Newcastle United travel to Manchester United this evening in the only Premier League fixture taking place on Boxing Day.
It is six days since the Magpies were last in action - their longest gap between games since August - where they surrendered a 2-0 lead to draw 2-2 with Chelsea at St James’ Park.
Nick Woltemade bounced back from his own goal in the Tyne-Wear derby against Sunderland by netting a first-half brace before the Blues responded in the second-half through Reece James and Joao Pedro.
Meanwhile, Man United played on Sunday and lost 2-1 away to high-flying Aston Villa. And that defeat was compounded by the loss of talisman Bruno Fernandes to injury.
It means the Red Devils host Newcastle without some of their key players after Bryan Mbeumo and Amad Diallo last week left to compete at the African Cup of Nations.
That will come as a boost for Eddie Howe’s side, who have struggled on the road this campaign. In their eight away matches so far, United have only won one - a 4-1 win at Everton last month.
Here’s how Newcastle are predicted to line-up at Old Trafford:
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1. GK: Aaron Ramsdale
Nick Pope could well be available for this one but it’ll likely take a few games or so for him to displace Aaron Ramsdale. | Getty Images
2. RB: Lewis Miley
A central midfielder playing out of position at right-back, not that you’d know that based on his performance against Chelsea last time out. Outstanding. | Getty Images
3. CB: Malick Thiaw
His slip led to Chelsea equalising on Saturday but it’s hard to be too critical. The German has been largely flawless since arriving from AC Milan in the summer. | Getty Images
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4. CB: Fabian Schar
Sven Botman and Dan Burn will be missing once again, meaning Schar will continue alongside Thiaw at centre-back. | Getty Images