Mixed fortunes for Newcastle United’s international stars with five goals, an assist, an injury and two absences

The majority of Eddie Howe’s squad have just returned from a warm weather training camp in Dubai this week. But six key players were absent from the trip following international call-ups.

Chris Wood (New Zealand), Miguel Almiron (Paraguay), Fabian Schar (Switzerland), Emil Krafth (Sweden), Bruno Guimaraes (Brazil) and Martin Dubravka (Slovakia) were all called-up by their respective nations during the international break.

For some, it has been a very successful international break so far…

Wood broke an international scoring record with New Zealand with his brace in a World Cup qualifier win over Fiji on Monday seeing him become the country’s all-time leading goalscorer on 30.

On Thursday, the 30-year-old backed it up with another two goals in a 7-1 win over New Caledonia to take his overall tally to 32 goals in 63 appearances for The All Whites.

New Zealand face Tahiti in the qualifier semi-final on Sunday where they will be hoping to progress to Wednesday’s final against Papua New Guinea or Solomon Islands.

There was also goalscoring joy for Almiron and Paraguay. The attacking-midfielder turned well inside the box before finishing well into the bottom right corner of the goal in a 3-1 win over Ecuador on Thursday. Next up for Paraguay is a visit to Peru on Wednesday.

In another World Cup qualifier, Guimaraes came off the bench to grab his second assist in as many games for Brazil as he teed up Richarlison with a splitting pass in a 4-0 win over Chile. He is expected to feature against Bolivia on Wednesday.

The rest of Newcastle's international players haven’t been in action in spite of their call-ups.

Schar was forced to withdraw from the Switzerland squad ahead of Saturday night’s match against England due to a groin issue. He will now be assessed back on Tyneside ahead of next Sunday’s match at Tottenham Hotspur (4:30pm kick-off).

Krafth was absent for Sweden’s crucial World Cup qualifier against Czech Republic on Thursday due to suspension. The right-back is a regular for his country but wasn't named in the matchday squad for the 1-0 win in Stockholm.

Sweden will now face Poland on Tuesday with a place in Qatar the reward.

Elsewhere, Dubravka didn’t feature in the Slovakia squad that were beaten 2-0 in Norway on Friday due to illness and subsequently withdrew from the squad. He is expected to train and will be assessed back on Tyneside though it remains unclear whether he will be involved at Spurs.

All of Newcastle’s international players are expected back on Tyneside in time for the club’s return to Premier League action next weekend – though they now have a couple of potential injury doubts.

Eddie Howe’s side will have gone over two weeks without playing a competitive match by the time they visit Spurs. Despite back-to-back defeats against Chelsea and Everton, The Magpies still sit 14th in the table and nine points clear of the relegation zone with nine games remaining.

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