Eddie Howe says Sven Botman’s availability at Arsenal tomorrow night will be a collaborative decision and not left up to the player.
Boatman made his first start in nearly 10 months in Newcastle’s 2-1 win at Tottenham on Saturday after returning to full fitness following cruciate surgery.
The Netherlands international played for 92 minutes before eventually making way for Lloyd Kelly as Newcastle claimed their sixth successive win in all competitions.
Eddie Howe in the Arsenal Test:
“We have to be very good off the ball and solid defensively. We have to cause Arsenal problems the other way. I don’t think we have to overthink it, we just have to get that mix right. Let’s try to continue the good performances we’ve been giving… pic.twitter.com/7PC0IJeNOf
— Newcastle United (@NUFC) January 6, 2025
Their next assignment is also in North London as they visit the Emirates Stadium to face Arsenal in the first leg of their EFL Cup semi-final.
Asked if Boatman would feature, Howe said: “We have to talk to the player, the medical team, the experts. They’ll give me some of the answers about what we’re going to do with him next.
“Sven is a competitor. He has a huge drive for the team and himself. He wants to do very well in his career, so I have no doubts about what he will say, but we have to, as I said, talk to other people and try to come to the right decision.”
Gordon fit but two key absent
Anthony Gordon is expected to be fit after a facial cut at the weekend, but the visitors will be without duo Fabian Schar and Bruno Guimaraes.
Guimaraes has formed a good rapport with Joelinton and Sandro Tonali in Newcastle’s midfield and Howe admits he will be missed.
He added: “One of Bruno’s biggest strengths is that he is always there for you, his performance record has been outstanding for us, especially when you consider the physical effort he puts into every game.
“His training is good, he’s been excellent in every way, so to lose him, when he’s such a pivotal figure for us, is a big loss. But we have big players who can fill his shoes as well. Whoever I pick in that position, I think we’re going to have a quality player coming in.”
Longstaff may enter
Sean Longstaff will likely replace the Brazilian with Howe knowing his team will need to be strong defensively.
“We have to be very good off the ball and solid defensively,” he said. “We have to cause Arsenal problems the other way. I don’t think we have to overthink it, we just have to get that mix right. Let’s try to continue the good performances we’ve had recently and try to win the game.”
