Newcastle have enjoyed a productive week heading into the match with a 6-1 win over Tottenham Hotspur followed up by a 4-1 triumph at Everton on Thursday night. Eddie Howe’s side currently sit third in the Premier League table having won seven of their last eight matches while Southampton sit bottom looking to end an eight game winless run.
The Saints have still picked up some encouraging draws against the likes of Arsenal, Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur but still find themselves six points from safety following a 1-0 defeat against Bournemouth.
Southampton skipper James Ward-Prowse and Romain Perraud were both withdrawn with fitness concerns during the match and will be assessed ahead of the trip to St James’ Park.
Meanwhile, Newcastle boss Eddie Howe confirmed that Allan Saint-Maximin would miss Sunday’s match due to an ongoing hamstring issue. The Frenchman returned to the Newcastle training ground at the start of the week but is still at least a week away from being back in contention with Howe offering no guarantees that the player would be available for Arsenal.
A solid win against a physical Everton side may have come at a cost for Newcastle as midfielder Sean Longstaff was withdrawn following a knock to his foot with further scans revealing a more serious injury than first feared. Joelinton had also complained of a hamstring issue ahead of the match but was able to play the full 90 minutes.
Howe said after the match: “I couldn’t work out whether Sean was saying that he wanted to come off – or whether he wanted to stay on.
“In the end, he said he needed to come off, but fingers crossed it’s not too bad.
“I’d say Joelinton definitely moved better in the second half. He had a feeling in his hamstring pre-game – not really a feeling, more of just a bit of tiredness in one of the hamstrings pre-game.
“But he assured me he was fine, and he played really well in the second half, so fingers crossed he’s okay.”
Here are the doubts and outs for Sunday’s match…
