Eddie Howe keeps dropping Alexander Isak hints - but has 'incredible' Plan B
Alexander Isak will miss Newcastle United's cup clash with AFC Wimbledon on Tuesday evening - and there's every chance the Swedish striker may not be risked at Everton this weekend either.
Eddie Howe ruled Isak out of the rearranged midweek showdown when discussing his absence in Saturday's 1-1 draw with Manchester City, before again confirming there had been no change as he took his seat for his pre-match media duties on Monday morning.
On both occasions, Howe dropped big hints that Isak, as well as missing the Carabao Cup tie, may not make this weekend's Goodison Park tie given the lengthy break between the Everton clash on October 5 and the visit of Brighton on October 19. Newcastle also have to factor in whether to allow Isak to link up with his international team-mates as Sweden take on Slovakia and Estonia during the Premier League break.
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Howe, backed by new performance director James Bunce, has been unwilling to rush players back from injury of late, no doubt scarred from last season's issues, with both Joe Willock and Sandro Tonali being given extra time on the sidelines following their respective absences. There is also no desire to speed up Sven Botman's timetabled return as he recovers from an ACL injury.
Speaking at St James' Park on Saturday afternoon, Howe said: "He definitely won’t feature on Tuesday. Let’s see how he looks for Everton. Of course, there is an international period coming up after that, and he’s an international player, so we’ll see the implications of all that, but we’ll make decisions during this week."
Pressed again on the forward today, Howe reiterated: "With Alex, we’ve not ruled him out of Everton. We’re sort of assessing him on a daily basis because there is a chance he could be fit for Everton if everything falls into place.
"Of course, then we have a decision to make. Does he play in that game or do we leave him knowing that he’ll be OK two weeks afterwards?"
Anthony Gordon may well have made Howe's decision for him with regards to risking Isak in the Premier League this weekend. With Callum Wilson injured and William Osula still getting up to speed on Tyneside, the winger was tasked with playing through the middle against Man City - and impressed in doing so.
Discussing his forward options in Isak's absence, Howe said: "Of course, we're light in the centre forward area. I thought Anthony did did really well on Saturday. I was really pleased with his commitment to the to the role. His endeavour to pressing I thought was incredible.
"And I think that gave us a really good route into the game in terms of our press and our intensity - going back to the level that it has been historically.
"We really like Will. I think he's settled in really well. He's training well behind the scenes, we're developing his game in lots of different areas. So yeah, I'll have to make a decision on the team."