Howe waiting on Pope’s fitness ahead of Foxes visit – Newcastle United

The Magpies are back home against Ruud van Nistelrooy’s men at St. James’ Park (kick-off 3pm GMT), looking for the win which could move them back up into the top half of the Premier League table.

Howe revealed England stopper Pope has been carrying a knock this week, but is still hoping he may be available for the visit of the Foxes, who currently sit in 16th place.

The United head coach was speaking ahead of the weekend clash, and here are some of the main topics of conversation at Friday morning’s media briefing:

On Pope’s fitness…

“He’s carried a knee injury this week. Initially we thought it was nothing, so I think he’s seeking some specialist opinion today and then we’ll see if he’s available tomorrow.”

On other squad members’ availability for the game…

“Joe Willock, we haven’t seen train yet but he’s making good progress.

“And Lewis Miley has come through a couple of really good games for his continued return, and he’s looking really good, so I’m pleased with him.”

On Sven Botman’s ongoing rehabilitation from a knee injury…

“He’s been training for a while – he’s been training consistently for around four weeks. But that was the plan. We are taking medical advice and following the right protocols for the injury he’s had to try and make sure we give him the best chance to stay fit.

“The plan is late December, very early January at the earliest that we will be available for the first team.”

On Callum Wilson’s recent setback…

“Really feel for Callum. We see the work, the dedication and professionalism that he’s shown. You have to understand how difficult this season has been for him.

“He’s had a couple of setbacks when he’s looked so close to training regularly. He’s not cut corners, he’s gone through a vigorous process to keep himself fit.

“When you see him not get the end result this time, I feel really sad for him but I back him to come back again and have the mental resilience he’s need to fight again and fight hard, because we know his qualities. We’re desperate to see him play in a Newcastle shirt again and score goals.”

On what this week has been like following the defeat at Brentford…

“It’s been a good training week for us this week – a lot of returning to basics. The fundamentals of our performance weren’t quite right against Brentford. Basically our mentality to defend our goal wasn’t there – when you concede four goals in any game, there’s issues.

“We look back at those goals individually and it’s not the cohesive defending that we’ve been used to really this season. We’ve been OK defensively, but the last two games obviously have conceded seven goals. That’s something we’ve needed to reflect on, we’ve worked on, and hopefully that will show.”

On dealing with pressure…

“You can never escape pressure – I think it’s always there at a club of this size. But I think how you interpret that and handle that is always individual. For me, I always surround myself with my work – whether we win, lose or draw, it doesn’t really change. The focus of the work might change, or what we need to do might change, but the work ethic and the standards I demand of myself is always there.

“Of course, when you don’t perform in the way you want you’re seeking solutions and you’re seeking a better way of working, so we’re always in pursuit of that regardless of results. I think you’re aware of conversations and topics and themes and what people might be saying, but I certainly don’t indulge myself in absorbing any of them.”