Newcastle United have been without Yoane Wissa for the majority of the season so far following his £55million from Brentford.
The 29-year-old has missed the last two matches against Aston Villa in the FA Cup and Qarabag in the Champions League. He is now set to miss the trip to the Etihad Stadium (8pm kick-off) but could be back involved for the second leg against Qarabag on Tuesday.
It comes after Wissa missed the first three months of the season due to a knee injury picked up on international duty shortly after joining.
‘Nasty knock’ for Yoane Wissa
The Magpies are 43 games into the season in all competitions, but Wissa’s fitness has limited him to just eight starts and a further 10 appearances off the bench.
Assessing his fitness ahead of the trip to Man City, head coach Eddie Howe said: “No, I don't think he will be [back for Manchester City], but I don't think he'll be too far off for maybe the Qarabag game.
“It was in training and a nasty little knock, but I think he'll be fine.”
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How many games has Yoane Wissa missed for NUFC?
Wissa has scored three times in all competitions for Newcastle this season but has so far struggled to live up to his £55million price-tag due to various fitness issues.
The forward missed the opening games of the season prior to his move to Newcastle but finally made his first appearance of the season in December after recovering from a knee injury.
Saturday’s trip to Manchester City will be the 26th game Wissa has missed already this season.
And in his recent absence from the side, an alternative has moved above him in the striker pecking order.
Anthony Gordon’s return to the striker position saw him score four goals in the 6-1 Champions League win over Qarabag on Wednesday night. The England international heads into the match at Man City as Newcastle’s leading scorer so far this season with 14 goals although only three have come in the Premier League.
Anthony Gordon as Newcastle United’s striker
Gordon has discussed his desire to compete with the likes of Wissa and Nick Woltemade for the starting striker position at Newcastle.
And head coach Howe believes the 24-year-old is a viable option moving forward with Woltemade dropping deep. While Wissa was signed to make an immediate impact at Newcastle leading the line, he now finds himself as third choice striker.
“I think every player has a preference on sides and positions,” Howe explained. “And you sort of listen to that, because you want the player to play, ideally, where he's most comfortable.
“But I think given another preference, he'd probably prefer to play down the middle and lead the line, because I think that's what most players naturally would want to do, because you've got a lot more freedom in terms of your movement and where you can run.
“I think Ant's got some really good qualities in that position, none more so than his pressing intensity, but also his tactical understanding of when to do it, how to do it.
“I think it's at the very highest level. I think you could see the other day a couple of our goals came from his regains, and that's not by luck, that's by his really good judgment and where he puts himself.
“And then for the first goal that he scores, it's a brilliant piece of centre-forward play. It comes in short, spins, and it's a ruthless finish. So I was delighted with his performance.”
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