'Not happy' - Yoane Wissa update as concern grows over another Newcastle United striker
Yoane Wissa is close to returning for Newcastle United but there are concerns for another striker.
Newcastle United striker Yoane Wissa is stepping up his return from injury.
Wissa joined from Brentford for £55million on September 1 but a week later suffered a posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) injury on international duty with DR Congo.
That has prevented Wissa from making his Newcastle debut, missing three months and 17 matches in total.
Yoane Wissa stepping up return from knee injury
As the Magpies beat Everton 4-1 on Saturday to record a first Premier League away win since April, Wissa participated in an 11v11 match behind closed doors.
The 29-year-old is due to play another 11v11 this week. After that, a decision will be made on whether Wissa will be available for selection.
Speaking ahead of Tuesday’s Premier League clash against Tottenham Hotspur at St James’ Park, Eddie Howe said: “He participated in an 11v11 training game while we were at Everton. I think he'll have another one at some stage this week. And yeah, we'll see how close he is.
“He's working back, he's doing well, everything's positive but he will be back involved when we think he's able to contribute to the group and has a minimal chance of re-injury.
“Whenever he comes back, I'm sure from his perspective and of course from our perspective, that first goal will be important.
“But I don't want to put too much pressure on him. He's still a little bit away from that, he's got some more work to do, hopefully, he comes through that and then we can see him back on the pitch.”
This weekend’s clash against Burnley is likely to come too soon for Wissa but next week will be interesting as United travel to Bayer Leverkusen in the Champions League before facing Tyne-Wear rivals Sunderland at the Stadium of Light.
Newcastle United injury latest
For the past month, £69million club-record Nick Woltemade has been the Magpies’ only fit and available recognised striker after Will Osula joined Wissa on the sidelines with an ankle problem.
Howe decided to rest Woltemade for last Tuesday’s 2-1 defeat away to Marseille in the Champions League and deployed Anthony Gordon as the central striker.
While Howe has a return date in mind for Wissa, he appears less certain over Osula. The 22-year-old’s scan results have come back clear, but he is still feeling some discomfort.
Asked if the Dane would be available versus Spurs, Howe said: “No, he certainly won't be involved tomorrow night. We need to have further discussions internally to see quite what's happening with his ankle because it's not going in a straight line.
“We're not quite happy with how he's feeling so I'll try and give you some feedback when we get it.”
Meanwhile, Nick Pope and Sven Botman are set to miss Tuesday’s game. Pope sustained a groin injury in training on Friday, while Botman has a back issue that forced him to sit out of the Everton game.
“No further update from Saturday,” Howe said on Pope. “Again, he's probably one of a number of players that we'll analyse early this week and then try and get a proper diagnosis.”
On Botman, Howe said: “With Sven, he's going to see a specialist in the next couple of days, just to get a sort of definitive opinion, whether he needs an injection or whether he's able to rest for a few days and then resume training. So we'll wait and see.”
As already revealed, Kieran Trippier is expected to miss the next month with a hamstring issue.