Stoke duo Michael Owen and Andy Wilkinson are likely to miss tomorrow's Premier League clash with Newcastle.
Owen returned to training yesterday after a month out with a hamstring injury but Stoke are keen not to push the former England man too hard, while Wilkinson missed Saturday's victory over Fulham with a back problem.
Both players could well return for Saturday's trip to West Brom, but Marc Wilson (broken leg) and Rory Delap (hernia) are longer-term absentees.
Stoke provisional squad: Begovic, Sorensen, Huth, Shawcross, Cameron, Upson, Shotton, Whelan, Etherington, Palacios, Jones, Jerome, Crouch, Walters, Kightly, Adam, Edu, Nzonzi, Ness, Whitehead.