Newcastle United manager Eddie Howe has axed Jacob Ramsey from his starting XI against Brighton this afternoon, to make way for a returning Joelinton, as the head coach persists with leaving big names on the bench.
The Magpies host the Seagulls in desperate need of a win to end a run of five straight defeats across all competitions. The side’s showing against Arsenal last weekend was improved after 2-1 losses to Crystal Palace and AFC Bournemouth, but still lacked fight.
Previewing the match, Howe said: “We need to keep the level of performance where it was against Arsenal. The team looked good, it looked confident, it defended well. I think it was a big upturn.
“We need to back that up at home, our home form has not been strong enough. A lot riding on this weekend for us.”
Newcastle United line-up v Brighton confirmed
Howe hopes that his side will be boosted in the centre of the park with the return of Joelinton. The Brazil international sat out of the meetings with the Cherries and Gunners with a two-match suspension, picked up for accumulating too many yellow cards.
In his pre-match press conference, Howe had said: “Joey’s a massive part of what we do. He’s got that will to win and that determination to fight for everything. Every loose ball, every duel. He’s there from the beginning of the game till the end.
“He’s got that mentality that we need more of. He’s the one setting the standards so, when he’s not playing, I think we miss something, his unique qualities, and it’ll be great to have him back available.”
Nick Woltemade and Yoane Wissa remain on bench
Joelinton coming in for Ramsey is the only change in the line-up from the 1-0 defeat to Arsenal. Ramsey, who arrived from Aston Villa for £43 million last summer, had started eight of the last nine.
Big money signings Nick Woltemade and Yoane Wissa remain on the bench, despite backing from Howe this week. Anthony Gordon returns to the bench from his injury, while Lewis Hall is also a notable exclusion from the XI.
The former Chelsea man has been one of the bright sparks this season and Howe came under fire for leaving him out of the line-up. The manager doubled down on that decision this week and said: “I made the decision last week to change the back line in respect that we haven’t kept enough clean sheets and I felt we needed to change something.
“So obviously we changed our goalkeeper, we changed Lewis’ position and I felt it had a positive response to the look of the team. That’s no reflection on Lewis, that’s a reflection on just what the team delivered in that game.
“And also there’s pros and cons to every decision that you make, but we needed the hype from set players, that was a big thing in that particular game. We’ve conceded from too many corners and we haven’t scored enough from set plays as well, so there was a sort of collective thought around that decision.
“Every player has to fight for his place and when you play you have to do enough to demand to stay in.”
In other news, Yoane Wissa could be about to serve up huge slice of Newcastle United humble pie.
