Eddie Howe names Newcastle United player pushing for start against Aston Villa

Barnes netted twice during their 4-0 win over Villareal in the Sela Cup, capping off a wonderful first appearance at St James’ Park for the former Leicester City man. Their win over Villareal concluded a good pre-season for the group who now turn their attention towards the Premier League and the visit of Aston Villa on Saturday.

Newcastle host the Villains (5:30pm kick-off) aiming to get their season off to the perfect start in what promises to be a very tough opening day game. And one man who will want to impress from the off is the aforementioned Barnes.

With Anthony Gordon also in good form, Eddie Howe faces a tough decision on who to pick on the left-wing for the game with the Villains. Barnes is still adapting to the demands of Howe’s team and his new head coach believes he is doing that well ahead of Saturday’s game.

When asked if Barnes is adapting to life at the club, Howe said: “I hope so. It’s difficult to predict but I think his role in the team on that left hand side is slightly simpler than maybe other positions in the team.

“As always, when you sign someone you’re hoping that his attributes fit to what you want. You could see from Harvey [against Villareal]  that he looked good in the team, he looked comfortable in his role and I thought he performed really well and I’m delighted with the two goals and with the two finishes.

“Physically he looks good as well as he had a period before he signed for us where he hadn’t had training but he’s looked sharper in the two weeks. I think he’s in a good place.

“Nothing is decided [about the team to face Villa]. I need to analyse and with all the knowledge I have from training to try and pick the right team.”

Joelinton and Jacob Murphy also got themselves on the scoresheet against Villareal whilst Alexander Isak and Miguel Almiron netted against Fiorentina a day earlier. Newcastle and Villa traded comfortable home wins in the Premier League last term and a 3-3 draw during the Premier League Summer Series in Philadelphia last month.