But Burn is Magpies

He was in the team every week before a back injury ruled him out for five Premier League games and then quickly restored on his return. Howe sees Burn as one of his key men in the dressing room and a key part of the club since he arrived in 2022 from Brighton.

Given he was a cornerstone of the team that finished fourth last season along with Kieran Trippier, Fabian Schar and Sven Botman, there is every chance Howe will continue to go with Burn in the run-in. Howe was asked about Burn in his postgame Press conference after Luton and said: “Dan has been absolutely outstanding since he arrived at the football club. He played a huge part in our brilliant season last year, and our excellent defensive record.

“Four days ago, I thought he was magnificent against Aston Villa. He was a big part of why we played so well. Tino is an outstanding player, and no doubt will have a huge bearing on our future. But as I said earlier, there’s more than one aspect of the game to think about when I pick the team.”

Burn is also part of Howe’s “leadership group” and he has rarely dropped anybody in it during his time on Tyneside.

One option for Howe could be to switch things to a back five and move Burn to the centre like he did away to Aston Villa.

The warning signs of a speedy winger running at Burn came at Villa Park in the 3-1 win when Leon Bailey’s emergence in the second half saw Howe make a rare move and go with five at the back. If anything the way the game finished at Villa was a warning shot for Luton as Chiedozie Ogbene sensed Newcastle’s vulnerability down Burn’s side and caused a few problems.

Ogbene actually only managed to make two crosses though and while it was the right thing to do in changing things, many argue it came too late after the Luton star won a penalty from Burn and then the 6ft 7in player lost the ball further up the pitch for the fourth goal.

It wasn’t just social media noise around the Burn situation on Saturday though. Match of the Day’s headline on their graphics screamed: “Big Dan is burned” as they pored over the two errors.

If the past is anything to go by, Howe will stick with Burn at Forest. He did so after he struggled in the reverse fixture and essentially made a statement to critics by handing Burn the armband in the 4-2 defeat against Liverpool.

Since the winter break Burn had been man of the match at Fulham in the FA Cup, scoring a goal and putting in a fine defensive display, and he also performed well at Villa before Bailey’s entrance.

Howe may well go down the line of “collective responsibility” when fresh Burn questions are posed at tomorrow’s Press conference, but he has bags of faith in the £12million signing from Brighton, and leaving him out on Saturday is difficult to see based on past decisions.