Eddie Howe turns to major ‘weapon’ as he drops Newcastle United debut hint vs Celtic

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Eddie Howe turns to major ‘weapon’ as he drops Newcastle United debut hint vs Celtic

Lee Ryder

3 minutes

The Magpies are aiming to keep up their winning run in pre-season after thrashing Carlisle but the stakes are about to be raised

Newcastle United head coach Eddie Howe

Newcastle United head coach Eddie Howe in Austria(Image: Newcastle United via Getty Image)

Eddie Howe will put his Newcastle United stars through their paces in Austria today for one last time to round off an intense week of pre-season preparations.

Howe and the squad will then jet directly to Glasgow ahead of their first public friendly game against Scottish Premiership champions Celtic.

Newcastle will be roared on by 10,000 travelling fans hoping to see £55m Anthony Elanga make his Toon bow at Parkhead.

Speaking ahead of the clash with Brendan Rodgers’ side, Newcastle boss Howe, speaking to NUFC TV, said: “We will have a single session ahead of Celtic to try to get the lads in a decent physical condition for Celtic.

“Albeit they will probably go into the game slightly jaded. We hope to produce a good performance in front of what will be a passionate home support, but also a big away following.

“I think when you look at our pre-season games, every game is a test. Carlisle was a test because they were two weeks ahead of us on fitness.

“That was a really good work out in our first game, this will be a big step up because of the level of opposition then we go into Singapore and South Korea and face Tottenham and Arsenal.”

Anthony Elanga

Anthony Elanga arrives on a bike in Austria

When asked on the prospect of Elanga making his debut, Howe insisted that the ex-Nottingham Forest man had impressed during his first few days at the club.

Howe said: “First impressions are that Anthony has fitted very well into the group. His personality is really strong.

“I know he knows a lot of the group already so I think he feels at home with those connections with those individuals whether it be from internationals or playing against them.

“He has shown his pace and athleticism which is a real weapon for us to add to the other players we have with those similar qualities so yeah it has been a very impressive start.”