Eddie Howe refuses to make excuses for two Newcastle United superstars amid fitness worry

Eddie Howe is aware Newcastle United do not have enough depth in certain areas, but knows his side simply have to get on with it.

While the Magpies’ forward line has been boosted by Yoane Wissa’s return to fitness, there are other issues for Eddie Howe to contend with.

The biggest is at full-back, with Kieran Trippier and Emil Krafth injured. Their unavailability has increased the pressure on Lewis Hall and Tino Livramento, who only recently returned to fitness after their respective injuries.

The young duo are being asked to play a lot so soon after recovering, and Eddie Howe is mindful that fatigue could become an issue.

Injuries have conspired against the Newcastle United manager at a challenging time, but he is not going to use them as an excuse.

Eddie Howe hopeful for Tino Livramento and Lewis Hall

Howe spoke to the media ahead of Bayer Leverkusen vs Newcastle United in the Champions League on Wednesday night, and was asked about the number of minutes Hall and Livramento have had to play in recent weeks amid the Magpies’ injury concerns.

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“We don’t have the depth in those positions that we would necessarily want at this time of the season,” he said via YouTube.

“But we just have to go with it. Those two players [Hall and Livramento] have done really well so far.

“Lewis was obviously ill before Saturday’s game and we didn’t want to take that risk of pushing him when he was fatigued. He came through the 30 minutes that he played.

“Hopefully both players will be fine.”

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Newcastle United’s full-back problem is not going away as January looms

With Dan Burn currently Newcastle’s only senior alternative at the moment, there is real pressure on Howe to manage this situation.

Newcastle could change their formation to cope with the situation, with Jacob Murphy capable of playing as a wing-back.

That is something he could consider, as this is going to remain a problem for the next few weeks. Howe has said that Trippier and Krafth could be out until around Christmas, which is a major concern given the volume of games the Magpies are playing.

It highlights exactly why Newcastle want a full-back in January, but it remains to be seen who sporting director Ross Wilson could target to give Howe a helping hand.