Ayoze Perez has been phenomenal in recent weeks, with injury not even able to stop him.
The forward picked up a knock when dribbling past the Brighton defence on Saturday, which eventually ended his evening. However, he persisted with the injury to begin with, putting Newcastle ahead with his fifth goal in three games.
And what a goal it was, expertly finding the top corner after Salomon Rondon’s knockdown.
But that would be Perez’s only real contribution, eventually coming off in the 33rd minute.
It was a massive blow for Rafa Benitez, but it looks like he won’t have to worry about making a change when Liverpool head to town.
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Encouraging news about Perez
This is huge for the Magpies, with Miguel Almiron already ruled out. The thought of taking on Jurgen Klopp’s team without two of our usual front three wasn’t promising.
We didn’t look as threatening once Perez came off on Saturday, showing how important he has become.
Getting a result against Liverpool will be massively tough, as the Reds go in pursuit of the Premier League title. Only a win will do for them.
With our safety confirmed, there is nothing riding on the game for us. But it would be a bit of a foregone conclusion if Rondon’s usual partners up top were missing. Thankfully, it looks like just one of the three amigos will be missing.