£43m star among three Newcastle players who will surely be axed vs Man United
Eddie Howe is surely set to drop Jacob Murphy, Jacob Ramsey and Aaron Ramsdale from his starting eleven as Newcastle face Man United on Boxing Day.
All eyes will be on the Magpies’ trip to Old Trafford on 26 December, as it is the only Premier League game taking place that day, with the traditional Boxing Day fixtures having been altered this season.
Newcastle drew 2-2 with Chelsea last Saturday as Nick Woltemade‘s early brace was cancelled out by second half strikes from Reece James and Joao Pedro.
Eddie Howe‘s side capitulated to drop two points on home turf, and they face a tough test against United next up, with numerous players out injured or not fit to start.
The Newcastle boss is sure to make some changes to his team in the midst of a busy winter schedule, and Football Insider have picked out three players who should be dropped from the starting team at Old Trafford.
Jacob Murphy
Murphy was on fire last season as he registered 20 Premier League goal contributions, but his impact has lessened this time around amid the Magpies’ overall struggles in attack.
Newcastle fans have slated Murphy for his performances, and Howe has clearly not been convinced either, considering he has only started 10 of their 17 league games up to now.
The 30-year-old has not contributed to a goal in any of his last nine appearances across all competitions, and his latest ineffective showing against Chelsea should be enough to see Harvey Barnes handed a start out wide against United.
Jacob Ramsey
Newcastle signed Ramsey from Aston Villa for a fee of up to £43million [Sky Sports] in the summer, but he has done little on Tyneside so far to prove that he was worth such a hefty figure.
Ramsey has struggled with injuries since the move, but has been trusted to start in each of Newcastle’s last two outings amid question marks around Joelinton‘s fitness.
The 24-year-old won just three of his seven duels against the Blues, while he failed to create a chance, had just two touches in their penalty area as goalscorer James and Moises Caicedo came out on top of the midfield battle.
Howe admitted in his pre-match press conference on Tuesday that Joelinton is “getting closer” to making a return to full fitness and he and their coaches were weighing up whether he can start against the Red Devils.
It certainly seems like the perfect game for the big Brazilian to be reintroduced into, considering United’s lack of midfield numbers with Bruno Fernandes and Casemiro both out, so Ramsey may well find himself on the bench.
Aaron Ramsdale
Ramsdale was signed by Howe to provide competition to Nick Pope this season, and he has been given the chance to show what he can do in recent weeks after the 33-year-old suffered a groin injury.
Pope wasn’t in great form before being sidelined, but the ex-Arsenal stopper has not looked particularly convincing either, with nine goals conceded and no clean sheets in the seven games he has played since entering the team.
Howe has hinted at Pope’s return from injury ahead of this Boxing Day clash, and the key statistics so far this season point to him being the better option, with a 75 per cent save percentage to Ramsdale’s 44 per cent and 1.1 goals conceded per 90 to his 1.75.
The 33-year-old is Newcastle’s number one keeper, and it would be wise to reinstate him into the side immediately, rather than risk uncertainty around squad roles with the him on the bench and Ramsdale starting for the next few weeks.