John Barnes does not expect Eddie Howe to start Alexander Isak and Callum Wilson as a two-man attack at Newcastle United. Injuries forced the Toon boss into a rethink in the 1-0 win over Fulham last weekend.
As Bruno Guimaraes went off injured, and there was no midfield cover on the bench, Joelinton dropped into the engine room and Allan Saint-Maximin played out wide. Howe threw the kitchen sink at the Cottagers in pursuit of a win and, with 20 minutes remaining, brought on £58million man Isak.
The Swede played in an unfamiliar number 10 role but produced the goods with a last-minute winner to send St James’ Park into raptures. His combination with Wilson for the goal triggered talk of a possible strike partnership emerging.
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Les Ferdinand and Alan Shearer, Peter Beardsley and Andy Cole and, in more recent years, Papiss Cisse and Demba Ba have all struck a chord with supporters. But speaking to reporters last May, Howe rebuffed suggestions of playing two up front.
“It is not how we’re playing (with two strikers) at the moment,” he said. “A lot of the problems with two strikers, and why I wouldn’t say gone out of the game, but probably going out of the game is because, off the ball, you have big spaces.
"Your midfield and back four find themselves with huge spaces to defend. It’s not something I’d say that I’d never do, but it’s certainly not something that’s in my immediate plans to play that way."
A trusted 4-3-3 has worked wonders for Newcastle but Howe showed against Fulham he is not scared to mix his system up to force a win. Ex-Magpies forward Barnes believes Howe will refrain from playing Isak and Wilson together on a regular basis. The former England talisman did, however, admit the dilemma was “a nice problem” to have.
“I don't think Eddie Howe likes to play with two up front,” Barnes told BonusCodesBets. “So I can't see Callum Wilson and Alexander Isak playing together. Whoever is playing better will be the one starting up front.
“If Isak is struggling to score goals and perform, then we know Wilson can come in and score. It's a nice problem to have. If Newcastle achieve Champions League football, then we might see a striker that takes both of their places.”
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