A huge verdict has been delivered on Newcastle United gem Callum Wilson's recovery from injury...

What's the latest?

Sky Sports journalist Keith Downie has revealed that the centre-forward may not be fit enough to play until the final few matches of the campaign.

The striker has been out of action since he suffered an injury against Manchester United at St James' Park in December and may now have to wait until next month to make his return.

He told GIVEMESPORT: "I think the best case scenario, from what I’m hearing, is he will maybe be involved in the last two or three games in the season, but by then they might be safe, so is there any need to do that? Are you better off just getting him into good shape for the start of next season?”

Will infuriate Eddie Howe

This update will surely leave Howe infuriated, as it means that he is unlikely to get any real benefit from having the striker back this season.

Even if Wilson is able to play some minutes in the final few matches, he will not be 100% match fit as he has been out since December, and he will be fighting to get back to his best. It will essentially be a pre-pre-season for him as he looks to get himself into a position where he can hit the ground running at the start of the 2022/23 campaign.

This means that he may not have much of an impact for the Magpies in their final Premier League matches of the current campaign. Hopefully survival will have been mathematically secured by that point and the only thing Newcastle will be playing for is their position in the middle of the table.

Nevertheless, Howe will surely be keen to have the attacker available as quickly as possible to pick up as many points as he can. The further up the table the club finishes, the higher the benchmark can be set heading into next season, which can keep standards high and drive everyone on Tyneside to achieve great things next term.

Wilson has proven himself to be a reliable goalscorer at Premier League level for the club. He has scored 18 times since the start of last season, more than any other Newcastle player, and this shows how important he has been in front of goal since arriving at St James' Park.

This is why Howe will be infuriated with how long the 30-year-old's injury is taking to shake off and that the Magpies are unlikely to have him back until the final few matches of the season.

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