Steve Bruce is hoping that Miguel Almiron and Jonjo Shelvey will be back to lift the Magpies against Crystal Palace next weekend.
and their absence made a big difference according to Bruce.
Speaking after the game, he said: “Almiron and Shelvey and Saint-Maximin affected it, of course. I never really want to make excuses but of course that’s why I want a bigger squad.
“I’ve used the full squad today and they weren’t quite good enough but I thought we didn’t do much wrong.
“I don’t think we deserved to get beaten, we showed a lot of spirit and had some big chances. You want the referee to do his job and we feel aggrieved today.”
But Bruce says that the medical staff won’t take any further risks after Saint-Maximin picked up a hamstring injury last weekend against Southampton.
Asked about the possibility of them playing next week he replied: “Almiron more than Shelvey.
“Muscle injuries: we’ve just got to be careful. We run the risk, if they’ve got a slight strain or whatever.
“We can’t have them pulling up and missing six to eight weeks.
“Lets see where they are in the week and we’ll go from there."
