Who Should Play Up Front For Newcastle Today?

Newcastle travel to Oxford today, and despite the knowledge that FA Cup ties can often cause upsets, there seems to be a sense of optimism in the air.

After a good run in the League Cup and a first FA Cup victory in five years, most seem confident that Rafa Benitez can take his side on a good FA Cup run, as well as guiding them to promotion.

However, at the time of the injury to Dwight Gayle, Newcastle fans could be forgiven for thinking that all of these plans could be derailed.

This worry was put to bed in the very same game that Gayle suffered his injury, with Daryl Murphy coming on as a substitute and grabbing the winner against Brentford, in that game.

Since then, there has been a starring role from Yoan Gouffran, who gave a brilliant account of himself in the replay against Birmingham, and another goal for Murphy.

The question is, should it Murphy to lead the line again today? Should Gouffran be given another chance in his proffered position? Or should Aleksandar Mitrovic come in after injury?

For me, Mitrovic is the obvious answer. With Sammy Ameobi Cup-tied and Christian Atsu still at the African Cup Of Nations, Gouffran will be needed on the left hand side, while Daryl Murphy should be saved for the league.

Mitrovic deserves the chance to stake a claim for the starting spot, and I would expect him to get the chance today.