Source: Eurosport
Hughton expects to name his starters
Chris Hughton has hinted that his starting line-up for Newcastle's final pre-season friendly at Dundee United will be close to the side that lines up against West Brom in the Magpies' opening Championship fixture on August 8.
With managing director Derek Llambias confirming that Hughton will start the new season in his role as interim manager, the former Tottenham coach is focusing his attention on next weekend's trip to the Hawthorns.
Sunday's friendly at Tannadice is Newcastle's final warm-up game, and with Damien Duff and Danny Guthrie expected to return from groin and hamstring problems respectively, Hughton's starting XI will be the side he intends to put out at West Brom.
"It's never set in stone, but it's always a fair assumption that (in the final friendly) you're trying to get as close as you can to the team for the start of the season," Hughton told the Northern Echo.
"Sometimes events allow you to do that, sometimes injuries don't.
"You might also make a decision that a certain player needs a certain amount of minutes. But, in general, it's a fair assumption that it will be quite close."
