The international break has come at a good time for Newcastle United, it would seem.
With injuries mounting as Newcastle deal with the strain of battling across a number of positions, it is a good chance for Eddie Howe to recoup some of his players.
Anthony Gordon will be free of suspension, while hopefully the likes of Joe Willock, Joelinton and Sven Botman will come back into the fold.
Still, one player seemingly picked up a problem during Sunday’s draw with West Ham.
Alexander Isak picked up knock during draw with West Ham
Indeed, Alexander Isak was at his best in east London.
The Sweden international scored a quick-fire brace in the second-half to put his team into the lead, albeit they conceded a late goal from Mohammed Kudus to share the spoils.
Isak, however, came off for Callum Wilson after missing a great chance for his hat-trick and Howe has confirmed the striker felt a strain.
“He [Wilson] couldn’t have started the game and he probably couldn’t have played longer than he did in the end,” said Howe (via Newcastle World).
“I really only wanted to use him in an emergency but Alex signalled that he had to come off so it was a natural replacement.”
When asked if Isak was okay by the same outlet, Howe responded: “Fingers crossed.”
A worry for Newcastle
Isak impressed in his first season as a Newcastle player but it was a campaign disrupted by injury.
Given he now looks to be Newcastle’s first-choice striker, missing him for any length of time would be a blow. While there is obviously no indication on the severity of the problem, the amount of football Isak missed last season naturally makes the idea of any issue an unwelcome one.
Hopefully he returns from the break in fine fettle.
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