After a tough trip to the capital, Newcastle are back at St James’ Park to take on Everton.
We weren’t at the races last week, falling to a 2-0 defeat against West Ham.
The Toffees will provide another tough task, but that doesn’t mean we can’t get a result. Marco Silva’s side haven’t been great lately, although they did hold Liverpool to a 0-0 draw last week.
Our home form has also improved massively, and we can make it five home wins on the bounce with victory on Saturday. So who will Rafa Benitez start with?
Yedlin to return?
DeAndre Yedlin has spent the past two games on the bench.
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He was replaced by Javi Manquillo against Burnley, and the Spaniard retained his place against the Hammers. Manquillo has done okay, but Saturday should see the American return.
Yedlin offers a much greater threat going forward and should be restored to the starting XI. His pace can cause Everton problems, with Lucas Digne often leaving space in behind.
Who replaces Longstaff against Everton?
We received some cruel news during the week. Sean Longstaff is likely to miss the rest of the season due to injury.
It’s devastating for the youngster, but hands an opportunity to someone else. That man should be Mo Diame.
He came on at half time last week, and actually did very well. Alongside Isaac Hayden, we should have enough to stop Everton dictating play from the middle of the park.
Perez deserves another chance
After a recent upturn in fortune, Ayoze Perez is struggling once again.
However, he should not be dropped against the Toffees. The Spanish forward is a much better option than Christian Atsu or Yoshinori Muto, so should keep his place alongside Miguel Almiron and Salomon Rondon.
Hopefully the trio have a bit more joy than they did against West Ham.
Predicted lineup to face Everton: Dubravka; Schar, Lascelles, Lejeune; Yedlin, Diame, Hayden, Ritchie; Perez, Almiron, Rondon.