Newcastle v Charlton

CHARLTON midfielder Jerome Thomas has been included in Saturday’s squad for the trip to Newcastle, despite being carried off on a stretcher early in Wednesday’s 1-0 Carling Cup defeat of Bolton.

The club feared the worst when the long-term injury casualty was flattened by a heavy challenge from Bolton’s Stelios in the 35th minute.

But Addicks assistant head coach Les Reed is confident Thomas will have recovered in time to face Newcastle.

“Jerome Thomas has nothing serious, though he is experiencing pain at the top of his hip,” said Reed. “He’ll need a fitness test, though he did a lot of work on Thursday and came through okay.

“He’s suffered nothing more than heavy bruising. I’ve had a chat with him and he’s determined to be available.”

Reed confirmed that Andy Reid, Souleymane Diawara and Amady Faye, who all missed the Bolton tie, return to contention. The match is of special significance to Faye who joined the Addicks in the summer from Newcastle.

Reed admitted that several players had forced them themselves into contention with their performances on Wednesday.

He added: “Players sent messages to the manager via their performances on Wednesday. For instance Marcus Bent and Radostin Kishishev have thrust themselves into contention. There is no doubt that we have some difficult decisions to make.”