Early preview: Newcastle must find a route to goal against Wolves

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Newcastle face a tricky home game with Wolves on Sunday, with a lack of goals, or even a threat of scoring, being the big problem ahead of the game.

It is a conundrum Steve Bruce simply must resolve if he is to put a run of results together, and one he can find an answer to if he decides to hand a first start of the season to Andy Carroll.

With a consecutive run of winnable games ahead for the first time this season, the coming weeks will have a large say in determining Newcastle’s fate in May.

Wolves will arrive on Tyneside having had to go to Slovakia for a Europa League game with Slovan Bratislava on Thursday, so it will be up to Newcastle to take advantage of any travel-weariness and fatigue that may be suffered by their opponents.

Early team news

Newcastle are likely to still be without Matt Ritchie, as he continues his recovery from minor surgery on his persistent injury following the awful tackle he received against Leicester in the EFL Cup.

Florian Lejeune continues his pursuit of a first-team recall after his long spell on the sidelines, and could be handed a spot on the bench against Wolves.

Isaac Hayden is also absent, with him sitting out the final game of his three match ban.

Defender Ryan Bennett is ruled out for the visitors, while there are doubts over the fitness of Pedro Neto, Romain Saiss and Ruben Neves.

It remains to be seen if there are any other injury worries picked up by Wolves during the Europa League game on Thursday.

Referee: Kevin Friend

The Lecestershire official takes charge of his sixth Premier League game of the season, and it will be the first time he has been in the middle for a game involving either of the two sides this season.

During his first five games, he has not awarded any penalties, has booked 24 players, and brandished two red cards, one for a second bookable offence, and the other, a straight red.

He refereed Newcastle during two Premier League games last season – both wins – the last of which was in Rafa Benitez’s last game in charge at Fulham.

He only booked two Newcastle players across both games, and did not send any off.

Points to prove

If Carroll is given his first start since his return to the club, he will certainly be wanting to show he is fully fit again, and can be the answer to Newcastle’s striker issues.

But if Bruce sticks with Joelinton, he will be hope to show he can hack it in the Premier League despite his lack of goals.

It is unlikely that both Carroll and the Brazilian will start, so it is going to be a big decision for the manager to make, but he must be brave with whoever he chooses.

Wolves will be out to prove their season has turned around, with them currently unbeaten in their last four Premier League games, having failed to win any of their opening five.

They will also be hoping to show they can reach similar heights to last season, which saw them qualify for this season’s Europa League.

Likely formations

There is an outside chance that Steve Bruce could opt for a slightly more offensive formation on Sunday, with him knowing just how big a win will be in the game.

But it will surprise no one if he sticks to the 5-4-1 set-up, with again the emphasis being on counter-attacking football, while another surrender of the bulk of possession looms. Fans will wonder when they will ever see a Newcastle side dominate a team again.

Nuno Espirito Santo is likely to use the 3-5-2 lineup that he has stuck to for the majority of the season, even when results were not going his way in the opening few weeks.