Newcastle United will have six players taking part for their respective countries in the 2022 FIFA World Cup which will soon take place in Qatar for the first time in the competition’s history. The Magpies will have a total of three English players participating in the tournament.
Let’s take a look at them and try to determine how they will fare in this year’s FIFA World Cup.
Kieran Trippier (England)
Trippier is having a decent campaign with the Magpies after he put in a handful of influential displays on the right side of their backline. The England international has participated in 17 matches for the Tyneside club this season, finding the back of the net on one occasion and grabbing four assists in all competitions.
Trippier deserves a pat on the back for being a consistent member of Eddie Howe’s first team as he is averaging 1.9 tackles, 1.3 interceptions, 2.0 clearances and 2.3 key passes per 90 minutes in Premier League football. The 32-year-old has been a tidy ball distributor as well after making 77.3% of his attempted passes in league football (stats via whoscored).
Based on his recent form, we can expect Trippier to play a major role for Gareth Southgate’s England side when the World Cup finals take place in the Middle East soon.
Nick Pope (England)
The English keeper is having a solid campaign at St. James’ Park as well as he has managed to put in several dominant displays while acting as Newcastle United‘s primary keeper. Pope has shipped in 11 goals and secured eight clean sheets in 18 matches for the Magpies this season across multiple competitions.
Southgate will now hope that the English goalie can replicate his club form for England in this year’s World Cup. However, he is expected to play second fiddle to Aaron Ramsdale, who is likely to get the nod to be the Three Lions’ first-choice keeper during the tournament.
Callum Wilson (England)
The Newcastle United centre-forward has managed to impress in patches during this campaign. He has netted a handful of important goals for the Tyneside giants over the past few months.
The 30-year-old has banged in six goals and picked up a couple of assists in 11 appearances for Eddie Howe’s side this season on all fronts. On his day, he can be a deadly presence in front of the opposition half.
Therefore, Southgate will try to get the best out of him as a substitute in Qatar later this month. However, he can expect to warm the bench as Harry Kane is nailed-on to lead the line for England regularly during the World Cup.
