Eddie Howe says that Jonjo Shelvey is set for a "huge role" with Newcastle United before the World Cup break. The midfielder made his return from a calf injury picked up in pre-season when he came on as sub for the 2-1 away win at Tottenham Hotspur last weekend.
And now he will be looking to top up those minutes in the home encounter with Aston Villa. When asked about Shelvey's role - with the ex-Liverpool player close to activating a new contract - Howe said: "He's got real qualities we need.
"He has the experience, he understands his position and he's got that range of passing that the team clearly needs so he's going to have a huge role to play."
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Another option to bolster the squad will be Elliot Anderson who has returned from a slight injury last week at Spurs. Howe said: "He's OK. He had a minor niggle [before Spurs] and it was nothing serious, so he's back in the squad for this week."
But there will be no early return for Alexander Isak with the Sweden international not making any surprise progress on a thigh injury.
Howe said: "Alex has been having a couple of injections on his thigh. I believe that has gone well and the medical team are happy with where he stands. But it's a five to six week injury so as I've said he won't be back before the World Cup."
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