Gordon was forced off during the Carabao Cup semi-final second leg defeat at Manchester City on Wednesday night, with the Magpies head coach confirming the England international had a hamstring problem.

United are back in league action against the Bees at St. James' Park on Saturday evening (kick-off 5:30pm GMT) and Howe is optimistic that Gordon - as well as captain Bruno Guimarães and midfielder Lewis Miley - could be fit enough to feature against Keith Andrews' men.

Here are some of the main talking points from Howe's pre-match media briefing:

On Gordon's fitness...

"No major update on Anthony. (There is) every chance he'll miss this game coming up at the weekend but we hope it's not a serious injury and he'll be back pretty soon."

On Guimarães and Miley's recoveries...

"Bruno's getting closer. He did a training session on Wednesday when we were travelling. He felt pretty good, so I'll see him today and fingers crossed he'll be fit.

"We'll find out today (about Miley). I'm awaiting an update on him but again it's not a serious injury and we hope he'll be back very soon."

On Anthony Elanga...

"He's done a load of good things that could have led to goals so I was really pleased he got that reward of the goal - it was a great goal as well.

"I was delighted for him, and hopefully that's the start of many. It will also be a lift in his belief for himself and what he can contribute. There's no doubting his ability - (it was) a really good thing for him."

On being back at home...

"It's a big week coming up. We need real focus on these next two games - Brentford at home and Tottenham away, two good games.

"Being back at home after several away games is more than welcome, so it will be a nice feeling for us on Saturday."

On United's recent run of form...

"Losing is such a difficult feeling. You have to deal with the defeat, put it where you need to put it and learn from it. We're trying to do that in a quick turnaround while acknowledging the strengths of our performances and also the areas we need to improve.

"The main thing is the players entering the next game in a positive frame of mind. That's so important, so how we deal with each defeat we've had in the last week has been crucial to our success going forward."