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Tottenham make the journey to the North East without several first-team players

Tottenham will be without NINE first-team players for Wednesday night's Carabao Cup tie against Newcastle United at St James' Park, leaving manager Thomas Frank with a rotation headache.

While Eddie Howe will be without Tino Livramento, Lewis Hall and Yoane Wissa - with Sven Botman also a doubt - new Spurs boss Frank must decide how many of his squad he can afford to rotate.

Defender Micky van de Ven, who scored twice in a 3-0 win over Everton on Sunday is expected to be rested, but Frank is relishing the challenge of facing Newcastle.

"That's the challenge," he said. "It's one game so there's more at stake. I changed four from Monaco to Everton and three before that.

"Of course there'll be rotation, playing every third or fourth day. If you want to compete over 60 games, you can't play the same XI. So there's a fine balance.

"That's one of the beauties of being Head Coach, that's all part of the good fun."

Captain Cristian Romero will miss the game with a groun problem, although he could be back in action in the Premier League soon.

Frank said of his skipper: “Cuti was just out running on the grass with the performance guys. So, positive, progressing, but no time frame. I don't expect it to be a longer one.”

Fellow defender Destiny Udogie is also ruled out with a knee problem, while Swedish winger Dejan Kulusevski also misses the gam with a knee injury.

Striker Dominic Solanke (ankle) is still not ready to return to action, while Welsh defender Ben Davies is out after picking up up a thigh problem on international with Wales earlier this month.

Long-term absentee James Maddison continues his recovery from ACL surgery, with the England playmaker expected to be out for several months.

Another defender sidelines is Radu Dragusin, with the Romanian close to a return, but probably not risked for the game at St James' Park.

Eddie Howe must decide how many changes he wants to make for tonight's match against Spurs

Newcastle United are entering another huge phase in their season with three matches in the space of seven days which could have a big impact on their campaign.

Eddie Howe's men face Tottenham Hotspur in tonight's Carabao Cup fourth-round tie, as United look to defend the trophy and clinch a place in the quarter-finals on home soil.

That's followed by a Premier League visiti to struggling West Ham, a game Newcastle must look to win if they are to get their push for a top-five place back on track following mixed start to their league campaign. Then it's backt to St James' Park to take on Athletic Bilbao in the Champions League with a huge opportunity to take a big step towards securing at least a spot in the play-off stage.

With injuries to deal with, Howe must decide how best to juggle his side over the next week, with rotation on the cards in key positions. No one will doubt how important the Carabao Cup is for Newcastle after those scenes at Wembley last March, and United won't give up the trophy without a fight.

Howe has options when it comes to switching things around, but who should start and who should sit this one out? Here's the verdict of our NUFC writers.

Lee Ryder

For me, this game is more important than the weekend trip to West Ham - despite Newcastle's unconvincing Premier League position.

That's why I would not make too many changes against Tottenham Hotspur and minimise with rotation. Spurs showed at Everton that even though they have injury woes they can turn up and put on a show.

I also think Thomas Frank will shrewdly be viewing the Carabao Cup the same way Eddie Howe has in the past three seasons. Long story short, this is their best chance of a trophy this term and you can still apply that to Newcastle as well.

It would be easy to shake things up and make a host of changes as well as keeping a few stars away from Howe's office door. Instead, I'd play this like it was a Premier League or Champions League game in terms of selection.

We can talk about players needing a rest and needing a breather all day long, but over the years, I've never known too many professional players who are happy at missing out on selection, even in the Carabao Cup. As Bruno has proven in recent times those who want to win enough dig deep enough.

The likes of Kieran Trippier, Bruno, Joelinton, Anthony Gordon, and Dan Burn are all needed against Frank's side. The only off-the-cuff selection I would make is giving Anthony Elanga 90 minutes to get some fitness and confidence in the tank.

My NUFC XI: Pope, Trippier, Thiaw, Botman, Burn, Joelinton, Bruno, Tonali, Gordon, Elanga, Woltemade

Sean McCormick

Eddie Howe will want to take the Carabao Cup seriously. After all, his record in the competition across three seasons at Newcastle reads: finalists, quarter-finals exit on penalties and winners.

But with Newcastle competing in the Premier League and Champions League as well, he is also aware of the need to rotate his players and if he truly believes he has increased competition for places within his squad he shouldn't be afraid to make changes with two Premier League away trips and a Champions League clash against Athletic Bilbao on the horizon.

With that in mind, summer signing Aaron Ramsdale is in need of game-time amid Nick Pope's excellent form this season and this seems like the right chance to change goalkeeper.

With injuries to Tino Livramento and Lewis Hall, the ability to change the defence up is hindered but it would make sense for Emil Krafth and Fabian Schar to come in. It is a toss up of who they replace but whichever two players get the nod out of Kieran Trippier, Malick Thiaw, Sven Botman and Dan Burn to start, I would suspect the other two could replace them at some point during the game.

Given Sandro Tonali missed the last two matches through illness, he should start the game to offer a reminder of how seriously Howe takes the competition. He should replace Bruno Guimaraes, with Joe Willock and Jacob Ramsey coming in for Lewis Miley and Joelinton.

Jacob Murphy and Anthony Gordon have started the last two matches on the wings so it feels like a good time for Anthony Elanga and Harvey Barnes to come in on the wings.

Nick Woltemade is in need of a rest up front and Will Osula earned his chance up front with an impressive cameo from the bench in the win over Fulham.

My NUFC XI: Ramsdale; Krafth, Schar, Botman, Burn; Willock, Tonali, Ramsey; Elanga, Barnes; Osula

Stuart Jamieson

There are very few easy choices for Eddie Howe tonight as he weighs up the pros and cons of changing his side. Perhaps the easiest is restoring Sandro Tonali to the starting XI after a bout of illness. The Italian's presence is vital, especially if Howe decides to take Bruno Guimaraes out of the firing line.

Kieran Trippier is due a break, so I'm going with Emil Krafth at right-back, and while Sven Botman is OK after his head injury, there's no need to risk him with Fabian Schar ready to step in.

It's hard to see how Dan Burn gets a rest while Lewis Hall still not ready to return, but I would go with four changes further forward. Jacob Ramsey needs a start in midfield and this is the perfect opportunity, while the entire front line could rotate.

Will Osula and Anthony Elanga made a difference when they came on against Fulham, while Harvey Barnes' brace against Benfica means he's earned a start to give Anthony Gordon and Nick Woltemade a break.

My NUFC XI: Ramdale, Krafth, Schar, Thiaw, Burn, Tonali, Joelinton, Ramsey, Elanga, Barnes, Osula

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Eddie Howe has hinted at changes against Tottenham Hotspur in the Carabao Cup - but how many?

Jacob Ramsey has been told exactly what he needs to do to stay in Eddie Howe's starting XI as he struggled to find a way past the Magpies' star trio of Joelinton, Bruno Guimaraes and Sandro Tonali.

The £43m man has featured in just 142 minutes this season since his big money move from Aston Villa last summer. The former England Under-21 star picked up an ankle injury early in his United career at Leeds back in August.

And Howe's continued selection of Joelinton, Bruno and Tonali has made life difficult for Ramsey - even when the Brazilian pair were jaded away at Brighton and still got on the team sheet ahead of Ramsey.

Howe has no doubt Ramsey has what it takes to succeed on Tyneside but suggested he is not fully fit. With the Tottenham Hotspur clash in the Carabao Cup seemingly a good opportunity to give Ramsey a start, Howe said: "I think Jacob is doing well, I think he's in a good place. I think he'll have benefited from the couple of outings he's had recently.

"The big thing for him at the moment is being physically at his best. If he is, then his technical qualities will shine."

Howe could look at changing his midfield to give Ramsey a chance while Lewis Miley will also be eyeing more minutes in the engine room. Joe Willock has played just one minute of football in October so far after a cameo against Benfica in the Champions League.

Defensively, Fabian Schar, Emil Krafth and potentially Jamaal Lascelles are all due a game. Starting William Osula - the hero in round three with two goals against Bradford City - is also a big decision to make.

But Howe said he must get his selection right and hinted that he won't make too many changes against Spurs. He went on: "It is important for this game to make the right decision - we want to progress. The competition means a lot to us, we are current holders, we don't want to give that up easily.

"However, I have a squad, I need to try and get the balance right. There are players who need the football."

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The Tottenham head coach will ring the changes at St James' Park but the intention remains the same

Tottenham boss Thomas Frank plans to make significant changes to his starting XI for Wednesday night's Carabao Cup tie with Newcastle United at St James' Park.

But the Danish coach is adamant his only intention is to win the game and continue their bid for more silverware. Spurs won the UEFA Europa League under Ange Postecoglou last season, and Frank is hoping to use that winning mentality against Newcastle tomorrow evening.

Both sides go into the game on the back of a challenging fixture list, with Champions League and Premier League matches coming thick and fast this month.

Newcastle enjoyed home victories over Benfica and Fulham in the past week, while Spurs moved on from a disappointing goalless draw in Monaco to record an impressive 3-0 win over Everton at the Hill Dickinson Stadium on Sunday.

United boss Eddie Howe is expected to rotate his squad on Wednesday evening, and Frank has already hinted he will do the same - although the goal remains to leave Tyneside with a place in the quarter-finals in the bag.

Spurs could bring the likes of Archie Gray, Pape Sarr, Lucas Bergvall and Wilson Odobert into the side, and Frank knows they have the pedigree and experience to maintain their recent standards.

"We have some players here who had a fantastic experience last year winning the Europa League final," Frrank said ahead of the clash with Newcastle.

"They are very eager to win more trophies and we would like to compete and win. We are definitely going for it.

"Of course there will be a little bit of rotation like I have basically done from game to game because we have played every third or fourth day.

"You need to do it, every club does if you need to compete and that's the next thing. If you want to compete over 60 games, you can't play the same XI for 60 games because the risk of injury, fatigue and lack of performance, that naturally happens.

"So, it is that fine balance to manage that, but that is what we are up for."

"We’ve had a lot of great experiences in this competition, the first final, the emotions after the game, felt we could have done more on the pitch. The Chelsea defeat is still very painful, we had a chance to win the competition that year, but we put it right. We had a lot of tough opponents; we didn’t get to the final by luck. That experience, winning the cup, has helped us grow as a team."

It was well documented that it was quite close that he could have left, in a variety of ways. A loan was always our preference because in our view we wanted Will to play.

We wanted him to continue his development, which he did brilliantly last year, because he committed to a path of limited game time and big training time, with a lot of work with Graeme Jones. A lot of reviewing his performances and then putting work into action.

The next step was to get him playing regularly, so that was the aim, and especially with us bringing two strikers in the thought was he could continue that development best on the football pitch.

Obviously it didn't happen, much to our relief because Yoane picked up an injury and Will's vitally important. We believe in his talents. He's quick, he athletic, but he's added through his attitude to training, a better know-how and nous.

"Sven has no concussion, it was a cut, a bad cut, which he had stapled together. He didn’t train yesterday, but we will see how he is today. Lewis is the closest to coming back out of those injured, but this game will come too quickly for him. Tino is still on track, we are looking at the Manchester City game for him for when he can be available for."

This will be a really tough game against a team that is in form away from home. It is going to be a real challenge for us. Thomas Frank's teams are very aggressive off the ball - they are very well organised.

It is a good game for us, a tough game, but one we look forward to.

We have some players here who had a fantastic experience last year winning the Europa League final. They are very eager to win more trophies and we would like to compete and win. We are definitely going for it. Of course there will be a little bit of rotation like I have basically done from game to game because we have played every third or fourth day.

You need to do it, every club does if you need to compete and that's the next thing. If you want to compete over 60 games, you can't play the same XI for 60 games because the risk of injury, fatigue and lack of performance, that naturally happens. So, it is that fine balance to manage that, but that is what we are up for.

Newcastle could freshen up their midfield options in the Carabao Cup fourth round against Tottenham

Newcastle continue the defence of their Carabao Cup crown on Wednesday evening when they welcome Tottenham Hotspur to St James' Park.

And while Eddie Howe will take the competition seriously - Newcastle have reached two finals and lost in the quarter-finals via penalty shootout across the last three seasons - he will also use it as a chance to refresh his starting line-up as they continue to compete across four different fronts.

With two Premier League away trips and next week's Champions League clash against Athletic Bilbao looming large, Newcastle will have to look after their players who have played the most minutes so far this season.

And that could apply to their midfield - particularly with Bruno Guimaraes who has started every game since returning from a gruelling international break earlier this month with Brazil in the Far East of Asia.

The Magpies skipper is expected to be rested from the starting XI for the visit of Spurs and he will likely be replaced by Sandro Tonali in the middle of midfield after he did not start the last two matches through illness.

Lewis Miley has started the last two games so he could come out of the side on the right-hand side of the front three, and that could see Howe hand an opportunity to Joe Willock a rare opportunity from the start.

The 26-year-old has become something of an outcast this season and has only made four appearances this season - with just one of those coming from the start in a 0-0 draw with Bournemouth.

Jacob Ramsey made just his second start of the season in the win over Benfica last Tuesday and he was an unused substitute on Saturday in the win over Fulham. It would therefore be a surprise if he does not start on the left-hand side of the midfield three in place of Joelinton.

With Newcastle still competing in four competitions this season, rotation is key. Should that be the starting midfield trio, it will see Howe start with those three players in the starting XI for the very first time this season.

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The Tottenham boss brings his side to face Eddie Howe's United in Wednesday night's Carabao Cup tie

Tottenham head coach Thomas Frank admits it is a new challenge dealing with the demands of Champions League and domestic competitions in his first season at the North London club.

The former Brentford boss saw his side move into third in the Premier League table with an impressive 3-0 win over Everton on Sunday - with a Carabao Cup tie against Newcastle United next up on Wednesday night.

Like Eddie Howe's men, Spurs are getting to grips with the busy schedule that eight Champions League fixtures generate and the strains it places on their squads.

Both sides recorded Premier League wins following their European exersions - Newcastle beat Benfica 3-0 on Tuesday night while Spurs were held to a goalless draw by Monaco - with a place in the quarter-finals of the Carabao Cup now up for grabs.

Newcastle hold home advantage as they look to defend the trophy they won at Wembley last March, but while Frank admits he will need to manage his squad carefully, he insists their strong away form is a huge part of their success so far.

"We really are competitive, especially away from home," Frank said following their first visit to Everton's Hill Dickinson Stadium.

"I think it is three years since the club was in the Champions League, so quite an inexperienced squad to go every three or four days.

"It is difficult to compete in both tournaments so to keep the energy and focus, plus we also did it after all the travel, it showed a lot about the mentality."

The Dane's plans are starting to come together at Spurs, although the win at Everton was only the second in their last six games.

"I think we are in the beginning of building something," added Frank.

"I'm very happy with a lot of things: the defensive side, attacking set-pieces - but there is a bit we need to work on offensively to be more free-flowing.

"The clean sheet mentality is a very good foundation to stand on. Who knows where it will lead but I need to take it one game at a time."

On-loan Paris St Germain striker Randal Kolo Muani made his first start for Spurs, playing an hour against Everton, and could again be involved against Newcastle.

"It was pleasing to see his first 60 minutes," Franks said. "He is still building his physicality and sharpness.

"At times he lacks some of the interaction with the front four but that is an ongoing process."

The Magpies have been scouring the lower leagues for potential talent and have signed a defender tipped by some to be the next John Stones

Newcastle United have agreed to sign Barnsley wonderkid Josh Kenchington after a couple of rounds of negotiations.

The 15-year-old was the subject of a £275,000 bid from the Magpies, according to Sky Sports, but a fee of £350,000 has now been agreed.

The Oakwell youngster has been compared to England's John Stones and stands at over 6ft tall. The youngster will join the Academy later this year if there are no late hitches on the deal.

It is believed that Newcastle battled with Brighton & Hove Albion, Tottenham Hotspur, and Man United to secure the youngster's signature.

Newcastle have a reputation for scouring the EFL for youngsters with youth scout Paul Baker presenting the signing of Trevan Sanusi in 2023 and Sam Alabi being signed from Oldham Athletic.

Alabi has been spotted in first-team training again at Benton during the international break. Speaking about youngsters getting their chance, Howe told Chronicle Live earlier this season: "You are looking for somebody to grab their opportunity and force their way into the squad.

"Every player that steps on to the pitch has that opportunity."

Academy boss Steve Harper has also spoken about the importance of being able to sign younger players from EFL clubs. Harper said: "Being in a position to compete nationally to sign such young players shows how much the club value young talent and we really appreciate the backing of the Board.

"Through the hard work of everyone involved and the support of the ownership, we are now in a position to provide a high level of staffing, programme, and a pathway to allow young players to develop. The opportunity is there, now it's up to the boys."

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Newcastle have a major decision to make when it comes to their stadium

Newcastle United have a major decision to make when it comes to their stadium. The choice facing the Magpies is whether to expand on the current St James' Park site or build a new state of the art stadium on nearby Leazes Park.

Tottenham Hotspur demolished their White Hart Lane Stadium and built the Tottenham Hotspur stadium on the same site, which opened in April 2019.

It is widely seen as the benchmark for modern stadiums in England and its multi-purpose status allows Spurs to bring in huge amounts of extra revenue through non-football events.

A dividing retractable grass surface enables the staging of a variety of major events in addition to Spurs matches, including NFL, boxing, rugby and concerts, creates a recurring source of revenue for the club with up to 30 non-football events per year.

That is crucial as they look to maximise their ability in the transfer market against the backdrop of the Premier League's profit and sustainability rules.

"If we weren't able to transition in 36-48 hours from football into NFL, it will be a complete disaster for us to either postpone, reschedule or cancel an event," Jon Babbs, Tottenham Hotspur's stadium director, told the Wall Street Journal.

"The more events we stage, the more money we can put into football. We sell about 60,000 pints of beer for a football game, we sell about 120,000 pints of beer for an NFL game.

"As well as having a stadium that is truly multi-functional, host all of the events that we want it to hold, generate the income that we need to be able to put back into our football club, it's the people that really make it happen."

And while multi-use stadiums are common in America, they are more rare in Europe, which gives Spurs an extra financial advantage to some of their competitors.

Ryan Norys, Tottenham's chief revenue officer, added: "It's a multi-purpose stadium so while it's very common in the US with new builds - Hard Rock Stadium, MetLife, SoFi stadium, Allegiant, even Levi's, it's very rare in the rest of the world, and specifically in the UK, because a lot of times stadiums are built specifically for football."

The stadium debate at Newcastle is much more nuanced than just whatever solution will bring in the most revenue. St James' Park is an iconic venue and there has to be a major financial benefit of uprooting to a new stadium rather than just building on the current premises.

St James' Park has held concerts in recent years, too, with Sam Fender, Ed Sheeran and Kings of Leon among the bands playing at the home of the Magpies in recent years.

it has also held Super League's magic weekend where the nation's best rugby league sides play at St James' Park.

But if there is a way for any new stadium to maximise the amount of non-football events at a new stadium which, in turn, allows the club to reinvest significant money to improve on and off the pitch, that has to be a consideration in their thinking.

Spurs made £255.2million in commercial and off-pitch revenue in 2024, which made up 48% of their total revenue for the year. A large slice of that came from third party events. Newcastle's commercial and off-pitch revenue for the same period was £90million, with Newcastle relying more on broadcasting revenue (€215million) in their accounts.

Tottenham have shown it works and they have a model that every club should be looking to follow with a new stadium build.

Former Newcastle youngster could be heading to Spurs in January

Ivan Toney could be heading back to the Premier League in January in a bid to resurrect his World Cup hopes - but has been warned a move to Newcastle United would be counter-productive.

Toney left Brentford for the Saudi Pro League last year, joining Al-Ahli in a £40million deal. The striker only had 12 months left on his Brentford contract at the time.

The 29-year-old's shock move saw him pick up a staggering weekly wage of £400,000 but despite banging in 38 goals in 54 appearances for his Saudi Arabian side, his career has stalled, slipping down the pecking order with England. Thomas Tuchel handed him a surprise squad call-up in June but the forward only played two minutes despite England losing 3-1 to Senegal.

Toney has since been omitted from Tuchel's last two squads, including the current one which took on Wales on Friday before playing Latvia on Monday night. Instead, Ollie Watkins is now seen as first choice replacement for skipper Harry Kane in the frontline.

Toney has been regularly linked with a move back to the Premier League and with Newcastle desperate for a striker in the summer to replace Callum Wilson, and amid the ongoing Alexander Isak situation, Toney's name cropped up several limes. With Al-Ahli being part-owned by PIF, it seemed a deal United could do.

As it was, Newcastle plumped for Yoane Wissa - ironically, Toney's successor in Brentford's attack - and having also landed Nick Woltemade, seem well stocked for strikers. With that in mind, former Newcastle winger Chris Waddle has told Toney he would be mad to pursue a move back to Tyneside, where he spent three years in the academy and on the fringes of the first team between 2015 and 2018.

Instead, Waddle believes Tottenham Hotspur - managed by Toney's former Brentford boss Thomas Frank - would be an ideal fit for the player.

"If he wants to stay in Saudi then you know that's up to him," Waddle told Bestbettingsites. "Obviously we know that they get unbelievable financial rewards. The league's not the best. I know they're trying to hype it up but it' s nowhere near the Premier League.

"If he's settled there and he's enjoying it and he's obviously picking up the money then that's up to him. But if he was in the Premier League he'd have a far better chance to go to the World Cup. At Tottenham, he knows the manager well, and the manager might know how to get the best from him.

"Would he be a good signing for Newcastle? He could be on the bench a bit and that's not going to help his World Cup bid.

"He should consider a move to Tottenham without a shadow of a doubt. He started at Newcastle, but he came good at Brentford. He's probably still got a house in London. I think either club would benefit.

"At Spurs, he'd be coming up against Solanke and Richarlison. But Frank knows him and he knows if he would fit into that team.

"But if he wants to get in the World Cup squad now he's got to come back to the Premier League."

Newcastle, meanwhile, are keeping tabs on another player to succeed Toney at Brentford, Brazilian hitman Igor Thiago, who has caught the eye of scouts after a strong start to the season.

The 24-year-old had almost a full year out of action due to knee issues but is working his way back to full fitness and has hit five goals in eight appearances this season.

Eddie Howe has been told he needs to continue targeting younger players who have potential sell-on value, and Thiago would fit that bill a lot more than Toney.