DAN BURN is an injury doubt ahead of tomorrow evening’s game with Everton, and Eddie Howe admits he is still to decide whether to throw Bruno Guimaraes straight into the starting line-up for his Newcastle United debut.

Burn was a deadline-day signing from Brighton, but has been struggling in the last couple of days because of an infected toenail.

The issue is not serious, but it could develop into something more problematic if left untreated, and as a result, the centre-half is a doubt for tomorrow’s St James’ Park showdown with Everton.

“Dan has a slight toe problem that’s been aggravating him the last few days,” admitted Howe. “Hopefully, it’s nothing too serious. He’s got like an infected toenail, so it’s a small thing, but sometimes it can be a big thing.”

Matt Targett is set to make his Newcastle debut tomorrow following his deadline-day loan switch from Aston Villa, but Howe is still weighing up whether to throw Guimaraes straight into the fray.

The Brazilian made a £35m move from Lyon in the final couple of days of the window, but has spent most of the last two weeks on international duty in South America.

He trained with his new team-mates for the first time over the weekend, and Howe will be monitoring him closely in the next 24 hours before settling on his starting line-up to face an Everton side that looked reborn under new boss Frank Lampard as they put four goals past Brentford in the FA Cup at the weekend.

“I think with every team you join, there is a period of adjustment, even if you’ve been in the Premier League and you’re going from Premier League to Premier League club,” said Howe. “The adjustment is bigger if you’re coming from a different league, so with Bruno, we’ll have to assess him and make a decision on how quickly we transition him into the team.

“He’s certainly someone we love and we can’t wait to see him play in a Newcastle shirt. I think he’s going to bring qualities to us, and he’s got that composure and calmness I think we need in our midfield.”

Joelinton is available after recovering from the knock he sustained against Leeds United last month, but Paul Dummett is still to return to training after he was also forced off at Elland Road.

“Joelinton has trained and is looking good,” said Howe. “Paul Dummett hasn’t trained yet, and Matt Ritchie is still out longer term. Fede Fernandez is having his first day of sports science today, so he’s edging closer to that return to training, although he hasn’t trained with the group yet.”