Manchester City star Rodri suffered a serious knee injury against Arsenal (Image: Getty.)
are without midfield maestro for their away trip to Newcastle on Saturday, and will likely miss the Spain international for the remainder of the season.
But side could be devoid of the services of one of their key players also, with a reported doubt to play as a result of a broken toe.
The claim that Isak has not trained all week and is considered doubtful to face the champions.
Speaking in his pre-match press conference, Howe explained: “Alex is still nursing that toe issue. He trained last week before the Fulham game and he had an injection in his toe to play. He felt fine but started to feel his toe in the final five or 10 minutes.
“He’s had scans, he’s had lots of tests. The injury has been diagnosed fine. It sounds far worse than it is but he’s got a broken toe. It’s one that can be managed and played with providing he can manage the pain levels. That will have no long-term risks. He had injections to numb the toe last week, so that was fine until it wore off.
If Isak were to miss out it presents a major blow to ‘s chances against ‘s outfit, considering is also sidelined for the foreseeable future with back and hamstring issues. Left-back Matt Targett is also out after an eczema flare-up.
Alexander Isak could miss Newcastle’s clash with Manchester City. (Image: Getty)
Isak was also carrying an injury going into the Magpies’ 3-1 defeat at the previous week, but played the full 90 minutes.
could deputise through the middle or summer signing William Osula may be called upon to lead the line, having made his first appearance of the season off the bench with seven minutes at Craven Cottage.
The Denmark Under-21 striker joined from for a reported £15million fee and , but going up against the likes of Ruben Dias and Manuel Akanji would be throwing the 21-year-old in the deep end.
When asked about possibly being without Isak and Wilson last time out, Howe said: “That leaves Anthony (Gordon), who did a really good job against , and Will Osula, who has done really well since he’s been with us.
“I know he hasn’t played any minutes yet but we’ve been delighted with his progress – he’s got all the tools – so we feel we’ve got good cover.”
Meanwhile, City have confirmed that Rodri has travelled to Barcelona to visit a specialist after suffering a ligament injury to his right knee in the 2-2 draw with .
A club statement explained: “The midfielder travelled to Spain to seek specialist consultation this week, following initial tests in Manchester. Assessment remains ongoing to ascertain the full extent of the injury and expected prognosis.”