Striking misfortune for United front men
W “E’RE desperate to get our two strikers fit again.” That was Eddie Howe’s message at the end of January as the Newcastle boss swatted away speculation regarding Callum Wilson and a move away from Tyneside.
It’s no wonder the Magpies chief is so keen to see both his forwards, Wilson and Alexander Isak, available together given the undeniable bad luck surrounding their respective injuries so far this term.
Newcastle are now, once again, sweating over the fitness of Wilson after the striker went down clutching his arm in the final seconds of Saturday’s win at Nottingham Forest. Early fears of a dislocated shoulder were allayed shortly after full-time but Howe now faces the familiar prospect of having neither of his two out-andout strikers fit this weekend.
This is nothing new, of course. In fact, the amount of games Isak, Wilson or both have missed this season is startling. Out of 24 Premier League matches this season, the attacking duo have only featured in a squad together 11 times.
Isak has missed six top-flight matchday squads, while Wilson has been absent for eight. The statistics don’t get any better in the cup competitions either.
Wilson has been missing for both of Newcastle’s FA Cup clashes in recent weeks, while Isak was fit to feature in the wins over Sunderland and Fulham.
In the Carabao Cup, the former Bournemouth man missed the thirdround victory over Manchester City, returning for the following clashes against Manchester United and Chelsea – two games Isak missed.
The pair both featured in Howe’s plans for both AC Milan ties and Borussia Dortmund at home but at least one of them was missing for the other three Champions League group games.
And both Isak and Wilson seem to have made a habit of picking up a knock or a serious issue just as the other has returned to full fitness.
Earlier in the campaign, Isak missed games against Wolves and Arsenal while Wilson led the line before pulling up in the following match with Bournemouth. The 31-year-old would miss the following three league games, as Isak made a full recovery. Wilson missed five games at the beginning of this year before returning against Luton when, you guessed it, Isak missed out. The former Real Sociedad man has missed the last two outings while Wilson has been fit.
So, what now? Well, Howe and his medical team will continue to conduct tests on Wilson this week with the hope he has only picked up a minor muscle injury, rather than anything serious.
It would be a huge setback should the forward miss out given Isak is yet to train with the group since his most recent injury problem, although the youngster isn’t thought to be too far away from a return.
Bournemouth at St James’ Park may come too soon for both strikers, which could see Anthony Gordon lead the line from the outset as he did in the 4-4 draw with Luton Town earlier this month.
The former Everton man has only just recovered from a minor ankle issue himself after leaving the aforementioned tie on crutches.