Eddie Howe has shared a very worrying fitness update ahead of Newcastle United’s game against Manchester United.
The Magpies head to Old Trafford on Wednesday, where they will face a Man United side that have a bit of injury bother right now. They have issues in defence, while they could also be without captain Bruno Fernandes.
But Newcastle United have problems of their own, despite recently welcoming multiple players back from injury. Nick Pope, Kieran Trippier, Miguel Almiron and Joelinton are all available again after lengthy layoffs, and are in contention to feature against the Red Devils.
Alexander Isak and Callum Wilson are doubts
However, it remains to be seen if Newcastle will actually have a striker for Wednesday night’s match.
Callum Wilson missed the draw with Brighton due to injury, leaving Alexander Isak to lead the line on his own. And he was not very well equipped to do that, with the 24-year-old suffering from illness heading into the game.
That resulted in a sub-par performance before being taken off midway through the second half.
READ MORE: Who is Alexander Isak? Age, Height, Family, Nationality, Roots
Eddie Howe shares fitness update ahead of Man United vs Newcastle
Now Newcastle are sweating on the fitness of both of their strikers ahead of the game against Manchester United, and Eddie Howe has provided a rather concerning update.
“Alex didn’t train yesterday,” he said.
“We will see if he trains today. He wasn’t feeling 100% I think you could see that. We knew on Friday that he was slightly under the weather.
“We haven’t seen Callum yet, we will see if he is available to train today, if not we will have him for Brentford.”
Newcastle may need an alternative up front on Wednesday night
Neither of Newcastle’s strikers have trained in the buildup to this crucial match against Manchester United. It will be decisive in our bid to qualify for Europe, with Howe knowing that a draw is enough to ensure we finish above Erik ten Hag’s side.
But the bigger threat is Chelsea, which is why it is vital we win on Wednesday night. However, that could be very difficult without a striker.
If neither Isak or Wilson are deemed fit enough to start, it will be Anthony Gordon who plays through the middle. He has done it plenty of times before this season, including in a 3-0 win at Old Trafford.
Gordon was excellent as a striker as Newcastle dumped Man United out of the Carabao Cup in November, and the 23-year-old could be asked to reprise that role.
However, there is hope that Isak and/or Wilson will be available. While they have not trained yet, there is still more than 24 hours to go before kickoff in Manchester. Fingers crossed one of them is fit and ready to start.
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