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• Longstaff keen to repay Howe's faith for Newcastle

  Sean Longstaff says Eddie Howe's trust is allowing him to play his best football as Newcastle United go in search of a third straight Premier League win against West Ham on Monday.

  After a difficult period, Newcastle bounced back by beating Arsenal (1-0) and Nottingham Forest (3-1) to enter the international break eighth in the table, one point adrift of third-placed Chelsea.

  Longstaff returned to Newcastle's starting lineup for those matches after temporarily losing his place in their midfield, with Joelinton being pushed into the frontline.

  "The midfield group is really strong," Longstaff told BBC Radio Newcastle. "When you look around it's all internationals. It's just about trying to bring my strengths to the team.

  "I know the manager trusts me which is the biggest thing. No matter what anyone ever says, the fact he trusts me gives me the most confidence."

  Longstaff then continued: "The season we qualified for the Champions League, I tried to enjoy it as much as possible.

  "Then, last year there was games every three days and with lads being injured, I think the burden of trying to win every game can mean the enjoyment leaves a little bit. I'm just trying to enjoy the games as much as I can and hopefully being a bit freer will help."

  Opponents West Ham, meanwhile, are just five points clear of the relegation zone after signing off for the international break with a goalless draw against Everton, a result that followed on from a crushing 3-0 defeat at Forest.

  The Hammers' underwhelming start to the campaign has seen Julen Lopetegui's position questioned mere months after he took the reins, and he is demanding a complete performance next time out.

  Speaking to BBC Sport after the Everton game, Lopetegui said: "We had more chances than them. In the second half, we had more clear chances to win the game.

  "The first half was a gift for them. We lost 45 minutes. In the second half we did better, we were aggressive and had chances to win.

  "The matches aren't about 45 minutes. They are 90 minutes and stoppage time. That's why I'm not happy, for sure. I think we can, and have to, do better."

  PLAYERS TO WATCH 

  Newcastle United – Harvey Barnes

  Only against Aston Villa (nine) has Barnes been directly involved in more Premier League goals than he has against West Ham (eight – six goals, two assists). 

  He has either scored or assisted in each of his last four against the Hammers (four goals, one assist), finding the net in each of the last three.

   

  West Ham – Michail Antonio 

  Only Wolves frontman Jorgen Strand Larsen (16) has made more hold-ups while retaining possession in the Premier League this season than West Ham striker Antonio (15). 

  Antonio is retaining possession with 71% of his hold-ups in the competition this term (15/21), the highest ratio of any player to attempt 10 or more. Lopetegui's side are likely to spend plenty of time under pressure on Monday, but he could provide them with an outlet.

  MATCH PREDICTION – NEWCASTLE UNITED WIN

  Newcastle have won their last two Premier League games and are looking to win three in a row for the first time since September 2023 – this is the sixth occasion since then that they have won twice in a row in the league.

  They have lost just one of their last 10 Premier League games against West Ham (five wins, four draws) and are unbeaten in all five against the Hammers under Howe (two wins, three draws). They triumphed 4-3 when the sides last met at St James' Park in March.

   

  West Ham, meanwhile, have kept just two clean sheets in their last 28 Premier League away games, conceding 66 goals (2.4 per game). 

  Indeed, in 2024, they have conceded more away goals in the top-flight (35) than any side.

  Lopetegui's men have also failed to score in their last two league games, as many as in their previous 14 beforehand. Only five teams have a worse difference between their expected goals (xG) and expected goals against (xGA) figures than West Ham (-2.97) this term.

  OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

  Newcastle United – 58.9%

  West Ham – 19.7%

  Draw – 21.4%

• Maresca confirms James will miss Leicester clash with hamstring injury

  Enzo Maresca confirmed that Reece James has suffered another hamstring injury and will miss Chelsea's Premier League fixture against Leicester City on Saturday. 

  James made 11 appearances in all competitions last season before undergoing hamstring surgery, which was designed to help him overcome his series of injuries.

  He returned to action in Chelsea's 2-1 defeat to Liverpool last month, completing his first 90 minutes in 569 days a week later against Newcastle United. 

  Though his latest injury setback is his eighth hamstring problem in four years, while also picking up thigh, ankle and muscle issues along the way. 

  Maresca played down concerns about a long-term lay-off but confirmed James will miss Saturday's match at the King Power Stadium. 

  "We have just one injured player and that's Reece, who unfortunately felt something small in training two days ago, and we don't want to take a risk for the weekend," he said.

  "It's a hamstring, muscular problem. We will see, we don't know for how long, for sure [we want him fit for longer]. At the moment it is not happening, but we hope it will happen soon.

  "He is out this weekend, but hopefully he can be back soon. It's probably difficult that he can be available for the Conference League [next Thursday], but hopefully soon."

  Since his debut season in 2019-20, James' most appearances came in the 2020-21 campaign, featuring 47 times in Chelsea's Champions League winning season. 

  His best run of matches during that time is six in May 2021, but he managed just 482 minutes under Mauricio Pochettino in all competitions last season. 

  James has, however, managed more minutes (6138) in the Premier League since the 2020-21 season than any other player in the current Chelsea squad, though Enzo Fernandez (4375) is second, despite only joining the club in January 2023.

• Hurzeler: Brighton need to 'work to get momentum' despite Man City win

  Brighton and Hove Albion boss Fabian Hurzeler believes his players need to rebuild their momentum following a two-week break after their 2-1 victory over Manchester City.

  The Seagulls came back from a goal down in dramatic fashion to inflict City's fourth successive defeat in all competitions last time out.

  Though the international break came at a bad time for his in-form team, Hurzeler refused to criticise the schedule ahead of their trip to the Vitality Stadium.

  "You always have to work to get momentum. It's always a new game and no matter if there's a break between games or not, the game starts from zero," he told a pre-match press conference.

  "You have to go into the game and do the things you can influence to the maximum.

  "You can't say 'we won against Manchester City and now the momentum will keep going', it's about fighting for momentum.

  "It's a new game, a different challenge and a really big challenge because Bournemouth are one of the strongest teams at the moment."

  Bournemouth have also beaten City recently, with the Cherries also triumphing over Arsenal and Southampton in their last three home matches.

  "They can play very intense, they run a lot, they have individual quality, they are in good shape. For me at the moment, they're one of the best teams in the league," Hurzeler said of the Cherries.

  Bournemouth manager Andoni Iraola, meanwhile, was keen to stress that his players need to keep their concentration against Brighton. The Cherries were beaten 3-2 away to Brentford last time out, despite having taken the lead twice.

  “You never want to lose the last game before the break because at the end you remember the last feeling. We will remember this week, the actions here against Brentford," he said.

  "We can prepare very well for the game against Brighton, that is going to be also very demanding.”

  PLAYERS TO WATCH

  Bournemouth – Evanilson

  Evanilson has scored four goals for Bournemouth since joining the club in August. He is tied with Antoine Semenyo as the club's top scorer, although his goals have come in one fewer appearance.

  The Brazilian forward has found the net in three successive matches and will become the first Bournemouth player since Callum Wilson in 2019 to score in four straight top-flight games should he do so on Saturday.

  Brighton – Danny Welbeck

  Danny Welbeck is Brighton's leading scorer so far this season, with six league goals – a total that includes three opening goals.

  He has scored two away goals so far in the current campaign, coming on the opening day at Everton and the only goal of the game at Newcastle United last month.

  MATCH PREDICTION: DRAW

  Bournemouth come into this in 12th place in the Premier League on 15 points after 11 matches, having lost 3-2 to Brentford in their most recent game.

  At home, though, they have taken 10 points from five matches (three wins, one draw, one loss) and come into this with three successive victories at the Vitality Stadium. They have never won four Premier League home games in a row.

  Brighton have earned seven points from five away games (two wins, one draw and two losses) and, despite being six places above their hosts in the table, there are just four points between them.

  While Bournemouth have won four of their five Premier League home games against Brighton, Fabian Hurzeler's side come into this in good form having won three of their last five (one draw, one loss) Premier League matches – as many victories as they managed across their previous 16 league games (six draws, seven defeats).

  OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

  Bournemouth – 41.2%

  Draw – 25.1%

  Brighton – 33.7%