Newcastle United appear to have a fresh injury concern ahead of Saturday’s game against Leicester City.
The Magpies were rocked by news this week that Callum Wilson is injured again. The 32-year-old has suffered a hamstring injury, and is going to miss two months of action.
It is a severe blow after the striker had just returned, and Wilson has admitted he is upset and frustrated by his latest setback.
He will obviously not be involved against Leicester City on Saturday, and there is a chance that Nick Pope could be absent too.
That is according to the Daily Mail, who report that Pope is a doubt to face Leicester due to a knee problem he sustained in the defeat to Brentford.
Newcastle goalkeeper Nick Pope reacts during the Premier League match between Newcastle United FC and Liverpool FC at St James' Park on December 04...
Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images
No Nick Pope in Newcastle United training pictures
Amid the report that Pope is suffering with an injury, the club have provided an update via the Newcastle United official website.
The club have uploaded a selection of training photos from Thursday morning’s session, with the likes of Anthony Gordon, Kieran Trippier and Bruno Guimaraes involved.
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There is also an appearance from Sven Botman, who is now back in full training after his ACL injury. Botman will play for Newcastle’s Under-21s on Monday, as he completes the final stages of his recovery.
But while those players are all present, there is no sign of Nick Pope.
The £10million goalkeeper is not seen in any of the photos on the club’s official website, which is a major concern ahead of this weekend’s game at St James’ Park.
Who will replace Nick Pope for Newcastle against Leicester
If Pope is unavailable against Leicester City, Eddie Howe has a plethora of goalkeepers to replace him with. It is the position that the Magpies have the most depth in, with five goalkeepers included in Newcastle United’s 25-man Premier League squad.
Howe is spoilt for choice. He could swap Pope out for Martin Dubravka, Odysseas Vlachodimos, John Ruddy or Mark Gillespie.
While Howe has four Pope alternatives, it is really only a choice between two – Dubravka or Vlachodimos.
The Greece international is yet to make a Premier League appearance since his £20million arrival from Nottingham Forest, while Dubravka made 30 appearances last season when Pope was out with a shoulder injury.
It feels likely that Howe will pick Dubravka over Vlachodimos, with the Daily Mail reporting that the Slovakian stopper will ‘almost certainly’ come into the side if Pope is ruled out.
While Newcastle have praised Vlachodimos for his attitude, he appears to be behind Dubravka in the pecking order. That is despite a lot of fans wanting the summer signing to get a chance.
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