Newcastle United manager Eddie Howe has described Joe Willock’s return to action as “huge” for the team.
The Magpies midfielder had been battling a double injury blow since May this year before making his return this week.
Willock suffered a hamstring injury in the 4-1 loss to Brighton and needed up until the pre-season to return to fitness.
He missed Newcastle’s pre-season matches as he was recovering, but shortly after the season kicked off, he suffered an achilles injury.
Willock returned for the Magpies in the 1-0 loss to Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League this week, coming off the bench.
Newcastle are next in action on Saturday evening when they head to Wolves in a 5:30pm BST kickoff.
‘Suit our style’
Speaking to the Magpies media team ahead of the match, Howe explained how great it was for Willock to be back.
“(It’s) huge for us,” said Howe. “It has been a long time.
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“Joe is an infectious character, very popular around the training ground.
“He has the goalscoring and running capabilities that suit our style.
“It’s early days, but hopefully he can get that match sharpness back.”
Joe Willock return a welcome boost for Newcastle side ailing elsewhere
Amid a number of bad news in the Newcastle camp, with several players having injury worries, Willock’s return to action is certainly a welcome boost.
It’s also a timely one, with Sandro Tonali facing a potential lengthy ban from football for alleged illegal betting.
At the same time, Willock will need some time to get back up to speed after so much time on the sidelines.
Howe will no doubt do his best to manage the needs of the Newcastle team with ensuring Willock slowly and steadily gets back to his best.