Newcastle United take on Birmingham City in the FA Cup on Saturday and it’s likely to be a much-changed starting XI.
It will be Newcastle United’s second cup match of the week but will pale in importance compared to Wednesday’s heroic Carabao Cup semi-final victory over Arsenal.
Alexander Isak, Anthony Gordon and Jacob Murphy helped blow the Gunners away at a raucous St. James’ Park, with the latter two grabbing the goals.
Eddie Howe outsmarted Mikel Arteta with his genius tactical switch and every player put in 100 per cent to secure the Wembley final with Liverpool on March 16.
As a result of such strenuous effort, the manager has admitted he will be forced into making several changes for Saturday’s FA Cup fourth-round tie with Birmingham City.
That will see the likes of Lewis Miley, Joe Willock and hopefully the fit again Callum Wilson come into the starting XI but Howe may also utilise the club’s academy to fill out his squad.
Here are four exciting prospects who could be unleashed on Birmingham on Saturday.
Garang Kuol
Australian forward Garang Kuol is yet to make his senior debut for Newcastle but that could change on Saturday.
The 20-year-old has seen injury disrupt his progress in the two years since joining the club and was expected to head out on loan for a third time in the January transfer window.
However, despite Kuol scoring his first goal at Under-21 level last month, he stayed and now could be utilised against Birmingham.
With Harvey Barnes injured and Miguel Almiron gone, United don’t have a lot of options on the flanks to rest both Gordon and Murphy.
That’s where Kuol could come in for his debut.
Trevan Sanusi
Trevan Sanusi is another winger but, in contrast to Kuol, he has already played for Howe’s first team.
The raw 17-year-old made his senior debut when he came on for the final 21 minutes of the 3-1 win over Bromley in the third round of the FA Cup.
Howe praised Sanusi for his dribbling in the match and said he wants to give him more chances, though there is still a lot of room for him to improve.
Unfortunately for Sanusi, he then picked up a minor injury that ruled him out for the rest of January but he was scheduled for an early February return so could be in contention to make the squad.
Alfie Harrison
All-action midfielder Alfie Harrison has been a mainstay in the Under-21s this season and may be drafted in as an extra option in the middle of the park.
With Joelinton injured and Bruno Guimaraes and Sandro Tonali in need of rest, there are going to be changes to the midfield. Willock, Miley and Sean Longstaff are all likely to come in for starts.
But if Tonali and Guimaraes are left at home, a back-up option in midfield will be needed which is exactly where 19-year-old Harrison could come in.
Cathal Heffernan
Similarly, Newcastle may need some extra bodies to beef up the defence, with Sven Botman ruled out of the match after going off early against Arsenal.
At least one of Fabian Schar and Dan Burn are likely to be rested, with Emil Krafth almost certainly taking a spot.
That could leave an opening for Irish centre-back Cathal Heffernan, who was pitched to make his Newcastle debut this season, to get a place in the squad.
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