Eddie Howe confirms £12m player will return for Newcastle United vs Arsenal, he must start

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Eddie Howe has confirmed an injury boost ahead of Newcastle United’s Premier League game against Arsenal.

The Magpies continue their busy schedule against the Gunners on Sunday, as they face off at St James’ Park.

Both sides go into the game on the back of Carabao Cup victories. Newcastle beat Bradford City, while Arsenal knocked out Port Vale.

Howe made multiple changes to his Newcastle United side for the game against Bradford, and more changes are on the horizon this weekend. Sandro Tonali should return to the starting XI, while Howe has confirmed that one player will be back after sitting out Wednesday night’s cup clash.

Eddie Howe says Jacob Murphy is ‘available’ to face Arsenal

Eddie Howe has spoken to the media ahead of Newcastle United vs Arsenal.

He has confirmed that Jacob Murphy could be involved after he was left out of the Newcastle United squad that beat Bradford.

“We have a couple of players to check today,” he said.

“No major injuries from the game.

“Jacob [Murphy] is doing okay, it is an issue we are managing. He is fit and available, but some days he has been sore, so we are just trying to manage his load.”

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Jacob Murphy must start for Newcastle United against Arsenal

Having confirmed that he is available, Howe should restore Murphy to his starting XI on Sunday.

The £12million winger has enjoyed a decent start to the season, with Murphy helping himself to two assists so far. They were impressive assists too, teeing up Nick Woltemade and Anthony Gordon against Wolves and Barcelona respectively.

His delivery out wide is going to be a key source of creativity, and Newcastle proved last year that they can hurt Arsenal with crosses from out wide. It was a whipped in ball from Anthony Gordon’s right foot that allowed Alexander Isak to score the winner in this fixture last season.

Murphy can provide that same level of quality, while he feels better positioned to cause problems against the Gunners than Anthony Elanga. He is still finding his feet in black and white, having put in an inconsistent performance against Bradford on Wednesday night.