Steve Bruce has confirmed that Callum Wilson will miss this weekend’s trip to Old Trafford – and could be out for “at least another couple of weeks”.
The striker limped off with a thigh complaint in our 2-2 draw with Southampton and was not pictured in any of the training photos released by the club yesterday.
Elsewhere, Ryan Fraser will be missing with a twisted ankle – although it seems he could be back in training as early as next week.
Although Jonjo Shelvey and Martin Dubravka also look set to miss out once again, Newcastle have been boosted by some good news on Miguel Almiron – who WILL be available despite Paraguay’s complaint to FIFA over the international break.
Karl Darlow has also returned to training and will be in contention for the first time this season, although it’s not yet known if he’ll take Freddie Woodman’s place from the start, while Isaac Hayden is available again after missing our last two and a half games.
Paul Dummett’s availability is not yet known. He was spotted in training prior to our 2-2 draw with Southampton, but didn’t appear to take part in Thursday’s session.
Here’s what’s been said on the fitness front during Bruce’s press conference this morning:
Bruce on Wilson:
“Callum Wilson won’t make the weekend unfortunately with his thigh injury.
“We’re not going to put a timescale on it.
“It’s really frustrating for Callum and for us.
“We’ve just got to give it as long as it needs.”
“We still think he’s going to be at least another couple of weeks.
“With muscle injuries, you just have to be patient with it.
“He’s in the gym at the moment… hopefully, by the end of next week, he’ll be on the grass.”
Bruce on Fraser:
“We don’t think it’s that bad, but he won’t make this weekend.
“When he was on crutches, you feared the worst, but that was precautionary…
“Hopefully, he’ll be back in training next week.”
Bruce on Almiron:
“It’s a difficult one for the players because they just want to play.
“A bit of common sense has prevailed with Almiron that he’s available, so I’m extremely pleased with that.”
Bruce on Darlow:
“Thankfully he’s trained for the last week, 10 days, & there’s been a big improvement with him.
“He’s put himself in contention but whether he has quite done enough to start, we’ll have to see.
“It’s great to see him getting back to himself a bit.”
