Earlier today, Sky Sports’ Keith Downie reported that Dwight Gayle looked set to be missing for a matter of ‘months, not weeks’, and it’s now emerged just how many months we’re talking here.
As revealed by The Mail’s North-East correspondent Craig Hope, the word coming out of the Newcastle camp is that he looks set to be sidelined for around THREE months.
This comes after the striker hyper-extended his knee and limped off in a 3-0 pre-season win over Crewe on Tuesday, with scans said to have taken place just yesterday to determine to damage done.
We needed a striker already this summer – even when Gayle, Carroll and Joelinton were all available – so this just makes a desperate situation even more messy.
Gayle is yet to prove himself in the top flight and has a history with injury issues, but his four goals and an assist in nine appearances during Project Restart gave us hope he’d at least be a capable option going into 202021, however he now looks set to be out until around December.
This is more bad news for Steve Bruce, with it confirmed earlier today that a heel injury will keep Martin Dubravka out for the next ‘6-8 weeks’.
With Joelinton yet to return to training after self-isolating froma spell in Mykonos and Carroll (of all people) not our only fit striker in training, it’s absolutely essential that TWO strikers are now signed between now and October 5th, with one essential to give us a much needed boost before the new season starts in 16 days time.
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So now ALL eyes are on Bruce.
It isn’t his fault that we’ve needed a striker since we sold Demba Ba or that we refused to buy Rondon when he was the only reliable striker since Ba but we are now left without a reliable striker as Gayle is crocked for 3 months, Carroll is an injury waiting to happen and Joelinton isn’t a striker.
If Bruce says we have enough and won’t be bringing anyone in because there is nothing out there better than what we already have because Carroll will be fit and Joelinton and Muto look good in training there should be a fan wide revolt against him. This is now a visible crisis.
If we don’t bring in a striker during this window it is bordering on neglect.
mactoon(Quote)
Poor Ashley can’t afford a striker he only pocked 17mill from the failed sale and you can’t expect that to go to the club
Ricky(Quote)