Newcastle United’s 160-game injury issues laid bare as Eddie Howe provides update ahead of Arsenal clash

Newcastle United players have missed a combined 160 Premier League games this season through injury and suspension. With just 25 games played to date, that means the Magpies have had, on average, 6.4 players unavailable every single matchday - according to data provided by Transfermarkt.

The nadir of their injury and suspension woes arguably came back in November when Eddie Howe was forced to name three goalkeepers and four academy graduates with just one Premier League appearance between them on the bench for a game against Chelsea. The Magpies would go on to register a brilliant 4-1 win on that day, but were forced to play against PSG just three days later with just seven players on the bench, including two goalkeepers, three academy graduates plus Paul Dummett and Lewis Hall.

Whilst it hasn’t all gone perfect on the pitch this season, Newcastle currently find themselves in 8th place and ten points behind Spurs in 5th, the fact they are still in a very competitive position heading into the final straight should be regarded as a great achievement. The Magpies have slowly started to move away from the worst of the crisis, however, they are still without a clutch of key players for their upcoming Premier League and FA Cup games.

Sandro Tonali won’t play again until next season whilst Joelinton and Callum Wilson are facing a race against time to feature again before the end of the campaign. Nick Pope will still be sidelined for a few more weeks whilst Matt Targett and Elliot Anderson haven’t featured since November and October respectively.

There is some good news for Newcastle United, however, with Alexander Isak and Joe Willock potentially back in contention for Saturday’s trip to the Emirates Stadium. Isak has been missing since being injured during the win over Aston Villa last month, whilst Willock hasn’t played since before the November international break.

Speaking about the injured pair, Howe revealed they were ‘close’ to a return: "[Willock] is another one like Alex, he's knocking on the door, very, very close, looking good and feeling much better," Howe said. "Another huge player for us that we're huge to get back, he's close."