Newcastle United aren’t in crisis, but some gaping holes need filling in at St. James’ Park. The recent Premier League defeat at the Gtech has left Eddie Howe’s squad mired in 12th place, with just one win in five.
While there’s no inclination that Howe’s position is under threat, it’s pretty clear that things need to change if Newcastle are to complete the campaign and view it as one of success and progress.
There’s an alarming lack of intensity, energy and positivity about this Magpies team, who have overcome the injury struggles of 2023/24 but are now suffering from a poor summer transfer window and the ramifications of PSR, spilling into the first-team squad.
That’s not to say that injuries have been totally wiped from the Tyneside slate, with Callum Wilson enduring a torrid season that has just been dealt another bruising blow.
Callum Wilson's latest injury
Wilson has featured across Newcastle’s past four Premier League fixtures, but only after sitting on the sidelines for the entirety of the opening phase of the campaign.
Given that United have struggled for goals and fluency in attacking sequences, it’s clear that this has been to Howe’s detriment, for Wilson is always clinical, always dangerous, and has that ball-striking knack that would surely have provided the team with something more.
But he’s been out of action and now appears to be set for several months back in the medical room after picking up a hamstring injury – something that will keep him out indefinitely and is a recurrence of two similar problems from last season. It’s saddening to see, especially as the back injury that has ruled him out over recent months is a completely separate thing.
The January transfer window can’t come soon enough, but Howe will need to balance Alexander Isak’s workload and somehow maintain the potency of the Magpies attack.
The players who could replace Callum Wilson
Newcastle fans will rest assured in the fact that Isak is their prized forward, but the Swede has suffered from injury issues throughout his Premier League career and must not be freighted with too heavy a burden.
Luckily, Anthony Gordon can stand in at number nine when needed. He’s not a natural striker, to be sure, but offers dynamic qualities and can work in flux with left winger Harvey Barnes.
Miguel Almiron could also be considered as a stand-in forward, serving as Isak’s understudy, at least. However, the Paraguayan is on the margins as it is and has scored just one goal over 15 career appearances in a central striking role, which is rather typical.
There’s also William Osula to consider. The French forward, 21, left Sheffield United to sign for the Toon in a £15m transfer last summer but has only featured four times in the Premier League, yet to start and yet to score across his total of ten minutes.
However, the fact that Osula has been involved in first-team action for the entirety of the campaign yet has scarcely featured on the Premier League pitch suggests that he is still not ready for the kind of role that Howe is looking for.
Of course, the latest blow only heightens the expectation that PIF will green-light some January spending to propel United back into the ascendency.
But in the interim, and perhaps into the latter phase of the term, Howe must consider unleashing academy talent Ben Parkinson.
Howe could boldly unleash Ben Parkinson
Parkinson, aged 19, has been a prominent figure in Newcastle’s academy system over the past several years and has been among the most influential U21s this season with six goals and an assist across 12 appearances.
A dynamic attacking talent, Parkinson is capable of playing across the attacking span and has demonstrated a level of potency throughout – though, given that he is left-footed and focuses on goalscoring, he’s least effective on the left wing.
His talents have seen him rewarded with a senior debut, coming off the bench during a 2-0 Newcastle defeat against Bournemouth in the Premier League last season, though he has since continued his development in the academy zone, albeit spending a host of senior matches on the bench last year – including twice in the Champions League.
Newcastle U21
36
13
2
Newcastle U18
32
11
5
Newcastle YL
4
1
0
Newcastle
1
0
0
It’s curious to note that Parkinson has matched his numbers with the U18s as a U21 star, bespeaking growth and development that can often be the inverse for young hopefuls, bloated with numerical success in their maiden stage before fizzling out as they rise higher and higher.
With his 20th birthday only three months away, you’d think that Parkinson is reaching the stage when he would be a regular presence in the matchday squad, especially given Newcastle’s lack of options at centre-forward and indeed on the right flank, with Almiron and Jacob Murphy leaving plenty to be desired.
He’s a team player, adept in contributing toward flowing transitions (that are a staple of Howe’s system) and he’s been praised for his natural striking sense, with U21 coach Ben Dawson saying: “He’s always had that knack of being in the right place at the right time.”
Howe clearly entrusted Parkinson with a bit-part role in the senior squad last year, and now it’s time for the teenage talent to prove that he can step up to the plate as Isak’s understudy, and mollify the fanbase’s concern that Wilson’s fresh injury could be a devastating blow to a campaign that still hasn’t got going.
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