Oliver Glasner Friday press conference makes public the huge issues he faces at St James’ Park

Oliver Glasner has only managed a team once when visiting St James’ Park.

A painful memory for the Crystal Palace boss, the 5-0 defeat in April 2025: “A great stadium and great atmosphere, but many of our players know it, as they’= have played there more often than I did. I just experienced it last year. It is up to us to keep the crowd quiet.”

Oliver Glasner speaking at his pre-match press conference, knows what to expect on Sunday: “Newcastle play with high intensity, huge pace, a clear 4-3-3, clear profile in the positions. If it is Anthony Gordon or Harvey Barnes, it is different. Nick Woltemade, the tall one, or Yoane Wissa, the quick one. A dominant midfield with Joelinton, Sandro Tonali, Bruno Guimaraes. Especially at home, Newcastle playing man to man against you, always being under pressure, playing quick forward. They’re always pressure, pressure, pressure.”

Newcastle United’s away form is well documented, Eddie Howe’s side getting only their third away win in all competitions this season, at Burnley on Tuesday.

However, a very different case at home.

Eddie Howe’s team winning eight of their last ten home matches and losing none of them, in all of these last ten games at St James’ Park, Newcastle have scored at least two goals in all ten of them.

Oliver Glasner and his team are struggling, with their last six games seeing no wins, four defeats and two draws.

The Crystal Palace boss also seeing ever declining numbers of players available, whilst European and domestic cup commitments have meant a punishing schedule piling ever more pressure on.

Oliver Glasner had nine senior outfield players unavailable and so he was forced to play the same starting eleven in Sunday’s 1-0 home defeat to Spurs and then the 1-1 at home to Fulham on Thursday night.

To make matters worse, Will Hughes was forced off inside an hour last night and now means at least ten senior players won’t be available for the Newcastle United match.

Although Oliver Glasner admits it could be potentially even more players he won’t be able to select, with so many games and fatigue setting in, with Palace having Villa at home only three days after the trip to Newcastle.

Oliver Glasner talking earlier on Friday (today) about player availability and what he had available yesterday against Fulham: “We had fourteen on-field players from our squad available and we have our youngsters. But for me, it is always important also to find the right moment to give the youngsters minutes, because for example coming on and making a mistake and you lose, it is massive pressure on a young boy, so it it is really being very careful and cautious with them to find the right moment.”

Looking ahead to St James’ Park on Sunday, the Crystal Palace boss admitting how tough the situation is: “It looks like Eddie Nketiah is also not available. It looks like nobody [from the injury list] will come back for this game. If Will Hughes is not available, we have thirteen, and three days after Newcastle, we play Villa at home. Both teams are on a great run, even though Villa lost at the Emirates. With Newcastle, I watched them against Burnley, they are a high intensity team, especially at home. Pace everywhere. Great, very dominant central midfield. We will give our best to do it better than last year, because last year we went home with a 5-0 defeat.”

Oliver Glasner sees a particularly tricky problem potentially at right wing-back, the excellent Munoz is one of those on the injury list and the Crystal Palace boss has been forced to play Nathaniel Clyne, who shortly will turn 35, from the start against both Spurs and Fulham only three days apart.

Now with Newcastle United only three days later, the Crystal Palace manager explaining what the reality is: “We expect Anthony Gordon to play there [on the left wing] for Newcastle, huge pace, great dribbler, then it’s ‘OK, who can defend in this position?’ And [Nathaniel] Clyney, with all his experience, I will talk to him and if he feels ready, and I think he’s the best one for this, he will start again. If he says he can’t start again, we will find another solution.”

Oliver Glasner could be set to have one positive, with media reporting that Brennan Johnson is going to sign from Spurs. Some claims that he will be signed in time to be in the Palace squad against Newcastle but it would be real desperation to put a new signing into your starting eleven at St James’ Park, before he has even trained with his new teammates. That is of course, if he is signed in time to be available.

I think the suspicion must be that Oliver Glasner will have to protect at least one or two of his key players when it comes to this Newcastle United match, probably far easier to do it away from home, rather than in front of the Crystal Palace fans at home. If Glasner then lost say the likes of Mateta or another massive player, due to playing them when fatigued, the Palace problems would accelerate massively.

At the same time, Eddie Howe earlier today revealed that things could be set to improve further in terms of availability and reducing what had been also a sizeable list of missing players. Pope, Joelinton and Wissa returned to the starting 11 on Tuesday at Burnley, whilst this morning Howe said that the likes of Trippier, Botman and Livramento could all potentially return to the matchday squad against Palace.

These are the ten Crystal Palace players who look definitely set to be missing against Newcastle United:

Will Hughes (To be confirmed)

Chris Richards (Foot injury)

Daniel Munoz (Knee injury)

Chadi Riad Dnanou (Knee injury)

Ismaila Sarr (African Cup of Nations)

Eddie Nketiah (Muscle injury)

Cheick Doucoure (Knee injury)

Daichi Kamada (Hamstring injury)

Rio Cardines (Muscle injury)

Caleb Kporha (Back injury)