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Huddersfield Town v Newcastle United- Crunch match number two

Newcastle United have a chance to pull away from the chasing pack on Saturday evening, as they travel to third placed Huddersfield.

Brighton & Hove Albion v Newcastle United - Sky Bet Championship
Jonjo Shelvey has been outstanding this season.
Photo by Bryn Lennon/Getty Images

Terriers boss David Wagner will welcome back midfielder Aaron Mooy, who was forced to sit out the 5-1 defeat at Man City as he was ineligible to face his parent club.

Chelsea loanee Kasey Palmer has been having trouble with his hamstring, whilst Christopher Schindler has been carrying an injury of his own. Both will face late fitness tests, but Huddersfield are hopeful they will be fine.

After making nine changes on Wednesday night, Wagner is likely to revert back to type. The likes of Michael Hefele, Izzy Brown and Danny Ward will all return to face the Magpies.

One man who really caught the eye at the Etihad is youngster Philip Billing, but he will probably have to settle for a place on the bench to cater for the returning Mooy.

Rajiv Van La Parra come off the bench in the F.A Cup replay, and should make his return to the Town XI.

Elias Kachunga has ten goals this season and will play, whilst January signing Collin Quaner will be hoping for his first league goal.

Huddersfield Town v Brighton & Hove Albion - Sky Bet Championship
Elias Kachunga is Huddersfield's top scorer this season.
Photo by Gareth Copley/Getty Images

Newcastle have been given a massive boost ahead of their promotion run-in with the news that Dwight Gayle is once again fit and available for selection. It would not be a surprise to see the 20 goal man slot straight back into the starting eleven. He, Aleksandar Mitrovic or even Daryl Murphy could lead the line.

Rolando Aarons and Isaac Hayden remain absent, but are both in line to return to the fold before the end of the season.

The back five will probably remain the same, although any change would likely see Vurnon Anita play in place of DeAndre Yedlin.

Mo Diame, who scored that freak goal and Ayoze Perez, who also bagged the late winner at the Amex, will both be hoping for a place from the start.

Yoan Gouffran may find himself out of the side at the John Smith’s stadium, with Christian Atsu and Matt Ritchie both impressing on the wings lately. The Frenchman was deployed as a sole striker against Brighton, but failed to make an impact of any sorts.

Likely line ups

Huddersfield: Ward, Smith, Schindler Hefele, Lowe, Mooy, Whitehead, Van La Parra, Brown, Kachunga, Quaner

Newcastle: Darlow, Yedlin, Lascelles, Clark, Dummett, Shelvey, Colback, Ritchie, Diame, Atsu, Gayle

Score prediction: Huddersfield Town 1-1 Newcastle United

The match has been selected for Sky Sports coverage. You can also follow by tuning into BBC Radio Newcastle's live match commentary, courtesy of the official NUFC website.