Varun Pai
Newcastle United ace Isaac Hayden out with suspension for weekend clash against Manchester United
According to the Manchester Evening News, Newcastle United are set to have Isaac Hayden unavailable for selection against Manchester United due to suspension.
The Red Devils will take on the Magpies on the 27th of December, after having two league games postponed. The Geordies have had quite possibly their worst season in the top flight. They are currently 19th in the league and have only won once in 18 games.
They currently also have the worst defensive record in the Premier League, conceding 41 goals in 18 games, at an average of more than 2 goals per game. Thus, it is not ideal for them that Isaac Hayden will be out to face Man United next week. The 26-year-old picked up his 5th booking of the season in the 4-0 loss to Man City on Sunday.
The Englishman has been a crucial part of their backline this season as he has been anchoring the midfield and deputising in several roles. He was a regular under Steve Bruce and remains a vital part of the Eddie Howe side that is trying to avoid the drop back into the Championship.
Man United to pick up a comfortable victory?
The men in red may not have looked the most comfortable against Norwich last weekend, but they got the job done. It is all about results for us now since we cannot afford to miss out on a Top 4 spot since we arguably have the best squad barring the title-chasing trio.
Moreover, the Old Trafford outfit already picked up a victory against the Toon Army at the start of the season. Cristiano Ronaldo made his ‘second debut’ for the club that day and bagged 2 goals. Things have changed quite a bit since then, but they seem to have stabilized for now.
But one would hope that Ralf Rangnick does not have many Covid-19 concerns. There was an outbreak at the Manchester-based club but the identity of the stars that tested positive has not been revealed yet. The supporters would surely be hoping that most of them have recovered by now. And the rest could do so by the end of this week.
Arsenal have played their games in hand and have mounted 4th place on the table. Regardless, we only remain five points off them, with 2 games in hand. But this could cause fixture congestion, and Rangnick must be clever enough to manage the game-time of every individual without over-exhausting any of our key men.
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The tie against Newcastle may look like a straightforward affair. Even more so without Hayden. However, they are hungry for a victory, and we need to be at our top to seal all three points on Monday night. And it remains to be seen who takes Hayden’s place in the starting XI.
