Harvey Barnes hint as Newcastle United boss asked if winger can start v Nottingham Forest

Newcastle United winger Harvey Barnes. (Photo by Matt McNulty/Getty Images)

Eddie Howe has suggested he'll ease Harvey Barnes back into Newcastle United's starting XI having only just returned from five months out.

The £38million summer signing from Leicester City marked his comeback against Luton Town last weekend by scoring the equaliser in a thrilling 4-4 draw at St James' Park.

Newcastle are set to be without Anthony Gordon when they travel to Nottingham Forest on Saturday night (kick-off 5:30pm) which opens up a spot on the left wing but Howe is likely to resist temptation to start Barnes.

Despite losing Gordon, Howe has both Miguel Almrion and Jacob Murphy to call on.

Asked by NewcastleWorld if Barnes is now in contention to start matches, Howe said: "I'd probably say ideally, if we had a fully fit squad, no, he wouldn't be in contention to start and we'd very much be easing him back in.

"That would be my preference for him and a lot of the players we've had to put back into the team before they are fit to play. We've done that a number of times but we have no choice. He would fall into that bracket of easing players back in."

Barnes was making just his second start for Newcastle when he withdrew with a toe injury in the early stages of the 8-0 win at Sheffield United in September.

The 26-year-old was initially due to return around the festive period but suffered a setback. It was feared he might have to undergo surgery but that scenario was avoided after he progressed well last month.

And it took the winger just 10 minutes to be make a decisive impact against Luton after coming on as a substitute in place of Almiron.

“He’s worked incredibly hard," said Howe. "It’s been frustrating for him and I know he’s had that frustration internally for a long time where he just didn’t feel right. He was working hard but still feeling some sensations in his foot.

"But we saw his quality - what a finish that was on his wrong side from that distance. He only really had a small part of the goal to aim at and he finished it brilliantly.

"That moment summed up what we missed from potential substitutes when you’re struggling in the game and you need to change the flow and momentum - we haven’t had those options for a number of weeks. It was a big moment for us."