EDDIE HOWE has told Newcastle United forward Allan Saint-Maximin to concentrate on what he does best as he attempts to rediscover his electrifying best form.

The 25-year-old Frenchman has started none of the last six games after being laid low by a combination of injury and illness, and some fans have even started to question his place in the team after a series of muted performances from the bench.

However, while highlighting the need to find the balance between his maverick attacking qualities and his more mundane responsibilities, Howe knows the player he has on his hands as he prepares his team for Sunday’s Premier League trip to Tottenham after a warm weather training trip to Dubai.

He said: “Maxi is certainly a unique footballer. I’ve never coached anyone quite like him, and that’s a positive thing. Some of the things he can do and some of the things he’s done in the last two weeks training-wise have been very, very good to see.

“But it’s about harnessing that and trying to make that function for the team. Maxi is very keen to make a difference, he’s very keen to do well for the team, he cares passionately about the club, so I’m excited to see what he can deliver.

“For a player of his type, consistency will always be an issue because it’s very difficult to do what he does.

“But as long as we get the buy-in from him to the team and he is really committed to the things he finds more difficult – which would be recovery runs, working off the ball – as long as we see that, the other things will take care of themselves.”

Indeed, Howe is conscious of the need not to “over-coach” a player who at his best can be an irresistible force.

He said: “It’s something from getting to know Maxi that I’ve had to learn quite quickly because I think over-coaching him is a negative. Part of the strength of Allan is that you can almost let him do his stuff – but he needs to be free to do that.

“You don’t want him overthinking the game because his natural talent is so impulsive.”

Howe hopes to have keeper Martin Dubravka and defender Fabian Schar, who pulled out of international duty through injury and illness respectively, as well as midfielder Jonjo Shelvey available, although Covid-19 has hit his squad and staff once again.

"Fabian came back having not played and not trained, but we've had a couple of sessions with him so we think he'll be fit," said the Magpies boss. "Martin trained with us for the first time yesterday, so we hope hell be fine.

"Jonjo has trained. He hasn't done every session we've done, he had a bad bout of illness, but we hope he'll be okay.

"We've got a bit of illness around the camp, like most teams in the country, but we've still got a couple of days before the game so we hope everyone will be okay."

Full-back Kieran Trippier was due to undergo a scan on his fractured metatarsal today, but striker Callum Wilson is fighting to play again this season as he attempts to work his way back from Achilles and calf complaints.

Wilson has been out of action since hobbling from the field during the 1-1 draw with Manchester United on December 27, and although he has returned to light training, he remains some way away from match fitness.

Asked if he still expects him to play again before the end of the campaign, Howe said: “I hope so. I can’t tell you with any clarity that it’s a certainty, but I hope he’ll play this season.

“He’s still making good progress. He’s back on the grass running, but I still think he’s got a little bit more time ahead of him.

"It’s not necessarily a gloomy assessment, it’s more the type of injury that he’s had, it needs time. We need to stress the Achilles and the calf in the right way because if we do it too quickly, then he’ll re-injure himself; if we do it too slowly, obviously we’re going to run out of time for the season.

“With Kieran’s, it’s more of a bone injury and once it heals, he’s good to go. The Achilles is a lot more delicate.

“I wouldn’t say it’s a gloomy assessment, it’s just the injury, we knew – which is why I gave you the update that I did a couple of months ago – this will take time.”

Newcastle (probable, 4-2-3-1): Dubravka; Krafth, Schar, Burn, Targett; Shelvey, Willock; Fraser, Joelinton, Saint-Maximin; Wood.