FA Cup - Blackburn vs. Newcastle - Eddie Howe: Pre-Match Press ...

Newcastle United and Eddie Howe will play for their season on Tuesday, and they know it well. The Magpies are set to face Blackburn Rovers in the fifth round of the FA Cup at Ewood Park aiming to advance to the quarter-finals in the last competition they stand a chance to lift a trophy on.

Coming off a 4-1 trouncing at the hands of Premier League challengers Arsenal isn’t the most optimal situation for Newcastle, but it’s not that the result wasn’t that surprising considering the mediocre season put together by NUFC up to date.

Blackburn, a six-time FA Cup champion, is coming off a 1-1 draw against Norwich City in the Championship last weekend. They have shown an impressive form in this season’s FA Cup and although they haven’t had the hardest past here (they’ve defeated minnows Cambridge United and Wrexham, just to name a couple of opponents) they are still in the same round as Newcastle.

They are, however, pretty much in a similar position as Newcastle’s in the Championship currently sitting in the 16th position in the table and looking for an improvement during the final third of the season with the dream of promotion now long forgotten.

In terms of team news, Blackburn will be without Joe Rankin-Costello, John Fleck, and Hayden Carter due to injuries, with Ryan Hedges also likely to miss the game. Newcastle will not feature Sandro Tonali, Callum Wilson, Joelinton, Nick Pope, Elliot Anderson, and Matt Targett, among others. Loris Karius may continue as goalkeeper in light of Martin Dubravka’s illness, and Joe Willock should keep going after making his comeback last weekend against his former club Arsenal and scoring Newcastle’s lone goal on Saturday evening’s matchup.

Here are some of Howe’s Wisdom Nuggets, courtesy of NUFC.co.uk

On Saturday’s defeat against Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium:

“My initial analysis was very similar to how I feel now. We need to do better in lots of different areas of the game. Normally we do, but it was a difficult day for us.

“After a performance like that, and you do get them, you want a chance to respond very quickly and to get it out of the system. This is a good game to do that with.”

On Joe Willock and Alexander Isak’s outings in North London after both of whom were previously sidelined due to injury:

“I was delighted with Joe’s return. I thought he looked really good when he came on and scored a very typical Joe Willock goal which was great to see.

“He’s very close to starting. He’s done a lot of work, although we’ve only seen 30 minutes he played against Arsenal, behind the scenes to get himself in this position so that will be a judgment call.

“Alex got 60 good minutes into his legs and that will do him the world of good.”

On facing Blackburn Rovers:

“It’s a huge game for us. We’re absolutely committed to the FA Cup to do well and have been all season. We’ve had two difficult games away from home to get to this stage and now another one. We’ve been looking forward to this game for a while so we know how important it is.

“They’ve made a change in manager. John (Eustace)’s a very experienced guy who did a great job at Birmingham City and should do a very similar one at Blackburn.

“It goes to show how competitive the Championship is. Last year, they were right up there competing and this year, after a bright spell, they’re maybe not where they want to be in the league but they’re a very competitive team.

“They’ve got goalscorers in their side and playing a new system, so a lot of challenges for us to rise to, overcome, and get through to the next round.”

On the significance of cup competitions, with United aiming to end a 69-year wait for a domestic trophy:

“It’s what we’re here for. The cup competitions are so important. We want to go as far as we can like we did in the Carabao Cup final.

“Watching the game yesterday brought back a lot of memories of last year and whet the appetite for this game and, hopefully, more to come.

“For me, it’s always (the FA Cup) been one of the most important competitions. In the 1980s, it was the be-all and end-all and the season was based around the FA Cup. That’s not lost on me and I’ve always tried to carry that forward into managing my teams.

On the injury updates of Elliot Anderson and Matt Targett:

“They’re getting there. It’s been a long road for both of them with very different injuries. Matt’s was quite clear cut, a bad tear in his hamstring, and an operation.

“Elliot’s was a very difficult injury because he felt OK but the scan said it was a stress fracture in his back so he had to give it a lot of rest, where he couldn’t be too active, but he’s worked really hard and he’s felt good in the last few weeks. Both are right on the tip of returning.”

On Martin Dúbravka, with the Slovakian goalkeeper missing last weekend’s trip to Arsenal due to illness:

“We hope that he’s improved and is available for selection but at this moment in time, we don’t know.

“I think in a very difficult performance for the team, Loris (Karius) did OK. He made a couple of good saves and controlled his box pretty well so I think he’ll be pleased considering he hasn’t played for a year.”

Howay!