Newcastle United boss Eddie Howe believes Callum Wilson has benefitted from the club's warm weather training camp in Dubai after a tough start to 2023. The Magpies striker has lost his place to attacking rival Alexander Isak in recent weeks as he fights for his short-term future in Howe's starting XI.
Wilson hasn't looked the same player since returning from the winter World Cup in Qatar, looking a shadow of his usual, goalscoring self in a black and white shirt of late. The former Bournemouth man has missed periods of training in recent months but Howe insists Newcastle's No 9 has performed well during the international break.
“I’ve seen Callum really use the break wisely. He rested initially and then trained and he’s trained really hard and looked really good," Howe said on Friday.
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“He really needed a period of training and it’s really difficult to do that amongst games because obviously I need players fresh to play so obviously you can’t work them in the way you want them. There’s a lot of recovery and focus on the next game, but we had a 16-game period which I think Callum has utilised. Hopefully we can get him back to his best.”
Wilson is seemingly on the same page as Howe after telling podcast co-host Michail Antonio he feels refreshed after a short break away from domestic football. It remains to be seen whether his Dubai exploits will be enough to dislodge the in-form Isak this weekend against Manchester United.
"Recharged the batteries. We went to Dubai with the team for a little training camp," Wilson said. "I feel like it makes a big difference [going away for warm weather training mid-season]. You give so much in the season and there comes a point where sometimes you have a bit of a dip mentally and physically as well but you have dips here and there.
"You probably need a little bit of a boost to get you through to the end of the season. Not everyone is the same and it's all about goal setting and resetting your goals, adjusting things.
"It is a long season especially when there was a World Cup in there, you've been going all the way through from preseason to make sure you get there. A little week like that is perfect really, training, sun and a bit of relaxation to switch off from football for a few days.
"You feel like you're ready to go again. Like it's a new season for me and all of a sudden it's just going to be goals galore flying in the next few weeks."
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