Eddie Howe faces tough Newcastle United selection decision as key man returns for West Ham trip

Newcastle United captain Jamaal Lascelles is set to return to the matchday squad for the trip to West Ham United on Saturday.
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Jamaal Lascelles is back in training after missing Newcastle United’s 1-0 victory over Aston Villa on Sunday through illness.

Lascelles, the club’s captain, was forced to watch from home as Kieran Trippier’s free-kick sealed a third consecutive win for the Magpies.

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While Trippier will be absent from the squad that travels to West Ham United this weekend due to a broken foot, Lascelles is set to come back into contention.

Will Jamaal Lascelles start at West Ham?

Head coach Eddie Howe has a tough decision to make over whether or not to restore his skipper to the starting XI.

The former Nottingham Forest has missed just two - both enforced - of Howe’s 12 games in charge, making him an automatic pick.

However, Howe will find it difficult to drop Dan Burn after the January deadline day signing performed so well on his debut against Villa.

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Burn came into the line-up to partner Fabian Schar at the backline, where the pair kept Newcastle’s third clean sheet of the campaign.

Eddie Howe’s praise for Dan Burn and Fabian Schar

Speaking about the pair’s display on Sunday, Howe said: “He (Burn) was very similar to Matt Targett on Tuesday (against Everton), he fitted in superbly.

“He was very calm, composed, used the ball really well. Put out a lot of fires for us with some very good defensive positioning.

“I thought together with Fabian they played very well. They were supported well by the players in front of them.

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“The clean sheet was a real collective effort started by Chris Wood, who I thought, a lot of his work would have gone unnoticed.

“But from a defensive perspective, he was superb, as was the whole team.”

Heading into the fixture at the London Stadium, Howe’s side are four points above the Premier League relegation zone.