Eddie Howe might be forced to make a change to his Newcastle United starting XI against Bournemouth on Saturday.
That is because Callum Wilson is currently a doubt due to a pectoral muscle injury that he sustained during the 3-2 win over Nottingham Forest.
The hope is that the club will be able to manage Wilson’s pain and he will be able to feature against his former club, but there are no guarantees.
And if he is ruled out then Eddie Howe will have to make a change to his front three – at a time when top scorer Alexander Isak is also out of action. He is not expected to return in time for this weekend’s game against Bournemouth, which means Howe will have to look elsewhere.
And that could be good news for Harvey Barnes.
Harvey Barnes should start for Newcastle if Callum Wilson is injured
If Wilson is unavailable for the game against Bournemouth, it is Harvey Barnes who should take his place in the starting XI with Anthony Gordon through the middle.
The 26-year-old is finally back after his foot injury, appearing off the bench in our previous two games. He even scored on his return, netting the equaliser in the 4-4 draw with Luton Town. Barnes’ goal delighted Howe, who described it as an ‘incredible‘ strike.
The former Leicester City attacker has not started since September when he sustained his foot injury, but that might change this weekend.
If Wilson is not deemed fit enough then Barnes is the best candidate to take his place. The only other alternative is Jacob Murphy, who did not feature against Nottingham Forest due to sustaining an injury in the warmup.
You would like to think that Murphy will be available this weekend, but Barnes is the one who Howe should turn to. We saw the front three of Murphy, Anthony Gordon and Miguel Almiron struggle against Luton Town, and we can’t afford to endure a repeat result on Saturday versus Bournemouth.
This could be Barnes’ chance to return to the starting lineup, as he continues to make up for lost time following his £39million arrival last summer.
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