Newcastle star Anthony Gordon to be out for several weeks

Journalist Chris Waugh believes Newcastle United could very likely be without Anthony Gordon for several weeks.

The Lowdown: More injury woes for Eddie Howe

Newcastle’s one big splurge in January was on Gordon, who was desperately trying to force a winter exit, and the Magpies came calling despite the winger having scored just three goals in the Premier League this term.

However, he’s been afforded just one start under Eddie Howe and now looks set to at least miss this week’s clash against Nottingham Forest due to an injury that was picked up after the defeat to Manchester City.

Reports have suggested that Gordon may not be seen again until after the international break – which will see the winger and his teammates jet off to Dubai – which would be an almighty blow for the Magpies, who are still yet to see why his former teammate James Tarkowski labelled him as ‘different class‘.

The Latest: Gordon set for time on the sidelines

While speaking on Pod on the Tyne, Waugh has stated Gordon is likely to miss this week’s Premier League clash and may not even be seen for several weeks to come.

He said: “Obviously, Anthony Gordon – who picked up an ankle injury after the Man City game – isn’t going to be fit for Friday and might not be back immediately after the international break, either.

“So that’s a bit of a blow because we still haven’t seen him have a run of games for Newcastle, but thankfully, because others have sort of stepped up in that absence, Howe does still have some positive selection dilemmas.”

The Verdict: Newcastle have sufficient cover for Gordon’s absence

The fact that Allan Saint-Maximin appears to be back to full fitness having started four out of the last five games in the league for the Magpies and Miguel Almiron could be back to his best after netting on the weekend, Gordon’s absence may not be too hard to deal with.

However, from PIF’s point of view, they’ll be far from impressed by what they’ve seen from their £40m investment thus far, with just one start to Gordon’s name as well as zero goal contributions, so they’ll be keen for a big end to the season from the winger.

Gordon is indeed still very young and has a lot of time to prove his worth to Newcastle, but the longer he’s sidelined, the harder it becomes for him to nail down a starting spot in Howe’s side, especially now that even regular substitute Jacob Murphy is being gifted starts in his absence, but for Howe, it will be positive to look at the depth he now possesses out wide.