Nobby Solano feels that Eddie Howe's decision to wrap Miguel Almiron in cotton wool for the decisive Premier League run-in should pay dividends.
Almiron remains Newcastle United's top scorer with 11 goals despite a recent thigh injury that resulted in the South American star missing four top-flight matches. The playmaker made his comeback at Aston Villa and got 34 minutes in the tank and is now in contention for the encounter against Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday.
With eight games left Newcastle legend Solano expects Almiron to prove his worth and cap his best season on Tyneside yet. As the Magpies prepare to face Spurs, Solano has praised the 29-year-old.
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Solano told Chronicle Live: "Miguel Almiron has proved to be the difference for Newcastle for most of the season when he's played. "You can tell Eddie knows his importance because he has been careful with him, he hasn't taken any risks with him with injuries.
"He rested him either side of the international break and knows when to take him off in games. When Eddie picks his best team then Almiron is going to be in it.
"You never know what is going on with a player's injuries though. The fact that he didn't go away with Paraguay to play Chile last month suggests that Newcastle were concerned.
"He stayed behind to work on fitness. And it's a decision that could pay off in the last eight games now."
However, Solano does not feel that Howe is under pressure to start Almiron in games. Indeed, he pointed to the recent 2-1 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers when Almiron was afforded 22 minutes and stepped on to the field to drive home the winning goal via a deflected strike.
Solano said: "We saw against Wolves recently when Eddie took Almiron out the team. He didn't start but he came on and scored the winner. So he knows that even if he played him for 10 minutes he is capable of doing something that makes the difference."
