Stoke v Newcastle - Matchfile

Martins Owen
Duff Nolan Butt Gutierrez
R Taylor Bassong Coloccini Beye
Harper
NEWCASTLE

Newcastle subs: Carroll, Ranger, Forster, Geremie, Smith, Edgar, Cacapa, Xisco
Stoke subs: Simonsen, Kelly, Camara, Sonko, Olofinjana, Pugh, Cresswell.

NEWCASTLE: Alan Shearer will be forced to make sweeping changes to the team that lost to Chelsea. Jose Enrique and Steven Taylor will not travel to the Britannia Stadium, while Sebastien Bassong has. Bassong's return is likely to see him slot back into the middle, with Habib Beye reverting to full-back.

Peter Lovenkrands is also missing, so Shearer must come up with a new combination down the left.
Injuries: Viduka (Achilles), Barton (metatarsal), S Taylor (knee), Enrique (toe), Gonzalez (Achilles), Lovenkrands (chest), Ameobi (ankle), Kadar (leg).
Suspensions: None
Leading scorer: Owen 8
Last five league games: LLDLL

STOKE: After claiming back-to-back wins, manager Tony Pulis has found that all of his players are desperate to play in the relegation run-in and there are no fresh injury concerns. And while Salif Diao's groin injury has left him short of options in the middle, Pulis is still able to call on either Liam Lawrence or Rory Delap to play in the middle alongside Glenn Whelan.
Injuries: Diao (groin), Sidibe (knee)
Suspensions: None
Leading scorer: Fuller 8
Last five league games: WWLWD
Key player: James Beattie - how will Newcastle's makeshift defence deal with the striker?

Referee: Chris Foy (St Helens) G21 Y72 R2 Cd Av: 3.52
Last Newcastle game: v Portsmouth (a) 0-3, 14/12/08, Y5 R0
Head to head: Stoke 20, Newcastle 31, Draws 16
Odds: H6/5; A9/5; D11/5

It’s a fact: Stoke's most recent win over the Magpies was on Boxing Day almost 20 years ago, when they won 2-1 in the old Division Two at the Victoria Ground.
Comment By PAUL FRASER: Having lost his first, it is difficult to imagine that Alan Shearer will lose his first two matches - even if it is at Stoke.
Prediction: 2-2