Newcastle United supporters have questioned the 'massive' call Eddie Howe made by leaving Joelinton on the bench for their Premier League clash with Manchester United at St James' Park this afternoon (4:30pm GMT).
The Magpies know that victory over Erik ten Hag's side would see them leapfrog the Red Devils and move up into third place. Newcastle will be out for revenge following the defeat at Wembley in the Carabao Cup final and would love nothing better than to steal a march on their top four rivals.
With Liverpool, Brighton and Brentford all dropping points so far this weekend - and with Tottenham not playing Everton until Monday night - three points for Howe's squad would see them stamp their authority on the battle for a place in next season's Champions League.
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Howe named an unchanged team from the one that beat Nottingham Forest 2-1 at the City Ground prior to the international break thanks to Alexander Isak's heroics at either end of each half. It meant that the previously suspended Joelinton - who is now available for selection once again - was not brought back into the fray at the first time of asking as many had thought.
He joined the likes of Anthony Gordonr returning from injury on what is a strong-looking bench for Newcastle. As news of Howe's starting XI began to emerge, it did not take long before fans took to social media to share their thoughts on what they saw as a bold decision made by the Newcastle head coach to leave Joelinton among the substitutes.
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