Callum Wilson injury update as striker misses Newcastle United v Rayo Vallecano

Eddie Howe has provided an update on Callum Wilson’s fitness after the striker missed Newcastle United’s 2-1 win over Rayo Vallecano at St James’ Park.

While Nick Pope and Kieran Trippier started against the La Liga side after returning from the World Cup in Qatar this week, Wilson was left out of the matchday squad.

There were reports that the 30-year-old had picked up a minor strain on England duty last week, which Howe was asked about after the friendly victory.

“We’ve only seen Callum briefly,” Howe said. “I don’t want to give too much away, to be honest.”

Asked if Wilson had returned with an injury, Howe said: “No, Callum’s come back OK.

“As I say, with different training loads... I don’t want to get too technical with everybody but with different training loads, we’ve just had to tread carefully with one or two players.”

Wilson sat out as goals from Sean Longstaff and Chris Wood sealed a narrow 2-1 win on Tyneside.

“I thought it was a really good game for us, probably just the test we needed,” Howe said. “Vallecano have been very good this season. They’re a really strong team and we knew they’d play in essence like a Premier League team - very aggressive and front foot.

“It was a really good game and we played some really good stuff, especially in the first-half. Second-half became a bit bitty with a lot of substitutions but overall, very pleased. 

The Magpies resume their competitive season against Bournemouth in the last 16 of the Carabao Cup on Tuesday evening.