Alan Pardew is admits he slightly concerned with the number of injuries his players have picked up.
After a gruelling pre season, a worrying looking injury crisis has emerged ahead of the new campaign.
"We are hoping that maybe Puncheon, Morgan and Lambert will be available for next week, but it's touch and go on all three - Lallana definitely wont start as he hasn't done enough work," Pardew highlighted.
"We've had a bit of misfortune on the injury front and we've had to accept that.
"Morgan has had a kick, Lallana has a troublesome knee which we can't quite clear up, but which we hope will be ok and Lambert has just done his groin slightly.
Most of the team came through unscathed in the defeat against Reading at St. Mary's, and the gaffer had praise for the players fighting for first team positions.
"I was very happy today, not with the scoreline particularly, but with the first team that we had. I had to protect them today and obviously I had to take six or seven off, up until then I thought we looked a decent side and a real match for Reading.
"The front two in particular were a real highlight for us. I thought Lee Barnard had as good a game as he has had for us, he and Connolly looked sharp. That bodes well for next week.
"Connolly is a boy that had no base of work last year, but he has had one this year and I hope that he stays fit and competes more in games, because he missed too many last year.
"The performance of Ryan Dickson in his first game here, and Danny Butterfield at the back, was absolutely different class too until he got tired towards the end. The two front boys were the real highlight though today."
The first test in League One arrives next weekend when Plymouth travel to St. Mary's, and Pardew believes if his side can replicate some of the play from Saturday over ninety minutes then they shouldn't be far away from the right performance.
"The team we started with today were leading 2-1 today until I started making the changes so I was pleased overall.
"We go into the final week on the back of sixty-five minutes of a good performance from the first team, and we will take that into Plymouth. It's a tough game Plymouth, I watched them at QPR and they were excellent, so I think they will be big contenders. It's a really big game for our first game, and I hope that we have a full house or as close as possible to it and make lots of noise because we will need some help."
