Newcastle United have confirmed on their official website that they have suffered a double injury blow ahead of the crucial clash against West Bromwich Albion next weekend. The Magpies have revealed that both Miguel Almiron and Allan Saint-Maximin will be out of action until April after the attacking pair picked up injuries during the 1-1 draw against Wolverhampton Wanderers last month (via nufc.co.uk).
How Has Almiron And Maximin Fared For Newcastle This Season?
Both Almiron and Saint-Maximin has been far from consistent with their performances at St. James’ Park this season. Despite his barren run in front of the opponent’s goal, Almiron has caught the eye by producing some match-winning performances for the Tyneside outfit this season. The Paraguayan speedster has banged in five goals and secured three assists in 29 appearances for Newcastle this term across all competitions.
Almiron deserves a lot of credit for being influential at both ends of the pitch as he is averaging 1.7 tackles, 0.7 interceptions, 0.6 clearances, 1.0 shots, 1.0 key passes and 1.2 dribbles per game in the Premier League. He has even been accurate with his ball-distribution based on his pass completion rate of 82% in league football (stats via whoscored).
In contrast, Saint-Maximin has endured an injury-prone season at Tyneside as he has missed several matches due to an ankle injury and, later, a calf problem. He has registered two goals and three assists in 17 matches for the Magpies this season on all fronts. However, the French wing wizard has done well to average 1.0 shots, 1.0 key passes and 3.3 dribbles per game in the English first division. Similar to Almiron, Saint-Maximin has been excellent when distributing possession in the opposition half after making 83.3% of his attempted passes in top-flight football (stats via whoscored).
What Do The Injured Newcastle Duo Offer On The Pitch?
Almiron and Saint-Maximin are two of the quickest players in Steve Bruce’s match-day squad. Both players have carried most of the attacking workload for Newcastle recently and have scored and set up some important goals for the Tyneside giants this season. Despite their inconsistent form in terms of their offensive returns, they are still two of the most valuable players at St. James’ Park.
Can The Magpies Cope With The Injury Absence Of Almiron And Saint-Maximin?
Therefore, losing them to injuries until April will be a massive blow for Bruce and his hopes to avoid relegation from the Premier League this season. With some crucial league matches coming up against West Brom, Aston Villa and Brighton and Hove Albion, the Newcastle boss will find it difficult to come up with some solutions to get his attacking department up and running again.
Furthermore, Callum Wilson is also sidelined at the moment, which means that the Magpies will have to do without most of their first-team attackers going into this make-or-break period of this campaign. With all the mounting injuries, it isn’t easy to see how Newcastle will turn their fortunes around for the better. But Bruce has the experience and pedigree to guide the Magpies through this challenging period and come out on the other side with hopefully their Premier League status still intact.
