Two games into the season and what little positivity had built up at Newcastle United due to some big money signings has vanished as the Magpies succumbed to their second defeat of the season in as many games. They managed to keep it tight against Arsenal for most parts, but they lost 3-1 to newly-promoted Norwich City which obviously didn’t go down well with the supporters.
To be fair, the Canaries deserve some major credit for the way they played as Teemu Pukki bagged a hattrick. It was Farkeball at its best, and after seeing them play against Liverpool and Newcastle United, one can clearly say that this team will take some significant scalps in their season.
New headache for Bruce
Apart from the result, United now have major injury concerns as Steve Bruce confirmed that their record signing Joelinton doesn’t look good after his injury against Norwich. The Magpies boss said (The Chronicle), ”We don’t know (how serious it is) until he has scans or X-rays, He’s very sore in the dressing room at the moment. We’re a bit light in that department with the injuries we’ve picked up in that department. We just have to see. Hopefully, it’s not too bad.”
The signs don’t look good as the manager confirmed that the Brazilian forward is very sore. Forward is one area where United cannot afford to have too many injuries at the moment, and Joelinton is now out with a hip injury.
What other option does Bruce have?
Yoshinori Muto is the only outright forward option that seems to be available at the moment. Dwight Gayle and Andy Carroll are currently reeling with injuries and Bruce will face a much-fancied Tottenham Hotspur next. Moreover, Japanese forward Muto is yet to be proven at this level. Also, he is a kind of striker who will probably not fit into Bruce’s plan as Muto is a forward who looks to make runs between the channels and link-up play with other attacking players.
Especially against a team like Spurs, Newcastle will need a striker who can hold up play and give his team-mates an out ball. Carroll is still a month away from being available as he is building himself up to match fitness. Dwight Gayle’s comeback date is still uncertain, and he wasn’t part of any pre-season game for the Toon. So one can assume that he is further away than Carroll at the moment in terms of being available.
The club doesn’t have a target man available to replace Joelinton at the moment, and Bruce can now only hope that Joelinton’s scans are positive and nothing too serious. However, things don’t look good as Joelinton had to leave the game midway in the 67th minute.
