“Knowing him as a player, as a person as I do, he is just a lovely lad and sometimes his willingness to want to win seems to rub people up the wrong way, but it’s coming from a very good place. It’s not coming from any malice. He’s just a lad that loves football and he wants to win.”

Gordon had steamed into a challenge against Man City in the Carabao Cup in a moment that set the tone for the big win over the champions.

Howe said: “We need to see moments like that in that way. It’s a reflection of how we want to play and when we are at our very best, you can see it running through the team and I felt in that second half it was there. Anthony initiated a reaction in the crowd, in our energy, and then we were able to sustain it after.”

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Eddie Howe has picked his Newcastle United team to lock horns with Vincent Kompany’s Burnley at St James’ Park today

The Magpies head into the clash on the back of a win over Manchester City in the EFL Cup in midweek, while they thrashed Sheffield United 8-0 in their last league outing.

Howe’s side have now gone four games unbeaten to put a rocky start to the campaign behind them

Newcastle last faced Burnley at St James’ Park in December 2021 and edged out the Clarets 1-0.

Nick Pope is in goal for Newcastle this afternoon, while in defence Howe picks Kieran Trippier, Jamaal Lascelles, Fabian Schar and Dan Burn to operate as a back four.In midfield, the Magpies go with Bruno Guimaraes, Sean Longstaff and Elliot Anderson, while Miguel Almiron and Anthony Gordon support Alexander Isak.

Howe has options on his bench if he needs to shake things up and they include Sandro Tonali and Jacob Murphy.

Pope, Trippier, Lascelles, Schar, Burn, Guimaraes, Longstaff, Anderson, Almiron, Gordon, IsakSubstitutes: Dubravka, Dummett, Joelinton, Tonali, Ritchie, Targett, Hall, Livramento, Murphy

The Dutch centre-half has not recovered from the knock he suffered in last weekend’s win at Sheffield United, and that kept him out of the midweek Carabao Cup win over Manchester City.

With Botman unavailable, Jamaal Lascelles comes into the side for his first league start of the season and will partner Fabian Schar at the heart of the back four.

Elliot Anderson gets the nod to start in midfield ahead of Joelinton and Sandro Tonali, who are both on the bench.

And despite an injury concern of his own, Alexander Isak has been passed fit to lead the line, with the Swede set to play between Miguel Almiron and Anthony Gordon.

Callum Wilson misses out on the squad entirely, having failed to recover from the injury he suffered at Bramall Lane.

Gordon has been one of Newcastle’s standout players so far this campaign with two goals and two assists to his name so far. But the £40million January signing picked up his fifth yellow card in the league in The Magpies’ match against Burnley at St James’ Park on Saturday. The winger was shown a yellow card for kicking the ball away after referee Thomas Bramall had awarded Burnley a free-kick. The 2-1 defeat against Liverpool last month and the 8-0 win over Sheffield United are the only two Premier League matches in which the 22-year-old has avoided a caution so far.