Yoane Wissa set to be ruled out for up to seven more games after completing Newcastle United 'six-week' plan
Eddie Howe and Newcastle United will exercise caution around Yoane Wissa and his return to fitness.
Yoane Wissa suffered a posterior cruciate ligament injury just days after joining Newcastle United from Brentford for £55million.
Wissa, who hadn’t played any football or had a pre-season prior to joining Newcastle on deadline day, joined up with the DR Congo squad and started two World Cup qualifiers in the space of four days.
And in the second match, a 3-2 defeat to Senegal, the forward suffered a knee injury that has sidelined him ever since.
While Wissa is back on the grass for Newcastle, his debut for the club may not be until November.
But Howe has suggested that The Magpies may have to wait until 2026 before finally feeling the full benefit of Wissa’s signing.
Given Wissa’s lack of pre-season followed by an almost immediate injury, Howe has admitted it would take the forward around six weeks before he’s fully ready to perform for Newcastle.
Wissa will undergo a six-week ‘pre-season’ fitness schedule during the season once he returns to full training. The 29-year-old is understood to still be a couple of weeks away from being available for Newcastle. That could extend to around a month due to the upcoming international break.
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Eddie Howe makes Yoane Wissa admission
Comparisons can be drawn between Wissa and former Newcastle striker Alexander Isak, who went on strike during pre-season and didn’t play before securing a deadline day move to Liverpool.
Isak struggled to get up to full fitness and make an impact at Liverpool before suffering a groin injury during the 5-1 Champions League win at Eintracht Frankfurt on Wednesday night.
And when asked if patience will be required regarding Wissa’s return to fitness, Howe told The Gazette: “Yes. I believe so. I think if you look at Yoane's situation, he will need almost a pre-season.
“Pre-season schedules that we give to players will be six weeks. We do that for a reason, so we can build them up and they can play in various games and then they're ready to perform.
“I'm not saying he won't play for six weeks. But I think to get to his very best level, it will probably take that time.
“But firstly, before we get to that stage, we need to get him fully 100% fit and then we can really push him. He's on that road. He's been to see a specialist [Thursday]. That was a routine appointment.
“He's on track. He's doing well. So now I think we can push him a little bit harder.”
When asked if he was still on course for an early November return, Howe said: “Still the same. I'm losing track of weeks. It's not changed - whatever I said!”
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Yoane Wissa frustration
The frustrating thing for Newcastle regarding Wissa is once he returns to fitness and completes his six-week ‘pre-season’ plan, he will be in contention to head off to the African Cup of Nations with DR Congo.
AFCON takes place in Morocco from December 21 to January 18. Should DR Congo progress to the later stages of the competition, as they did two years ago when finishing fourth, Wissa could miss a further seven games for The Magpies.