Eddie Howe drops Alexander Isak injury bombshell as Newcastle United prepare for Everton

Eddie Howe expects to be without Alexander Isak until after the World Cup, the Newcastle United head coach has reiterated.

The 22-year-old, who arrived from Real Sociedad for a club record fee in the summer, netted two goals in his opening three games before picking up a thigh injury with Sweden.

Having missed back-to-back wins against Fulham and Brentford, Isak was edging closer to a return ahead of Sunday’s goalless draw at Manchester United but unfortunately broke down with the same problem.

And with the Premier League season breaking for the Qatar World Cup in just over a month’s time, United are unlikely to see Isak back until Boxing Day when Howe’s side travel to Leicester City.

“Alex, we don’t think we’ll see again before the World Cup. Unfortunately, he has had a setback on his thigh,” Howe said. “(It’s) very frustrating for him as a new player coming to a new league and club.

“You want to make an instant impact and he did that in the team during his few games, I thought he was excellent for us and looked like he was acclimatising really well.

“He picked up the injury when he was away with Sweden and since then, it’s been frustrating for him.

“He’s felt really good, did a lot of work to get fit but as always with muscle injuries, they are unpredictable, You can feel great one minute but succumb the next and that’s what happened with him.

“It’s a real shame because he is desperate to make his mark here. He’s young, got a long future ahead of him here and now we need to protect him and make sure he comes back good.”

Isak scored on his debut during the last minute defeat at Liverpool before starting back-to-back home games against Crystal Palace and Bournemouth.

Howe revealed Isak joined Newcastle with a “minor hamstring problem” and hopes to use the World Cup break to get him up to “peak physical condition”.

The Magpies boss added: “Yeah, that’s the beauty of this if you’re trying to look for a positive. It will give him a chance for his injury to heal and then we will get a mini pre-season with him to get him in peak condition.

“I think he joined us with a very minor hamstring problem. Even when he played against Liverpool, he wasn’t 100% fit. Hopefully, this gives us an opportunity to get him to his peak physical condition so he can show his athletic capabilities.

“He is an incredible athlete and in my opinion will do really well for us over a long period of time. This is an important time now to embed him into the team, to get to know the players, the city and then come back firing.”