Newcastle have suffered a major injury blow with influential midfielder Joelinton ruled out for at least the next six weeks.
The Brazilian suffered a thigh problem against Sunderland in last week’s FA Cup third-round tie. Subsquent scans revealed damage to a tendon in Joelinton’s quad, with the 27-year-old set to miss a key run of fixtures for the Tyneside club.
Eddie Howe’s side face Manchester City as they return to Premier League action this weekend having lost their last three games in the competiton amid a tough run of injuries.
“He’s got a problem with a tendon in his quad,” Howe said of Joelinton, confirming that he will be out for a minimum of six weeks. “Without going too detailed, it’s a very difficult place to get an injury, hence the timescale that he’s going to be out.
“He’s very disappointed. He wants to play, he wants to do well, so we’ve had a job of trying to pick Joe up. It’s a real blow for us because he’s such an important player. He’s had a very stop-start season, unfortunately, this year where he was so consistent last year in his selection. He’s had a few different problems and this is a big blow.”
Callum Wilson, Harvey Barnes and Nick Pope are among a number of other key individuals currently unavailable to Howe due to injury.
The club have suffered five defeats in their last six Premier League games to drop to ninth, and face another tough encounter with the champions at St James’ Park on Saturday evening.
