Newcastle United are enjoying a rich vein of form and after picking up 10 points from their last four Premier League matches, now appear to be well on course to beat the drop.
The Magpies’ latest showing saw them successfully navigate their way past Steven Gerrard’s highly-rated Aston Villa during a narrow 1-0 victory at St James’ Park on Sunday afternoon.
The Toon’s victory over Aston Villa, which was made possible after full-back Kieran Trippier scored a close-range free-kick, marked their third on the bounce.
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Now sitting in 17th place in the Premier League, four points clear of Norwich City and with a game-in-hand, manager Eddie Howe certainly appears to have turned the side’s fortunes around.
Of course, the January transfer window also played a key role in that turnaround though.
As well as bringing in Trippier from Atletico Madrid, the Magpies’ new cash-rich hierarchy also signed the likes of Chris Wood from Burnley, Dan Burn from Brighton and Bruno Guimaraes from Lyon, but it has been Trippier that has hit the ground running fastest though.
Having opened his Newcastle United account during the side’s 3-1 win over Everton earlier this month, the England international’s heroics against Aston Villa saw him improve to two-in-two.
However, it isn’t all good news for the experienced defender who was forced to withdraw from Sunday’s game after picking up an injury.
Confirming the extent of the former Atletico Madrid defender’s injury, Craig Hope of the Daily Mail has claimed the full-back is set for a prolonged period on the treatment table after breaking a bone in his foot.
I’m told Kieran Trippier has broken a bone in his foot & faces spell on sidelines. More @MailSport #nufc
— Craig Hope (@CraigHope_DM) February 14, 2022
The Toon’s next match is set to be an away game against West Ham United on Saturday but with Trippier now expected to be unavailable, Howe will likely be forced to call upon the services of backup full-back Emil Krafth.