The novelty of Newcastle United's return to the Champions League has certainly worn off by now, especially after a 1-0 defeat to Borussia Dortmund two weeks ago at St. James' Park.

The Magpies were unlucky to be drawn into such a difficult group in their first season back for 20 years but Eddie Howe's men will be desperate to show that they are not there to simply make up the numbers. Beating Dortmund at the Signal Iduna Park is a good place to start.

The Newcastle boss will need to give his team every possible chance to put Die Schwarzgelben to the sword which could mean that one player will come into the team to make his first-ever start in the Champions League.

Joe Willock update

At the back end of last season, Newcastle United were dealt a hefty blow as midfielder Joe Willock suffered a hamstring injury which was scheduled to keep him sidelined until the start of the 2023/24 season. However, upon returning to training this term, the former Arsenal man damaged his Achilles, kicking his full recovery further down the road.

Nevertheless, Willock returned to the pitch, coming off the bench during Newcastle's 1-0 defeat at home to Borussia Dortmund two weeks ago and even made his first start of the season for the Magpies at Old Trafford in the EFL Cup, scoring his side's third and final goal as the visitors eliminated the reigning champions from the competition.

Willock has been a key player for Howe since the ex-Bournemouth boss took the reins in the North East of England and so his absence was certainly felt over these past few months.

However, the 24-year-old has looked raring to go every time he's stepped foot on the turf in recent weeks so perhaps it's time for Howe to unleash the midfielder who has drawn comparisons with Jude Bellingham.

Indeed, as per FBref's similar players model, one of Willock's most comparable players is the Madrid phenom, who has scored 13 goals in 14 outings during a remarkable debut campaign in the Spanish capital.

#1 Gabri Veiga

Al-Ahli

#3 Abdoulaye Doucoure

Everton

#6 Marcos Llorente

Atletico Madrid

#7 Jude Bellingham

Real Madrid

#10 Khephren Thuram

Nice

List compiled by FBref.

Joe Willock's stats this season

Bruno Guimaraes and Joelinton are vital components to Howe's system and so fan-favourite Sean Longstaff may be the most dispensable in the middle of the park if Willock returns to the starting lineup.

The Newcastle-born lad, once labelled as "excellent" by his head coach, put in a solid shift defensively for the Magpies on Saturday evening during a narrow 1-0 win over Arsenal, making two clearances, five ball recoveries and one block while winning all of his ground and aerial duels, according to FotMob.

However, Willock offers a lot more than Longstaff going forward and due to the importance of picking up all three points, a more offensive-minded midfielder could be just what the doctor ordered for Newcastle United against Dortmund.

Looking at Willock's FBref data from last season and comparing Longstaff's numbers this term, it is clear who offers more threat in the final third. While the latter is averaging 0.25 goals per 90 compared to the former's 0.11 per 90 from the previous campaign, Willock registered a better xG per 90 with 0.25 to Longstaff's 0.16.

Longstaff averages more progressive passes than his midfield counterpart at 5.75 per 90 to Willock's 4.26 per 90 but Longstaff plays deeper on the pitch than the man who could replace him in the starting lineup, hence why Willock received more progressive passes on average with 5.35 per 90 to Longstaff's 3.5.

Furthermore, Willock averaged fewer touches of the ball during games but had more in the final third, boasting 19.6 per 90 in this area of the pitch to Longstaff's 12.9 while also registering 4.01 touches in the penalty area per 90 to Longstaff's lowly 2.25. In addition, Willock completed 3.42 progressive carries per 90 last season, which is far greater than Longstaff's 0.63 per 90 this term.

Longstaff and Willock are excellent players but both serve different functions. The latter could be perfect for a more attacking approach against Dortmund in the hopes of picking up an emphatic victory in Germany.