Expert issues ‘huge’ Alexander Isak claim after Newcastle twist
Alexander Isak has missed a huge opportunity at Newcastle United to settle down and adapt to the Premier League over the winter break.
That is the view of medical expert Ben Dinnery, who runs the Premier Injuries site and has a background in injury and data analysis, speaking exclusively to Football Insider.
Isak has been out of action for the Magpies since September when he suffered a thigh injury while on duty with the Sweden national team.
While the injury was initially only believed to be minor, the 23-year-old suffered a setback during his recovery and is still yet to make his return in Tyneside.
As quoted by Chronicle Live, Eddie Howe said this week that Isak is “desperate to play and prove how good he is” as he inches closer to his Newcastle return.
Dinnery believes that the winter break would have been a perfect opportunity for Isak to settle down and adapt to life in Tyneside, but admits that his absence has given other squad members a chance to shine.
“It’s disappointing. Very disappointing,” Dinnery told Football Insider’s Sean Fisher.
“It’s a huge missed opportunity for a new player coming into the league to adapt to the rigours of this intensive environment, which is totally unique in terms of the characteristics that it presents to players.
“It was a fairly innocuous setback training with the Swedish national team.
“It was touted as a two-to-three-week potential return to playing, and here we are now with Isak still not really pushing for the first team so those setbacks will have been very disappointing.
“But, you can look at how Newcastle have been doing in his absence and that does ease the burden on Eddie Howe to rush him back.
“Even in the absence of Callum Wilson through illness, Chris Wood has led the line and Newcastle are still getting the results.
“So on the bright side, it’s provided opportunities for other players within the squad, but Isak was a big-money move and you’re going to want him to be fit and in contention as well.
“But because of Newcastle’s good form, they can afford to put Isak through a rigorous recovery programme to ensure that when he does return, he stays fit.“
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