THE Football Association are still discussing the possibility of St James’ Park hosting England’s Euro 2020 warm-up match against Romania next June.

The FA have announced that England will kick off their 2020 schedule with a friendly against Italy at Wembley on March 27.

Gareth Southgate’s side will host Denmark four days later, with the third of four European Championship warm-up matches pitting them against Austria in Vienna’s Ernst Happel Stadion on Tuesday, June 2.

Their final friendly will see them take on Romania on June 7, but the venue for the game is still be confirmed, with St James’ Park one of a handful of stadiums still under consideration.

With Wembley unavailable because of its status as a host venue for Euro 2020, the FA are keen to stage England’s final friendly in the North.

However, Anfield has been ruled out because Liverpool are adamant they will not allow journalists from The Sun to attend an international fixture at the ground, and Manchester City’s Etihad Stadium is unavailable because of planned remedial work on the pitch ahead of a series of summer concerts.

Old Trafford has been booked to host the Soccer Aid charity match on the same day as the England game, and Goodison Park is considered unsuitable as an international venue because of its dated facilities and issues over access.

St James’ Park is understood to be the FA’s current preferred venue, but discussions with Newcastle United officials have so far failed to produce a deal. Talks remain ongoing, but time is becoming an issue with the FA keen to have firm plans in place before the end of the year.

England have not played a senior fixture at St James’ Park since Azerbaijan were beaten 2-0 in a World Cup qualifier in March 2005. Sunderland’s Stadium of Light staged a friendly against Australia as recently as 2016, while Middlesbrough’s Riverside Stadium hosted England’s Lionesses as they lost to Brazil in October.

The Italian friendly will see England go head-to-head with one of their fellow top seeds at Euro 2020, with the Azzurri having been drawn in the same group as Wales, Switzerland and Turkey.

An FA statement said: “Italy will visit Wembley Stadium to face England on Friday 27 March 2020 (8pm kick-off). The fixture will be the first of four tests to help the Three Lions prepare for next summer’s UEFA EURO 2020.

“The occasion will also be designated as ‘The Heads Up International’ in support of The FA’s charitable partnership with HRH The Duke of Cambridge’s Heads Together mental health initiative.”

England’s Euro 2020 campaign starts against Croatia on June 14, with the winner of the play-off path featuring Scotland, Israel, Norway and Serbia their next opponents on June 19. The Czech Republic provide the opposition for the final Group D fixture on June 23, with all three games taking place at Wembley.