John Carver has confirmed Emmanuel Riviére will start upfront in Newcastle’s upcoming fixture at Queens Park Rangers, which will be crucial for the Magpies’ survival.
In Newcastle’s most recent game – a 1-1 draw with West Brom – Papiss Cisse replaced Manu with half-hour still to play as his side desperately pressed for a winner. After the full-time whistle, the club’s top scorer suggested he will be ready to lead the line in their most important game of the season but, when Carver was asked about Cisse’s fitness and whether he’ll start at Loftus Road, he bluntly responded: “[Papiss] won’t be ready to start.”
He went on to explain his decision to replace Riviére with an unfit Cisse on Saturday: “I have to give special praise for Manu, I thought he was excellent as a lone striker.”
“But I just took a little gamble, because he’s finding it hard to find the back of the net. His workrate for the team is fantastic, but I just thought Papiss might give us something special. Unfortunately, it didn’t.”
Newcastle now travel to North-West London in search of three vital points to finally seal their Premier League safety. After a hard fought point at home to West Brom, John Carver believes his side are up for the fight and can come away with the win next weekend.
“The response from everybody on the pitch was fantastic,” he said. “I think the whole squad deserved a little bit of credit. I’m not getting carried away with it, but it’s a starting point.
“A point might be huge, but the more important thing for me is the performance. The performance showed that there are people – and I include myself in that – up for this fight.”
