Newcastle boss Alan Pardew will make a late check on Gabriel Obertan ahead of the game. The former United midfielder has an infected toe, but is expected to be fit to feature. Pardew otherwise has no fresh injury problems, with Danny Guthrie (groin) and Peter Lovenkrands (calf) close to returns. Steven Taylor (Achilles) and Sylvain Marveaux remain on the long-term casualty list. Wayne Rooney is expected to return to the Manchester United team after reportedly being disciplined by Sir Alex Ferguson last week. It is believed Rooney and midfielder Darron Gibson both missed the New Year's Eve defeat to Blackburn after angering their manager by their performance in training after a Boxing Day night out. Chris Smalling (tonsillitis) and Rio Ferdinand (back) may return on Tyneside to bolster United's injury-ravaged squad as they look to keep pace with leaders Manchester City, who play Liverpool on Tuesday night. Newcastle (from): Krul, Elliot, Harper, Simpson, R Taylor, Santon, Ferguson, Perch, Coloccini, Williamson, Kadar, Tiote, Cabaye, Obertan, Ben Arfa, Gutierrez, Sammy Ameobi, Gosling, Abeid, Vuckic, Ba, Best, Shola Ameobi. Manchester United (from): De Gea, Lindegaard, Amos, Rafael, Ferdinand, Smalling, Evra, Jones, Fryers, Cole, Carrick, Valencia, Park, Gibson, Anderson, Nani, Giggs, Rooney, Welbeck, Berbatov, Hernandez, Diouf, Keane.
