Newcastle United have recovered at least some of their key players this season.
An injury crisis like no other seriously undermined Newcastle last season, to the point where pundit Joe Cole questioned what may be going on behind the scenes.
While fitness issues are just part of the game, surely few would doubt the club endured their fair share of bad luck last season, even if there may have been issues in how Newcastle dealt with them.
Harvey Barnes, after all, suffered the kind of injury not many of the club’s medical staff had seen in football before not long after moving to Tyneside.
Having the winger back available is already a boost, with Barnes having contributed with a goal and an assist this season.
Indeed, the return of Nick Pope is also a major positive.
The goalkeeper was hailed for his performance against Tottenham on Sunday and has been speaking about his return to full fitness while away on England duty.
Nick Pope offers latest Newcastle injury update
The £10m star dislocated his shoulder in December in news that was said to have left Howe “crestfallen”.
Pope returned to action for the final game of last season away at Brentford and has resumed his starting role this time around.
Speaking to BBC Sport, the goalkeeper said of his injury problem while away on international duty: “For myself, I have come a long way back from injury. A lot of distance to cover coming into the new year.
“First and foremost I am pleased to be back in the first [England] squad that’s come around this season.
“I am looking forward to impressing a new group of staff. That’s what it’s like at club or international level, when a new group of staff comes in everyone wants to have good first impressions.”
Nick Pope hasn’t been perfect this season – but can play a huge role
While Pope drew praise for his performance against Spurs, he wasn’t without his critics.
Pundit Darren Bent suggested he should have done better for the shot that led to Spurs forcing an own goal from Dan Burn, with Pope parrying it right into Brennan Johnson’s path.
Still, and while the England stopper could surely have done better on that occasion, Pope has been in fine fettle already this season.
According to FBREF data, he boasts the best second best post-shot expected goals rating in the Premier League. That is a metric that measures how likely a goalkeeper is to save a shot based on the quality of a chance, with positive numbers indicating an above-average ability to prevent goals.
Pope’s stands at +2.0, which is second only to Neto of Bournemouth (although who has now joined Arsenal) at +2.3.
It’s good to have him back, that’s for sure.
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