Eddie Howe sweating on the fitness of ‘phenomenal’ Newcastle star ahead of Leicester City clash

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Leicester City are preparing for their Premier League showdown against Newcastle United this weekend.

The Foxes are unbeaten in their first two matches under Ruud van Nistelrooy, securing a win over West Ham and a draw against Brighton.

Ahead of their trip to St James Park this weekend, the Leicester manager has been dealt some disappointing news, as star midfielder Wilfred Ndidi is out for a couple of weeks.

The Nigerian was substituted with an injury in last weekend’s draw, and he joins the likes of Abdul Fatawu, Ricardo Pereira and Jakub Stolarczyk on the physio bench.

Leicester aren’t the only team with injury concerns as they head up to the North East, with Newcastle also sweating on the fitness of one star.

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Eddie Howe sweating on the fitness of goalkeeper Nick Pope

Newcastle were dealt a huge blow on Wednesday as Leicester target Callum Wilson is out for two to four months with a hamstring issue.

The clinical English striker has suffered many setbacks during his successful career, and this is the latest.

There was further bad news to report on Friday, however, as manager Eddie Howe confirmed that goalkeeper Nick Pope has carried a knee injury this week and he isn’t sure whether he’ll be fit to start on Saturday.

“He’s carried a knee injury this week. Initially we thought it was nothing, so I think he’s seeking some specialist opinion today and then we’ll see if he’s available tomorrow,” Howe said per Newcastle’s official website.

Pope is a ‘phenomenal’ goalkeeper and his absence would deal them a huge blow, although the Englishman does have several options to replace him with, including Martin Dubravka, Odysseas Vlachodimos, John Ruddy or Mark Gillespie.

Newcastle vs Leicester City head-to-head record

Leicester have experienced a resurgence under van Nistelrooy, and have looked electric going forward with five goals scored in two games.

As for their opponents, Newcastle have won just one of their last four matches, losing 4-2 against Brentford last time out.

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Form is arguably on the Foxes’ side heading into this clash, although Leicester’s recent record against the Magpies makes for grim reading.

As delineated by the above table, Leicester have lost four of their last six fixtures against the Toon, with a 4-0 victory in December 2021 the anomaly.

Van Nistelrooy will know that records are there to be altered, and they will arrive at St James Park with the confidence of securing all three points.