United's January focus is on bolstering backline

COVER NEEDED AMID SPATE OF ABSENCES

- By LEE RYDER

NEWCASTLE United are understood to be prioritising defensive cover in the January transfer window as Eddie Howe finds himself on thin ice at the back.

Howe is not expecting Kieran Trippier or Sven Botman back for the trip to Burnley and Emil Krafth, Tino Livramento and Dan Burn remain sidelined until mid-January.

The Magpies have been scraping through with Lewis Miley at right-back, while Lewis Hall has been pushed for extra minutes despite only recently returning from a hamstring injury.

Transfer talks have taken place behind the scenes and, while Newcastle have been offered strikers and wingers by agents looking for clubs for their clients, the Magpies’ focus is on bolstering their defensive ranks.