Being the manager of Newcastle United isn’t an easy job at the best of times.
However, it becomes that much harder when you’re presented with a selection headache, and Steve Bruce has had his fair share of those since coming in at St James’ Park.
He’s had a dilemma in midfield all season with Isaac Hayden, the Longstaff brothers and Jeff Hendrick vying for a spot, while he’s also had issues on the winger with Miguel Almiron, Ryan Fraser and Allan Saint-Maximin all in contention to play in the wide areas.
However, he may now face his biggest dilemma ever.
Indeed, with Martin Dubravka set to return in December, Bruce will have to decide on who his number one will be going forward, and both of his options have really strong claims to the spot.
Darlow has arguably been the best goalkeeper in the division this season, he has the best save percentage of any goalie, and he is currently in WhoScored’s seasonal XI.
However, Dubravka has rarely put a foot wrong between the sticks for the Magpies, winning the club’s Player of the Year award last season.
Unfortunately for Bruce, this is the one position on the pitch where you can’t just shoehorn both players into the side, and you don’t really want to be rotating your goalkeepers either, as that can easily unsettle a defence.
We certainly don’t envy Bruce for having to make this decision, and the more you think about it, the tougher the decision actually seems.
Dropping Darlow would be incredibly harsh after the start to the season he has had, but at the same time, Dubravka was one of the club’s best players last season and he has done nothing to lose his place in the team.
Whatever the manager decides, he seemingly won’t be able to keep everyone happy.
Receive a digest of our best Newcastle content each week direct to your mailbox
