Newcastle United boss Rafa Benitez has said that new signing Antonio Barreca will be in the squad to face Tottenham at Wembley on Saturday.
The left-back was signed on loan from Ligue 1 side Monaco for the remainder of the season, and Benitez has now hinted that he could be in contention to start against Mauricio Pochettino’s side, as relayed by Chronicle reporter Lee Ryder on his personal Twitter account.
Antonio Barreca in the squad for Wembley clash #nufc
— Lee Ryder (@lee_ryder) February 1, 2019
The Magpies’ other signing – Miguel Almiron from Atlanta United – will not be joining his new teammates for this fixture as he waits for his work permit to be cleared according to Sky journalist Keith Downie.
OPINION
The Newcastle fans will no doubt be excited to hear that Barreca could potentially make his debut against Spurs on Saturday. He has been signed to provide cover for Paul Dummett at left-back – and provide competition, of course – so this would be the perfect opportunity to unleash him. Almiron will of course not be joining him for this fixture, but it will be interesting to see how the loanee gets on if Benitez does choose to play him at any stage of the game. Newcastle will no doubt go into this match high on confidence after a successful end to the transfer window, so fingers crossed that the signings can make the desired impact that Benitez is looking for. Whether Barreca will start remains to be seen, but this is a game that the Magpies will feel they can go on and win after their surprise victory over Manchester City on Tuesday.