Eddie Howe illness update after Newcastle United press conference absence

Jason Tindall was on Newcastle United press conference duty in the absence of Eddie Howe on Friday morning.

Howe sat out the press conference due to illness but was present at the training ground and is expected to be in the dugout for Saturday's Premier League match against Luton Town at St James' Park.

Explaining Howe's absence, Tindall said: “Eddie’s feeling a little bit under the weather. He didn’t feel able to come out to do the press, so it’s me with you guys today.

"We expect him to be okay for tomorrow. He’s here working today. "Eddie will certainly be out there [on the grass] today and take some part of training at least for sure. Then I imagine he'll go home and rest up and make sure he's in the best physical condition for tomorrow's game."

Newcastle head into Saturday's match looking to build on a positive 3-1 win at Aston Villa on Tuesday night. The Magpies' return to form has coincided with an increased amount of time on the training pitch.

“It’s really important for us to have that contact time and be able to get out on the grass and do the work we need to do to give ourselves the best possible chance of performing in the way we know we can," Tindall added.

"I think that’s shown in the last couple of games. We’ve had a difficult period, with the schedule we’ve had and the injuries, and I think that’s probably shown in a couple of our performances.

"But the last two performances and results have given us a lot of confidence, and hopefully we can build on that."