Alan Shearer admits £20m Newcastle player was ‘not at his best’ against Wolves on Saturday

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Newcastle United legend Alan Shearer has admitted that he wasn’t fully satisfied with one Toon player’s performance against Wolves on Saturday.

The Magpies were not at their best this weekend, as they were held to a 2-2 draw by Wolves. What was most frustrating was that Newcastle led twice, with Callum Wilson putting his side in front on two occasions.

His first was an instinctive finish, while his second was clouded with controversy. That is because it came from the spot, but the decision to award a penalty in the first place was a clear mistake by the officials.

Regardless, Wilson converted to score his seventh goal of the season, which means he his joint with Alexander Isak once again at the top of the Newcastle scoring charts.

The 31-year-old was clinical against Wolves at the weekend, but it was actually far from a brilliant performance from Newcastle’s number nine. That is a view shared by Alan Shearer, who has criticised Wilson – whilst also including him in his Premier League team of the week.

Callum Wilson ‘not at his best’ against Wolves

Following the conclusion of this weekend’s Premier League fixtures, Shearer has announced his team of the week. Unsurprisingly, it includes the likes of Erling Haaland, Bernardo Silva and Eddie Nketiah, who performed brilliantly this weekend.

And there is also space for Wilson after his two goals against Wolves.

On Wilson, Shearer wrote for the Premier League’s official website: “Not at his best but continued his fine goalscoring form with another two strikes against Wolves.”

Shearer is right about Newcastle number nine

It feels odd to criticise Wilson after scoring two goals, but Shearer’s assessment of the £20million man is spot on.

He wasn’t at his best at Molineux, with the Wolves defenders doing their best to keep him out of the game. Craig Dawson did a brilliant job marking Wilson, but even he was powerless to stop him from bagging a brace.

It shows how important Wilson is that he can not have a great game and still come close to grabbing a hat-trick. His goalscoring instinct makes him such an important player for the Magpies, and why it is vital that we protect him during Alexander Isak’s injury layoff.

Wilson is Newcastle’s only fit striker right now, so Howe must be extremely careful with how he uses his number nine.

He could have played better on Saturday, and he will look to do just that this weekend when Newcastle face Arsenal in the Premier League. Before that, the Magpies head to Old Trafford for a Carabao Cup game with Man United, but it feels likely that Wilson will be rested.