Newcastle United welcome Cardiff City to St. James’ Park on Saturday in a massive Premier League relegation battle, and Rafa Benitez is expected to make seven changes to his starting XI.
The Magpies eventually overcame Blackburn Rovers 4-2 in extra time to progress to the fourth round of the FA Cup in their last match, with a much-changed XI eventually getting the job done.
Opponents Cardiff could only manage a 0-0 draw against Huddersfield in their previous encounter, with the Bluebirds sitting just one point above the Magpies in the table.
In goal, Martin Dubravka is expected to come back in for Freddie Woodman.
In defence, Jamie Sterry and Javier Manquillo are both expected to drop out for DeAndre Yedlin and Florian Lejeune, while Matt Ritchie is expected to drop back from midfield to left wing-back. Federico Fernandez and Ciaran Clark are expected to keep their spots.
In midfield, a returning Mohamed Diame is expected to come in for Fabian Schar, with 21-year-old Sean Longstaff retaining his place after another promising display. This would be only his second Premier League start for the club.
Three more changes are expected in attack, with Cal Roberts, Jacob Murphy and Joselu all axed, while Christian Atsu, Ayoze Perez and Salomon Rondon all come into the side.
