Could Newcastle drop Allan Saint-Maximin versus Chelsea?

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Things won’t get any easier when Newcastle face Chelsea this weekend.

The Magpies are still without a win in all competitions and sit second bottom in the Premier League.

While Newcastle did look a bit more solid at Crystal Palace last week, Graeme Jones’ side never looked like winning.

The interim Toon boss will be up against it again this weekend when European champions Chelsea arrive at St James’ Park.

Jones set his side up to be solid at Selhurst Park last time out, and it seems likely that he will do exactly the same against Thomas Tuchel’s men. If anything, Newcastle need to be even more defensive to get something out of the game.

But could that mean bad news for Toon talisman Allan Saint-Maximin?

Newcastle may need to drop Allan Saint-Maximin vs Chelsea

Jones used a 3-5-2 formation against Crystal Palace, and admitted afterwards that he wanted to play two up top which is why Joelinton sat on the bench.

But is he going to go with a front two again up against one of the best teams in the world?

It seems highly unlikely. It feels much more probable that Newcastle will go with a 5-4-1 formation, similar to what they used at Old Trafford earlier in the season.

On that day, Joelinton and Miguel Almiron played out wide while Saint-Maximin operated as a lone striker.

But that was when Callum Wilson was injured. The number nine is back now, and in decent form with two goals in two games since his return. There’s surely no way he won’t start against Chelsea.

While Saint-Maximin is an incredible player who can do astonishing things with a ball at his feet, is there much value in him being on the pitch if we barely have possession?

On top of that, he’s not the most switched on defensively. We saw against Tottenham when he played out wide that he doesn’t want to do the dirty side of the game.

So perhaps Jones will take a big gamble against Chelsea and start with Saint-Maximin on the bench.

The longer Newcastle stay in the game, the more chance they have of getting a result. That’s when the Frenchman can come on. A fresh Saint-Maximin could cause real damage off the bench.

It seems astonishing to suggest that Saint-Maximin should be dropped, but with Newcastle desperately scrapping for points, perhaps this is a game where the 24-year-old isn’t required for the full 90 minutes.