Three new injury/fitness updates to cover when Newcastle United hosts Manchester United: Anthony Gordon, Matthijs de Ligt and Toby Collyer. We start with the home side, and their forward star forward who is battling a hip problem.
Gordon faces a late fitness test in order to be fit to feature in the Sunday matinee.
Man United vs Newcastle United FYIs
Kick: Sun. April 13. 4:30pm, St. James Park, Newcastle, UK
Starting Lineup Predictions: Man United Newcastle United
Google Result Probability: Man United 19% Draw 22% Newcastle United 59%
PL Form: Man United LLWLL Newcastle United WLWWW
PL Standing: Man United 14th, 22 pts Newcastle United 5th 53 pts
Team News for Both Sides
“He’s had a decent week with the physios,” manager Eddie Howe said earlier today, regarding Gordon.
“He was back out on grass for a session yesterday, so we’ll assess him today to see how he’s responded to that. Then we’ll have to make a late call on whether he’s available for Sunday.”
You can say he’s 50/50 to be in the squad.
Howe ruled out Joe Willock (head/face injury) earlier in the week. And if course, Lewis Hall is done for the season while Sven Botman and Jamal Lascelles are still hoping to be back in action sometime next month.
Moving on to United, we’ll start with De Ligt, who is battling a substantial injury in his football.
His timeline for return is unknown, with United manager Ruben Amorim giving an update ahead of the score draw with Lyon.
“Matta has a problem in his foot, we are trying to assess,” Amorim said. “We still don’t have the data that he can return.”
In the same session, Amorim also disclosed the information that Collyer suffered a leg injury that will keep him out for most of the rest of the season.
“Toby has a small issue in his leg, so we hope to have him in a few weeks,” he said.
You got to love it- “small issue,” even though it will keep him out for a month or more.
Doesn’t really sound “small” does it?
And then finally, Ayden Heaven, Jonny Evans, Amad Diallo and Lisandro Martinez remain out long-term.
Paul M. Banks is the Founding Editor of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He currently contributes to USA Today’s NFL Wires Network. His past bylines include the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, the Washington Post and ESPN. You can follow him on Linked In and Twitter.