Newcastle United injuries update ahead of 2022/23 Premier League kick-off

At the end of last season, Newcastle United injuries hit the squad.

An excellent second half of the season seeing 38 points picked up in the final 19 games.

The third best record in those final 19 games seeing United behind only Liverpool and Man City.

However, the tough schedule did begin to take its toll and by the time we got to the very final game at Turf Moor, Newcastle United injuries impacted on the selection choices.

Joe Willock and Jonjo Shelvey the biggest worries looking beyond the end of last season, with Eddie Howe (see below) having ruled them out of the final games of 2021/22 with knee and calf injuries respectively.

Whilst Joelinton (pictured above) suffering what looked potentially to be a horrific injury when stretchered off during that final game at Burnley, Eddie Howe expressing his concerns (see below) after the game.

Anyway, fast forward to Saturday 9 July and the first Newcastle United friendly of pre-season.

In the 5-1 win over Gateshead, Eddie Howe using 21 players in total, only Kell Watts playing the full match.

Newcastle United (first half): Martin Dúbravka, Kieran Trippier, Jamaal Lascelles, Kell Watts, Paul Dummett, Jonjo Shelvey, Elliot Anderson, Joe Willock, Matt Ritchie, Ryan Fraser, Callum Wilson

Newcastle United (second half): Karl Darlow, Emil Krafth, Kell Watts, Dan Burn, Matt Targett, Matty Longstaff, Joelinton, Sean Longstaff, Miguel Almirón, Allan Saint-Maximin, Jacob Murphy

Great news to see that all of that trio of Newcastle United injuries from the end of last season – Joelinton, Jonjo Shelvey and Joe Willock – all playing. Yesterday’s friendly coming along less than seven weeks after that final Burnley match of last season.

So looking at the entire Newcastle United that is currently at the club and then who was missing from the action yesterday.

I make it 33 Newcastle United first team squad players at the moment:

Goalkeepers

Martin Dubravka, Karl Darlow,  Mark Gillespie, Nick Pope

Defenders

Kell Watts, Dan Burn, Jamaal Lascelles, Matt Targett, Paul Dummett, Federico Fernandez, Jamal Lewis, Javier Manquillo, Kieran Trippier, Sven Botman, Fabian Schar, Emil Krafth, Ciaran Clark

Midfielders

Joe Willock, Jonjo Shelvey, Joelinton, Matty Longstaff, Sean Longstaff, Bruno Guimaraes, Elliot Anderson, Jeff Hendrick

Wingers

Allan Saint-Maximin, Matt Ritchie, Ryan Fraser, Jacob Murphy, Miguel Almiron

Strikers

Callum Wilson, Chris Wood, Dwight Gayle

So 33 NUFC players in total, with 21 playing in the friendly against Gateshead.

We already know Ciaran Clark, Jeff Hendrick and Dwight Gayle have all been sent by Eddie Howe to train with the Under 23s, so that leaves nine unaccounted for.

Chris Wood, Sven Botman, Fabian Schar, Bruno Guimaraes and Nick Pope all allowed a little more time after international commitments this summer.

Then obviously using only two keepers yesterday, that ruled out any involvement from Mark Gillespie.

So that leaves us with Federico Fernandez, Jamal Lewis and Javier Manquillo.

Fernandez and Lewis have been seen in training galleries released by the club in pre-season but Manquillo is the one player who hasn’t been sighted at all.

Fernandez you would imagine is set to leave this summer if finding a new club, Botman, Burn, Schar and Lascelles all in front of him for a place in the team.

As for Jamal Lewis, worrying that he wasn’t involved yesterday. He is one of the few unknowns in terms of injuries very much limiting the chance he had for Eddie Howe to work his magic last season, after the left-back had been ‘Bruced’ after arriving for £15m from Norwich. It had been hoped that his injury issues were in the past and he would get the chance pre-season to show Howe he could be an asset this coming season, hopefully this will still be the case and he can be involved in the remaining friendlies, starting in Austria on Friday 15 July (1860 Munich) and then Monday 18 July (Mainz 05).

Eddie Howe after defeat at Man City revealing two players ruled out for the rest of the season and possibly beyond – 8 May 2022:

“Joe Willock has had a knee problem for a couple of months and we felt it was gone.

“However, it came back against Liverpool last week, so it looks like his season is over.

“Jonjo Shelvey has a calf injury, which is quite similar to the one he had at the start of this season.

“So it looks like both players will be out for the (rest of the) season.”

After the 2-1 win at Burnley, Eddie Howe giving an update on Joelinton who was stretchered off  – 22 May 2022:

“It (Joelinton injury) didn’t look good.

“I could see by the way he went down.

“I thought…‘this could be serious’.

“Apparently it is a deep laceration (to the foot).

“I think the doctor, initially when he saw him, could see part of his bone, so I think it was quite deep.

“We knew immediately we had to withdraw him.

“However, he is in good spirits in the dressing room.

“He had a boot on and said he was OK, so that’s great news.”