Newcastle United suffer new absence blow ahead of Champions League clash

Newcastle United will look to bounce back from Saturday’s Premier League defeat to Brighton when they host Benfica in the Champions League on Tuesday evening - but could be without a key player.

The Magpies have made something of a mixed start to the 2025/26 campaign, currently sitting 13th in the Premier League table after eight games, while in Europe, they followed up their opening fixture defeat to Barcelona with an emphatic victory over Belgian side Union Saint-Gilloise.

Eddie Howe’s men return to Champions League action on Tuesday night when they host Benfica at St James’ Park, but may have another name added to their growing injury list.

Newcastle United could be without Sandro Tonali vs Benfica

The queue for the Magpies treatment table already includes the likes of Lewis Hall, Tino Livramento and Yoane Wissa, but there is also fresh concern over the availability of Italian midfielder Sandro Tonali.

The 25-year-old - who FourFourTwo ranked at No.7 in a list of the game's best defensive midfielders - has started all but one of Newcastle United’s fixtures this season, but was substituted with 20 minutes remaining of the 2-1 defeat to the Seagulls at the weekend.

This came after Tonali appeared to play on after appearing to suffer a knock against Nottingham Forest before the international break, while he was also spotted holding his hamstring while playing for Italy, although he was not forced off.

These knocks have dented Tonali’s training time and Sky Sports report that the €70 million signing did not feature as Howe trained his side ahead of tomorrow night’s match. A report from the Daily Mail claims Tonali's absence is due to illness, however, and could yet be involved for the visit of Mourinho's men.

The Magpies face a busy run of fixtures before the November international break, competing in the Premier League, Champions League and Carabao Cup, so Tonali’s fitness will be key focus for Howe over the next few weeks.

The Newcastle boss has named an unchanged side for his past three matches across all competitions, but this is likely to change on Tuesday night.

While Jacob Ramsey’s return to fitness will be a boost for Howe, the Magpies chief will not be able to consider Jamaal Lascelles, John Ruddy, Mark Gillespie and Harrison Ashby on Tuesday evening, as none of that quartet were selected in the club’s Champions League squad.

Newcastle are back in domestic action when they host Fulham on Saturday, before a Carabo Cup fourth round tie against Tottenham next Wednesday. Fixtures against West Ham, Athletic Club and Brentford follow in a period which sees the club play five times in the next 19 days.