Newcastle United issue lengthy Yoane Wissa as return teased just hours before kick-off v Burnley
Newcastle United boss Eddie Howe has spoken about Yoane Wissa’s imminent return.
Yoane Wissa is pushing for a place on the Newcastle United bench for this afternoon’s Premier League clash at home to Burnley (kick-off 3pm).
Three months after joining from Brentford for £55million and Wissa is yet to make his Newcastle debut after sustaining a posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) injury on international duty with DR Congo.
Fortunately for the Magpies, £69m club-record signing Nick Woltemade has immediately hit the ground running, which has taken the attention away from Wissa’s absence.
But now Eddie Howe is close to having both his new strikers available, with Wissa in contention for a place in the matchday squad against the Clarets after coming through back-to-back 11v11 matches unscathed.
Yoane Wissa pushing for place on the bench v Burnley
“Getting closer, we're getting closer,” said Howe. “We did an 11 v 11 game, sort of for him really on Wednesday, and that was good, that was more minutes for him, around about half an hour, he did well. So yeah, we'll sort of see how he is today.
“So far he's looked good and he's come through everything, but I always say in these situations, you still have training today.
“We've got to make a decision as to whether he's ready to not just be fit, but fit to make a difference and fit to perform to his highest levels.”
Yoane Wissa teases Newcastle United return v Burnley
In the hours leading up to kick-off, Wissa has taken to social media to tease his return.
On Instagram, Wissa shared a photo of himself in a Newcastle kit with the the caption “story” with an open book and clapper board emoji, suggesting his chapter at St James’ Park starts today.
Eddie Howe has already issued Yoane Wissa warning
Howe previously warned that although Wissa could be available for matches, he would need a ‘six-week’ pre-season to get up-to-speed.
“Yeah, he's looked good,” Howe added. “I think we've seen all the qualities that we saw at Brentford. His movement is very good. He's quick, he's sharp, he's got that low centre of gravity and I think already you can see he'll build good relationships with the players around him. So yeah, I've been really happy with what he's done.
“As I say, is he at 100% best physical condition? Probably not but I think that will take some time. I think it's similar with other players that come back from injuries, seeing Lewis Hall going down with cramp towards the end of games.
“Ideally with Lew, we'd probably have had longer to build him up but we don't have that luxury in so many games that we need the squad fit and ready and hopefully Yoane will have a big part to play.”
Wissa scored 19 Premier League goals for Brentford last season, with only Mohammed Salah, Erling Haaland and Alexander Isak, who United sold to Liverpool for a British record £130, scoring more.
“I think it'll be a big boost for us,” Howe added. “I think a big boost for the squad to have someone of his experience, calibre, quality back in the group.
“I think we've just got to be mindful of the length of time that he's been out and the lack of training he's had because normally we'd want to give him more before we put him back onto the pitch. But I think in our situation at the moment, I'm not sure we've got that grace to do that.
“I think he's a quality player. We've seen that in training already. We've seen the difference he can make. His movement is excellent, he's a very good finisher and he is vastly experienced, so I think the transition time to a new team should be less.
“But it's really his fitness and match sharpness and match readiness are the concern that we have and making sure that we enter him at the right time.”
Yoane Wissa left out of DR Congo’s AFCON squad - full focus on NUFC
The good news for Newcastle is that Wissa will stay under their supervision this month after it was feared he would be jetting off to the African Cup of Nations with DR Congo.
Wissa spoke honestly with Congo and it was agreed he would stay at Newcastle to build his fitness and ultimately get his career at St James’ Park up and running following his big-money move.
Howe added: “I think just with the way this season's gone and how he's been feeling, I think his priority at the moment was to make sure he concentrates purely on his fitness and he has no other distractions or pressures to be fit. We're trying to make the right decisions for him on a daily basis.
“We've planned his comeback from a long time out just to try and get him ready in the quickest time possible but also when he is ready and able to take the load. So we're confident we can do that.”