Big boost: Newcastle now handed massive injury relief, Howe will be delighted - opinion

Newcastle United have been handed a key relief over Paraguay international Miguel Almiron this week…

Magpies boss Eddie Howe has allayed fears that the attacking midfielder has suffered an injury, with the 28-year-old missing the 5-1 defeat to Tottenham due to an illness.

The former Atlanta United star was absent from the matchday squad and his omission may have left fans wondering whether or not he suffered a blow in training during the week.

Lee Ryder Tweeted: “Eddie Howe confirms that Almiron was ill today.“

This news will surely leave the Toon head coach delighted as it means that the midfielder has not been hit with a knock that will keep him out of action for a number of weeks/months. Instead, he is dealing with an illness and will, hopefully, be able to overcome it sooner rather than later.

It is a big boost for the head coach as he is not blessed with options at the top end of the pitch. In terms of wide players, Ryan Fraser, Allan Saint-Maximin, Jacob Murphy and Almiron are the only natural candidates to play in those areas, although Joelinton and Matt Ritchie are capable of playing there if desperately needed.

Whilst the winger has been unproductive in front of goal this term, with zero goals in 22 appearances, he always works his socks off for the team.

He is a reliable player for Howe in terms of the defensive output he gets from him on the wing, with an impressive 2.1 tackles and interceptions per game as a forward. Almiron has won 3.3 duels per game and completed 80% of his attempted passes, which further goes to show that he is a steady player who will put in a solid shift for the side.

This is why Howe will be delighted that he has not suffered a nasty injury blow, as he will want to be able to call upon