Chris Wood is in line to make his Newcastle debut in Saturday’s Premier League clash with fellow strugglers Watford.

The £25million signing from Burnley is likely to deputise for striker Callum Wilson as he continues his recovery from a calf injury, while England full-back Kieran Trippier, who lined up for the Magpies in their shock 1-0 defeat to Cambridge United in the FA Cup last weekend, is expected to make his league bow for the club.

Keeper Martin Dubravka will be available despite emerging from the Cambridge game with a toe problem, while full-backs Jamal Lewis (hamstring) and Paul Dummett (calf) are approaching full fitness.

However, defender Federico Fernandez (thigh) and midfielder Isaac Hayden (knee) are still out and there are still Covid-19 cases within the camp.

Despite splashing out around £37 million on Wood and Trippier, Newcastle boss Eddie Howe has warned the club will not be held to ransom even though they are now backed by the spending power of Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund.

He said: “Absolutely, you have to be in that position. You have to draw a line in certain situations and say, ‘No, we’re not going to pay that money’, otherwise where does the game go? It goes to an uncomfortable place, I think.

“It’s all about the individual player and judging each situation on individual merits, and that’s what we’ve tried to do.”

Asked about the difficulty of getting value for money in January, Howe added: “Everyone’s well aware that we’re in the market for certain positions and then that demand then drives the price up. There’s nothing we can do about that.

“The window continues to surprise everybody, I think. But you just have to live in that world. We needed players that we’ve identified and managed to get over the line.

“The cost of those players is uncomfortable, I’m sure, for everybody – that’s not talking about the individual cases, that’s just the prices of football players in general – but that’s the market we’re in.”