Newcastle United face the prospect of being without creative midfielder Miguel Almiron for Chelsea's visit to St James' Park on Saturday lunchtime.
The two sides will go head-to-head in Saturday's early kick-off in the game that signals the Premier League's return following the two-week international break.
Whilst Chelsea will travel to the North East brimming with confidence after back-to-back league successes over Burnley and Sheffield United in their most recent outings, Newcastle, on the other hand, will be looking to bounce back from a 2-0 defeat to Southampton.
The defeat to the Saints was Steve Bruce's side's second reverse in their last four league games, meaning the pressure will be on his side to claim a surprise result against Frank Lampard's in-form Blues.
However, with Newcastle crying out for a creative source of goals aside from leading marksman Callum Wilson, who has enjoyed an excellent start to life at St James' Park following his move from AFC Bournemouth, Bruce could be without attacking-midfield star Almiron after he remained with the Paraguay squad for their 2-2 draw with Bolivia in a World Cup qualifier on Tuesday evening.
Though it would be nothing out of the ordinary for a player to remain with his respective national team for a game of such importance, Almiron was, in fact, suspended for the contest, meaning he was unable to play any part.
He watched the game from the stands as his side recovered from 2-1 down to claim a point thanks to a 72nd-minute goal from Alejandro Romero.
The fact that Almiron stayed with the squad to watch the game will have angered Newcastle, as they wanted him to return to England early ahead of Saturday's visit of Chelsea.
Taking travel time into account, Newcastle now face an anxious wait to see whether or not the midfielder will be available to play any part against the Blues.
The 26-year-old, formerly of Atlanta United, has played 10 times for the Magpies so far this season, scoring once and registering three assists.
