Strikes buoy Wilson ahead of new season
FAN-TASTIC CROWDS WILL GIVE PLAYERS LIFT THIS SEASON, SAYS £20M STAR
CALLUM Wilson says he is feeling confident and eager to make up for lost time as he looks forward to Newcastle’s Premier League opener against Nottingham Forest.
The England international netted twice in pre-season, including scoring the opener in a 2-1 win over Bilbao on Saturday, and believes he is ‘physically and mentally in a good place.’
Despite missing 32 of the 76 league games available since joining United in 2020, Wilson has scored 20 goals over the last two seasons and is hungry for more especially with a better supporting cast behind him now.
The £20million striker has only played twice in 2022, returning in the Magpies’ 2-0 win over Arsenal and playing in the season closer at Burnley, and was frustrated by how the second half of last season went for him.
He is eagerly looking forward to Saturday’s clash with newly-promoted Forest at St James’ Park.
He said: “I scored a couple of goals in pre-season so it is good to take a little bit of confidence going into the start of the season.
“I am looking forward to the league starting.
“I ended last season positively but missed a bulk of it last year, disappointingly.
“For me, the season finished at the wrong time. So I have had to stay physically and mentally in a good place to make sure when the start of the season comes around I am ready. So hopefully this time next week I will be standing back here again talking about a few more goals.”
The victory over Bilbao was one of two wins in less than 24 hours for the Magpies last weekend, having beaten Italian side Atalanta 1-0 on Friday night.
More than 87,000 fans attended those games and, with season tickets selling out straight away, Newcastle’s players can look forward to strong support from the terraces this season.
Wilson lauded the fans’ devotion and noise, insisting their passion makes a big difference. He added: “You always want to end the last pre-season game with a goal and a positive result.
“I enjoy playing at home, I enjoy scoring early goals.
“The fans here get you going straight away from the get-go.
“You are desperate to get on the scoresheet and they give you a real lift when they are singing away. “It is fantastic support. That is why I joined the club - everyone wants to be a part of it. It was nice to repay the fans on both days with two positive results.”
I have had to stay physically and mentally in a good place to make sure that when the start of the season comes around I am ready
Callum Wilson