News from Eddie's Brighton Press Conference

Nothing new came out of Eddie Howe's presser this morning.

On the injury front Youane Wissa, Tino Livramento and Lewis Hall are all progressing well but there is no change on their expected comeback dates.

Jacob Ramsey is fit and in the squad. With Bruno, Jo and Sando Tonali all having played during the international break having Ramsey back as a starter or sub option is great news.

The one surprise is that Harrison Ashby has been carrying a thigh injury so any chance he had of standing in for Tino - if Eddie believed he was an option - has been dashed.

There was a concern about a rumoured groin injury to Joelinton but Eddie confirmed that Jo is fit to play, but as both he and Bruno have spent so much time travelling to and from South Korea and Japan he needs to assess their condition to play during today's training sessions.

Eddie was asked about Ross Wilson's appointment and said although he did not have a major role to play in his recruitment he was consulted and gave his approval.

Eddie stressed the point that he was very happy that the CEO and DoF roles have now been filled providing him with the support he wants and needs to concentrate 100% on his team duties.

Eddie also confirmed that one of Wilson's priorities will be to review all player contracts and make the relevant decisions. No doubt Eddie will have a significant say in where he feels the priorities lie, although negotiations with players is Wilson's remit.

Asked about Dan Burn returning to left back, Eddie acknowledged that it is a significant change for Dan but that he is willing to play anywhere to help the club and team.

Eddie was very complimentary about Sven Botman and Malik Thiaw highlighting their technical ability and the overall quality of their game.

I detected a slight 'it is what it is' from Eddie with reference to Burn's move to LB and it will be interesting to see if Burn gets his No.1 LCB spot back.

Tino and Hall were mentioned as a big miss by Eddie and with no disrespect to the aging Trippier and Burn, there is now a big difference in what that young pairing can offer, especially in their ability to have an impact in quick breaks in both attacking and defensive roles.

On tomorrow's game...

The pundits are selecting a draw as the common prediction with Chris Sutton, for example, saying he thinks "Newcastle don't have enough to beat Brighton'.

Well Chris, I don't know how you come to that conclusion, we definitely have the players to beat them and I think we will.

I'm sticking with my prediction from my match preview of a 2-0 win for the lads and reckon that Woltemade at 9/4 to score is a sound bet. I'll have a fiver on it :)

Comments welcome.

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