NEWCASTLE UNITED are set to take on a Tottenham side without in-form midfielder Mousa Dembele when they line up for what could be a relegation decider on the final day of the season.

Dembele was charged with an alleged act of violent conduct this afternoon after the Football Association reviewed the footage of Spurs’ acrimonious 2-2 draw with Chelsea on Monday night.

The midfielder was pictured appearing to gouge the eye of Chelsea striker Diego Costa, and while he has until 6pm tomorrow to contest the charge, the evidence would appear to be damning.

If he is found guilty of the offence, the FA have already indicated he will receive a longer ban than the standard three matches that are normally imposed for violent conduct and would definitely miss the final two matches of the season.

With Dele Alli already serving a three-match suspension after striking West Brom’s Claudio Yacob, Dembele’s absence would leave Spurs short of midfield options for their final-day game at St James’ Park.

Newcastle will almost certainly be heading into the final weekend with their Premier League fate hanging in the balance, as even if they win at Aston Villa on Saturday, they will still be a maximum of four points ahead of Sunderland and five points ahead of Norwich City, with both of their rivals still having two more games to play.

Spurs’ motivation for their final game of the season could already be affected by their inability to catch Leicester City, who have already been crowned champions, and the absence of both Alli and Dembele could persuade Mauricio Pochettino to give some of his fringe players a run-out.

Things might have been even worse for the Spurs boss, with Erik Lamela appearing to stamp on Cesc Fabregas’ hand, but as the incident was seen by the match officials at the time, it will not be reviewed retrospectively. Similarly, Eric Dier will not receive any retrospective punishment despite committing a series of second-half fouls that might well have resulted in a red card had referee Mark Clattenburg not been so lenient.

An FA statement said: “Mousa Dembele has been charged for an alleged act of violent conduct which was not seen by the match officials but caught on video. The Tottenham Hotspur midfielder was involved in an incident with Chelsea’s Diego Costa near the end of the first half.

“Further, it is alleged the player’s behaviour constituted violent conduct in circumstances where the standard punishment of three matches that would otherwise apply is clearly insufficient.”

Newcastle’s hopes of survival have been boosted by their recent victories over Swansea and Crystal Palace, with last weekend’s success over the latter having lifted the club out of the bottom three for the first time since early February.

Having taken a few games to find his feet after replacing Steve McClaren, Rafael Benitez is clearly having a positive impact on the players working under him, with dressing-room morale having improved markedly since the latter stages of the McClaren era.

Benitez has made some bold selection decisions – most notably installing Jamaal Lascelles to the heart of the back four, recalling Cheick Tiote and preferring Papiss Cisse to Aleksandar Mitrovic – and the players in the current starting line-up have clearly bought in to his tactics and working methods.

“Every single one of us has confidence in ourselves and in each other,” said centre-half Chancel Mbemba. “It’s thanks to the coach, who is the number one – the leader.

“He instils that in every single one of us, players and staff.  It trickles down from the very top and the whole squad have that confidence now.”

Meanwhile, Newcastle assistant Ian Cathro is one of the favourites to take over at Dundee United. Cathro, who was the only member of McClaren’s backroom staff to survive the former England manager’s dismissal, is regarded as a strong contender to replace the recently-departed Mixu Paatelainen at Tannadice.