Leeds United v Newcastle United early team news: £21m star injured as nine players ruled out

Newcastle United will be without five senior players for this afternoon’s Premier League clash against Leeds United (kick-off 12:30pm).

Eddie Howe’s side visit Elland Road looking to bounce back from last Sunday’s 2-0 defeat to Arsenal - and take another step closer towards sealing Champions League qualification.

The Magpies require seven points from their remaining five games to mathematically guarantee a top four finish, and although they’re hopeful Sean Longstaff will play a part in the run-in, the key midfielder won’t feature versus the Whites.

Providing an update on Friday, Howe revealed Longstaff had avoided a serious injury - but there is an element of uncertainity over when he will return.

The 25-year-old has been sidelined since injuring his foot during the 4-1 win at Everton last month.

“He went to see a specialist,” said Howe. There were a few concerns that maybe he’d suffered some sort of structural damage in his foot but there wasn’t, which was good news, but there is a bit of damage to one of the ligaments.

“He’s being re-scanned today which we hope will show an improvement. It’s slightly unclear when he’ll be back but it’s not a long-term issue. It’s just whether we can get him back before the end of the season.”

Howe has also lost club captain Jamaal Lascelles and Matt Ritchie to season-ending injuries in the last fortnight. Lascelles sustained a calf injury in training while Ritchie has a calf problem.

Although the pair have struggled to play regularly this campaign, both remain huge figures behind the scenes.

Elsewhere, Emil Krafth, who suffered an ACL injury in August, is aiming to be back for pre-season. Ryan Fraser is currently training with the under-21s, and is certain to leave this summer, after falling out with Howe.

On the Leeds injury front, manager Sam Allardyce is without Liam Cooper, Luis Sinisterra, Stuart Dallas and Tyler Adams. Club captain Cooper is set to return next week but the remaining trio are sidelined for the rest of the season.

Leeds currently 19th in the Premier League table, two points from safety.

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