Newcastle’s star man, Bruno Guimaraes, left St James’ Park on crutches and in a protective boot after suffering an ankle injury in the 1-0 win over Fulham. The brilliant Brazilian had been left in tears as the teams made their way into the dressing rooms at half-time, and was replaced by Allan Saint-Maximin for the second 45 minutes.
It will be a huge blow to the Magpies’ top-four challenge if Bruno’s injury is as serious as it looks. The midfield maestro has been the stand-out player for his team this season, and with a two-legged Carabao Cup semi-final on the horizon, Newcastle could really do with having him patrolling the midfield as he has since joining the club from Lyon.
The late win against Fulham moved Eddie Howe’s side back up to third in the table, and after the match, Guimaraes took to social media to discuss his injury.
“Very sad about today’s injury, hopeful it’s nothing serious and that I can do what I love most as soon as possible”, the Newcastle no 39 posted on Twitter.
very sad about today’s injury, hopeful it’s nothing serious and that I can do what I love most as soon as possible 🥹🖤🤍3️⃣9️⃣ pic.twitter.com/qgj8kjMXMM
— Bruno Guimarães (@brunoog97) January 15, 2023
Eddie Howe seemed to be a little bit more worried about the injury to his star man after the game, saying:
“He’s a bit distressed currently.
“We don’t know what it is. We know it’s his ankle, we think he twisted it quite badly, so yeah.
“He’s very upset and we’re obviously concerned for him and we hope it’s not too serious, but at this time we don’t know.” via [talksport]
Losing Bruno at such a pivotal time of the season now creates a huge problem for a Newcastle squad low on options in the midfield area, and could force Eddie Howe to delve into the transfer market in search of a replacement.
Jonjo Shelvey is also currently out injured, meaning Joe Willock, Sean Longstaff, and Joelinton are now the only recognised centre midfielders available. I’m sure the club will wait and see the extent of Bruno’s injury before making rash decisions, but it will likely force the board into opening the checkbook once again.