Alexander Isak admits that his lack of sharpness after being sidelined since September played a part in his two big FA Cup chances against Sheffield Wednesday.
Twice Isak found himself in front of excellent Sheff Wed stopper Cameron Dawson but twice he was denied by the home goalkeeper in the first half of the Magpies' FA Cup defeat against the Owls. Now though Isak hopes that getting 45 minutes in the tank will only benefit him ahead of the club's now season defining League Cup quarter-final against Leicester City.
When asked about building back up to full fitness and getting sharp again, Isak told Chronicle Live: "I think the sharpness will help. These are chances I'd usually score (at Sheff Wed).
READ MORE: Sheffield Wednesday 2-1 Newcastle United as FA Cup interest ended at the first hurdle
"That is football, today the ball wouldn't go in. And hopefully I will get more chances on Tuesday against Leicester.
Isak is sitting on the two goals he scored before his thigh injury but still has more than half a Premier League season and the League Cup to get back up the top scorer table. When asked if he had a target in mind, after grabbing 13 for club and country last term, Isak refused to get too far ahead of himself.
Responding to a question about targets and making up for lost time on his personal targets, Isak said: "I don't really have personal targets. I take one game at a time and I try to do my best and score. I want to score or give assists every game really. I don't want to look to far forward."
Isak returns to a team that is not only fighting for the League Cup but also in a Champions League position. Even reaching the Champions League for the first time since 2003 would represent major success at St James' Park.
The Sweden international striker said: "That would be great, that would be incredible for the club. That is too far ahead to look at. We must go one game at a time. And then go for the three points each week, we will see how it looks as we get closer to the end."
The £63million man also made it clear he signed for the club with a view to getting to Europe's premier competition.
Isak said: "Yeah, obviously. We all want to go as far as possible and I think the club's vision is definitely to be at that level."
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