and won’t make Saturday’s game, but he’s ‘starting to up his work now’, with Howe feeling the squad is finally in a ‘healthier place’ heading into a busy run of games over the next six weeks:
“We have a bit of a mixed bag.
“Anthony [Gordon] we will wait and see, it will be touch and go for the [Manchester City] game.
Sandro [Tonali] should be fine. Nick [Pope] had concussion but he has passed the protocols there, so he should be fine.
“We have still got a few who we are nursing back. Tino Livramento, Lewis Hall in the early stages – although he has made a couple of really good appearances. Yoane Wissa is still out but starting to up his work now.
“So yeah, we are looking in a healthier place.”
So, it’s a wait and see with Gordon, good news on Tonali and Pope, a shame that Wissa is still not ready and an update that gives little away on Livramento and Hall’s readiness to return.
However, with Hall back in the squad in recent weeks and Dan Burn suspended, I’d be surprised if he wasn’t back in Howe’s XI against City this Saturday, with Aaron Ramsdale also pushing for a start in goal after Pope’s missed much of the last week’s training due to concussion rules.
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