After a lengthy injury absence, Callum Wilson made his return to action with two substitute appearances for Newcastle United—coming off the bench in the 2-0 defeat to West Ham and the 1-1 draw with Crystal Palace. However, just as Wilson was nearing full fitness, Alexander Isak picked up an injury during the Palace match and had to be substituted early.
Rather than replacing Isak with Wilson, Newcastle manager Eddie Howe opted to bring on Harvey Barnes in a wide right-wing role and shifted Anthony Gordon into a central attacking position. Wilson eventually replaced Gordon for the final 15 minutes of the game, but Newcastle conceded a late equalizer in injury time.
With Isak now a doubt for the upcoming clash against Liverpool, Howe has confirmed that Wilson’s minutes will be managed carefully to avoid further setbacks. As it stands, Gordon is ahead of both Wilson and Will Osula in the striker hierarchy, meaning Gordon could be tasked with leading the line against Liverpool if Isak is unavailable.
Howe explained, “We need to be cautious with Callum. He’s had limited training, and we don’t want to rush him back too soon. Our plan for him was always to give him 20-30 minutes, similar to what we did against West Ham. I decided to move Anthony centrally, where he’s been effective in the past, and I thought he did well. The team needs to improve overall in terms of creating more goalscoring chances.”
Heading into the match against Liverpool, Newcastle has struggled for goals this season, scoring just 14 times in their first 13 Premier League games. This is a sharp contrast to their impressive 85 goals scored in the previous season.
