Journalist Keith Downie has claimed that Chris Wood may be nothing more than a backup striker for Newcastle United moving forward.
Wood signed for Newcastle in the summer from Burnley for £27m in January but has somewhat failed to impress, scoring just two goals in 14 Premier League games so far for the Magpies.
Callum Wilson picked up an injury and has not featured in the Premier League since 27th December, which led to Eddie Howe to bring in Wood, but Wilson remains the club’s top scorer with six goals, despite not featuring at all this calendar year.
With Wood’s poor goalscoring record for the Magpies since he signed for the club in January, Downie claimed to GiveMeSport that he may be merely a backup striker next season.
He said: “I think they need a striker. Callum Wilson has got his injury problems and Chris Wood has scored twice in 14 games.
“Yes, he’s performed fairly well, but that’s a worrying stat given the amount of goals the team have scored, and he’s missed chances as well, so I see Wood being a backup striker moving forward.”
TIF Thoughts on Keith Downie’s comments…
Wood was brought into St James’s Park as a short-term replacement for Wilson, but despite the club seeing a change in form after his introduction as they went eight games unbeaten in the Premier League at the start of the year, he has failed to produce similar stats to the England striker.
With the newfound wealth of the club, they will likely want to spend big on a new striker in the summer. Even if Callum Wilson is fit, they may want to improve on him and bring in a forward with greater experience at a higher level.
So if Howe was to bring in a new forward, it could even be that Wilson is moved into a backup role and Wood’s game time is completely wiped.