'Outstanding' Newcastle United player to miss out on Brentford start – Eddie Howe has a 'problem'

Howe left the in-form Alexander Isak out of his starting XI for last night’s game against West Ham United – and recalled Callum Wilson to the team.

Newcastle’s head coach, mindful of the physical demands of a seven-game month, had opted to “rotate” his strikers at the London Stadium.

Wilson netted twice in a memorable 5-1 win over David Moyes’ relegation-threatened side – and Isak scored after coming off the bench.

Now Howe must decide who leads the line at the Gtech Community Stadium on Saturday.

Asked whether Wilson or Isak would start against Brentford, Howe said: “I think I’ll leave that decision for another day.

"I don’t think I’ll burn any energy thinking about that until I absolutely have to. They’re the problems you want to have. It’s a great situation for me to be in. I’ve been in other situations where you might not even have a player to fill the role.

"We’ve got two outstanding players, and I’ll try to make the right call for the next game.”

Rotation policy

Howe – who also fielded Joelinton ahead of Joe Willock – wants to keep his players in the “best physical condition possible”.

Asked about his decision to recall Wilson, Howe said: “I think I’ve got a strong squad, and with three games in six days, I want the players to enter the pitch in the best physical condition possible.

“In my opinion, I’d be foolish not to rotate and trust the team. I trust the squad and the players coming in. I’ve got no doubt on the quality, and we’ve got a lot of games in a short period of time.

“It’s always going to be judged by the result whether that (the rotation) is successful or not, and of course I want to keep people fit and give them the best chance to play as many games as possible.”

Newcastle are third in the Premier League ahead of the West Ham game.