Newcastle United confirmed yesterday that they would be playing a friendly against Tottenham in Australia just three days after the season ends.
The news has received a very mixed reaction with many suggesting it is far too soon after the game against Brentford and that the players deserve a rest.
Speaking on talkSPORT, Jeff Stelling has guaranteed that both Anthony Gordon and Kieran Trippier won’t be taking part in the game, especially with it being ahead of the European Championships.
Stelling thinks Newcastle duo have more important matters
It’s obvious why both Newcastle and Tottenham are keen to play the friendly out in Australia, to increase their brand across the rest of the world and increase their commercial budget which in the long-term helps their transfer budget.
What is not yet clear is why they are playing it just three days after the season, especially when Newcastle have suffered enough already with a packed schedule resulting in a significant number of injuries.
Stelling thinks that both Gordon and Trippier will already have one eye on playing for England in the summer and won’t want to put that at risk for what is, to them at least, a pointless Newcastle fixture in May.
For Gordon especially with it being his first chance at a major tournament for his country and having spoken about the pride he takes in representing them, he’s not going risk all of that.
On the Newcastle duo, Stelling said: “I guarantee you Kieran Trippier and Anthony Gordon will not go. I guarantee you! They can’t.”
Newcastle already have a busy enough summer
After the season that Newcastle have had and with the pressure currently mounting on the club, this is the last thing the fans would have expected to see at the end of the Premier League campaign.
Newcastle already have so much to do in the summer both in terms of getting all of their players fit and available, preparing for pre-season and seeking out some new first-team stars.
Whether Eddie Howe has had a say in the matter is unclear, but surely his job is difficult enough without now having to balance an end of season friendly and trying to protect some of his key players.
The only positive to take from it is that it gives Howe just that extra bit of time to evaluate his squad and perhaps experiment a little bit before everyone goes away for a well deserved break.
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