The big question heading into Newcastle United’s Premier League trip to Leeds is whether Matias Fernandez-Pardo’s first start finally arrives at Elland Road on Monday night. The £51m deadline-day arrival has not been fit enough to start for his new club yet, according to the Yorkshire Evening Post, and every one of our writers has a different take on whether Matthias Jaissle pulls the trigger tonight.
Newcastle head to West Yorkshire unbeaten in five league and cup games. It is a decent early run, but Elland Road will be a real examination of what Jaissle is building. The head coach kept the same XI for the wins at Spurs and the draw at Bournemouth, and he named the strongest available side again for the Carabao Cup trip to Millwall in midweek. Tonight, though, the selection puzzle is more complicated.
Dedic fitness the other key call
Alongside the Fernandez-Pardo question, the fitness of Amar Dedic is dominating the team-news conversation. The £30m summer signing was forced off in midweek with a hamstring injury, though Jaissle said on Friday that the problem is not ‘too serious’. Whether the head coach takes any risk at all remains to be seen. Newcastle performance director James Bunce is known to monitor soft-tissue problems closely, and if there is any doubt, Tino Livramento (who put in 45 minutes at Millwall) is ready to step in at right-back.
The writers’ collective view is that Anthony Elanga, Malick Thiaw and Lewis Miley, all rested at the New Den, come back into the side. Jacob Ramsey, who started at Millwall, is pushing to keep his place, while Bazoumana Toure is still in the conversation on the left wing.
Four different XIs, one big theme: Matias Fernandez-Pardo first start
Lee Ryder would hold off on Fernandez-Pardo for now, keeping faith with Yoane Wissa as the striker and pushing Sean Steur into midfield alongside Nico Gonzalez. His side: Hornicek, Livramento, Thiaw, Botman, Hall, Gonzalez, Steur, Barnes, Willock, Elanga, Wissa.
Sean McCormick wants to see the Fernandez-Pardo first start happen tonight, but only if the player is ready to go for at least an hour. In his XI, Wissa drops into the role behind the striker rather than leading the line. He also backs Dedic over Livramento at right-back if fit, and switches out Miley for Ramsey in midfield for more control. His XI: Hornicek, Dedic, Thiaw, Botman, Hall, Gonzalez, Ramsey, Elanga, Wissa, Barnes, Fernandez-Pardo.
Ross Gregory is more cautious. He notes that Gonzalez was off the pace against Millwall and that both he and Miley struggled at Bournemouth, but he still wants to give the partnership more time to find its rhythm. Jaissle will pick Joe Willock in the number ten position, Gregory argues, because the head coach wants a runner who can go beyond the striker, and with two goals already this season, Willock is making the argument for himself. Fernandez-Pardo and Toure can provide a spark from the bench. His XI: Hornicek, Dedic, Thiaw, Botman, Hall, Gonzalez, Miley, Elanga, Willock, Barnes, Wissa.
Stuart Jamieson goes the most aggressive route. He wants Newcastle to attack with pace on the counter, pairing Elanga with both Fernandez-Pardo and Toure in the front line. Ramsey comes in as an advanced midfielder ahead of Gonzalez and Miley to give the team real control in the ten role. Jamieson’s XI: Hornicek, Dedic, Thiaw, Botman, Hall, Gonzalez, Miley, Ramsey, Elanga, Toure, Fernandez-Pardo.
So: three of four writers have Fernandez-Pardo in their starting lineup, yet none of them agrees on exactly where he fits or who shifts to accommodate him. That alone tells you how much tonight’s selection matters. If Jaissle does hand the £51m man his Matias Fernandez-Pardo first start at Elland Road, it will be the clearest signal yet that the head coach believes his squad has the depth to step up a level.
Kick-off at Leeds United‘s Elland Road is tonight, and Newcastle United go in with momentum but plenty of selection uncertainty to resolve before the whistle.