'Unlucky' - Eddie Howe confirms Will Osula injury concern ahead of Newcastle United debut
Eddie Howe felt Will Osula was ‘unlucky’ to be denied a Newcastle United debut goal at St James’ Park on Saturday.
Harvey Barnes opened the scoring for Newcastle against Stade Brestois before Osula broke through on goal and thought he’d put the hosts 2-0 ahead only to be denied by the offside flag. It was the 21-year-old’s first appearance since his £15million arrival from Sheffield United earlier in the week.
Osula trained with Newcastle on Thursday and Friday after recovering from a concussion that ultimately hampered his pre-season preparations at Sheffield United. But Howe was very pleased with the forward’s efforts as he helped The Magpies retain the Sela Cup.
“He did really well when you consider when he joined us he hadn’t trained for seven or eight days with a concussion,” Howe said afterwards. “We knew playing today he wasn’t at his peak physical condition.
“I thought he showed his qualities today and what he’s going to bring to the team, his pace, strength and took his goal really well - he was unlucky with the marginal offside. I think he’ll be really pleased with his efforts.”
After beating Girona 4-0 on Friday night, Newcastle played an entirely different line-up for the match against Brest.
Reflecting on the match, Howe admitted his side looked ‘rusty’ at times.
“Different test today,” Howe added. “Looked like a team that hadn't had a lot of minutes.
We looked rusty but it was a bright start and scored a really good goal but we just couldn’t sustain that in the second half.”