Anthony Gordon starts for Newcastle at former club Everton tonight in the Premier League.
Eddie Howe was forced to substitute Gordon with a hip injury after he scored the winner against Manchester United at St James' Park on Saturday night.
Speaking after that game, the Newcastle boss admitted he was unsure over the extent of Gordon's issue, though he is expected to play back at Goodison Park this evening.
"He just said he was feeling tightness in his hip," revealed manager Howe. "Fingers crossed it’s nothing serious."
Losing Gordon would have been just the latest major blow for Newcastle, who will be without Nick Pope for around four months after he dislocated his shoulder at the weekend.
Martin Dubravka came off the bench against former loan club Manchester United so should get the gloves ahead of Loris Karius on Thursday.
Howe said of Pope: "We anticipate he'll be operated on - there's no doubt he needs an operation - so he will be out for a period of time, we think around four months."
Pope joins a hefty absentee list at Newcastle comprising 12 first-team players.
Predicted Newcastle XI: Dubravka; Trippier, Lascelles, Schar, Livramento; Miley, Guimaraes, Joelinton; Almiron, Isak, Gordon
Subs: Karius, Gillespie, Dummett, Ritchie, Krafth, Hall, Diallo, A. Murphy, Parkinson
Time and date: 7:30pm GMT on Thursday December 7, 2023
Venue: Goodison Park
TV channel: Amazon Prime Video
