Newcastle duo in fresh injury scare ahead of Leicester
Rebekka Arnold
4 – 5 minutes
Newcastle United boss Eddie Howe has spoken out after taking off Alexander Isak and Kieran Trippier in the Premier League victory over Brentford at St James’ Park last night.
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The Magpies were back in action on home turf last night following their Carabao Cup success, and after almost two weeks of celebrations, there were some concerns about a hangover lingering on Tyneside.
However, Eddie Howe’s men were in fine form in front of the St James’ Park faithful, delivering another victory in their campaign to qualify for Champions League football over the remaining games of the Premier League season.
A hard-earned goal scored by Alexander Isak in the dying seconds of the first half gave Newcastle the lead, and although Bryan Mbeumo’s 66th-minute penalty put the visitors back in the game, an astonishing opinion-splitting goal from Sandro Tonali – that he admitted himself was “70% a cross” – sealed the three points.
As it stands, Newcastle are now fifth in the Premier League table with Chelsea falling from fourth to sixth ahead of their clash with Tottenham Hotspur tonight, where the Geordies will be hoping Ange Postecoglou’s side can do them a favour.
The North East giants have overcome the adversity of their long-term injury issues in recent weeks after both Lewis Hall and Sven Botman were both submitted into surgery; the left-back is not expected back at all this season, while the Dutch centre-back is expected to feature in the last few fixtures.
Not only that, Anthony Gordon served his third and final suspension last night and will return to action against Leicester City, which will be a huge boost for Newcastle over the final nine games.
However, Howe was forced to take off Isak and Trippier during the clash with the Bees last night as the pair were both struggling in the second half at St James’.
The Newcastle boss spoke to the Shields Gazette to give an insight into how serious the injuries were for the duo:
“We had players in different physical moments and we looked to have picked up a few minor injuries. We are relieved to come through with the three points.
“I think on another day he [Isak] would have scored more. But I don’t think he was feeling 100 per cent, which is why we withdrew him. We hope it’s nothing serious. But he’s such a talent and he’s such a big player for us.”
“He just wasn’t feeling 100 per cent in his groin, I don’t think. And was just a little bit unsure in his movements. So that’s why we withdrew him.”
“[Trippier] said it was like a cramped sensation in his groin, so we hope it’s nothing serious. But that is the negative, we’ve got a few niggles – we have such a small squad, as you’ve seen from our bench today. So we can’t afford to pick up any injuries.”
Will Alexander Isak start against Leicester City?
There is no doubt that Newcastle supporters will be holding their breath ahead of Howe’s pre-match press conference for the upcoming Leicester City fixture, which is expected to take place tomorrow.
The Newcastle manager will be able to give more clarity when further assessment has been taken on Trippier and Isak over the course of today and give a more definitive answer on the expectations for the pair being available to appear at the King Power Stadium on Monday evening.
The return of Gordon could not have come at a better time for Howe, especially if Isak is unavailable for selection for the trip to the Midlands and after coming off the bench for Isak last night, Callum Wilson is expected to be available too.
Luckily, Leicester are currently in the worst form of any Premier League club after picking up their seventh defeat on the bounce last night so there is no reason why Newcastle don’t have the quality in depth to pick up a result on the road on Monday.
