Eddie Howe does not know if £4m Newcastle player will be fit enough to face Blackburn

Add as preferred source on Google

It remains unclear who will start in goal for Newcastle United in Tuesday night’s FA Cup clash with Blackburn Rovers.

Eddie Howe is expected to go full strength in the FA Cup, having described the match at Ewood Park as Newcastle’s biggest of the season so far.

The Magpies will put out their strongest available team, but it remains to be seen who his best available goalkeeper will be.

It certainly will not be Nick Pope, as he is still out of action due to a shoulder injury. However, a return is not too far away.

As for his replacement Martin Dubravka, his status for Tuesday night is up in the air.

Martin Dubravka could miss Blackburn vs Newcastle

That is because the 35-year-old is struggling with illness right now. He was not well enough to play against Arsenal, which led to Loris Karius making just his second ever Toon appearance. Interestingly, it came a year after his first, as that was in the Carabao Cup final defeat to Manchester United last season.

After that, Karius immediately lost his place in the team. However, there is a chance he could actually start back-to-back games on this occasion.

That is because Howe has been unable to confirm if Dubravka will be back for the game against Blackburn Rovers.

“We hope that he’s improved and is available for selection but at this moment we don’t know,” he said.

Possibly another opportunity for Loris Karius

If Dubravka remains unavailable then it will be Karius in between the sticks. That will not fill fans with too much confidence, as he was far from convincing during the defeat to Arsenal.

While he certainly was not to blame for the result or the performance, Karius certainly did not cover himself in glory on his Premier League debut for Newcastle.

But now an FA Cup appearance could be on the cards, and the 30-year-old actually might benefit from a sustained run in the side.

However, you have to imagine that Howe will go with Dubravka at Ewood Park if the £4million stopper is deemed fit enough to feature.