Lewis Miley and Jacob Ramsey celebrate with Newcastle United forward Nick Woltemade(Image: 2025 Getty Images)

For so long now, Newcastle United's midfield trio of Sandro Tonali, Joelinton and Bruno Guimaraes have been the envy of teams across the Premier League.

They were so effective in the Carabao Cup final win over Liverpool last season, whose midfield earned rave reviews of their own last season en route to winning the Premier League title last term.

But circumstances could force Eddie Howe into mixing things up in his midfield against Benfica this evening and it is crucial Newcastle's understudies take their chance and put pressure on the Magpies' starting trio.

Howe confirmed in Monday's press conference that Sandro Tonali is 50/50 to be fit for the visit of Jose Mourinho's side through illness.

Watch Newcastle vs Benfica on TNT Sports

Newcastle United continue their UEFA Champions League campaign as they host Benfica on October 21. Fans can watch the game on the TNT Sports Prime Video channel.

Joelinton looked shattered in Saturday's 2-1 defeat to Brighton and was replaced at half-time. For the first time, the...