The £15 million player for Newcastle United has not yet been seen in a match.
The last time Newcastle United supporters saw William Osula, the club’s most expensive summer acquisition, was 450 minutes of competitive play.
The £15 million striker, who joined from Sheffield United, has only made one appearance in black and white thus far. He did so at the Sela Weekender, a preseason friendly versus Brest, a French team. It was surprising that Osula took the lead so early in his Magpies career, but there was also hope that he would be used in the cup competitions and off the bench.
Nevertheless, Osula is yet to participate in even a single minute of action from the sidelines after five games in the current campaign. Evidently, Howe is taking his time with a player he has previously labeled as “raw” and with certain areas of his game still needing development.
Howe resisted the temptation to play Osula in Sunday’s victory over Wolves, starting Anthony Gordon in the midfield and putting Harvey Barnes into the game instead, even though Alexander Isak was substituted off at halftime. Thank goodness, the manager’s call was successful.
But if Isak’s eye ailment prevents him from playing against Fulham on Saturday, Howe will have to decide whether to move Gordon back to a central position from his preferred spot out wide. Many would argue that it would be better to make a like-for-like transfer with Osula beginning, but Howe has made it very evident that he is unsure if the 21-year-old is ready for the Premier League thus far.
Though as of Sunday night, Howe was just “hopeful” that the Swede would escape a major issue, there is still hope that Isak will overcome his problems at Molineux. “We’ll learn more in the future. I’m not sure if it’s serious, but we sincerely hope not. Isak is such a key member of our team, the manager remarked.
Despite his high price tag, Osula was signed for the future rather than the here and now. However, Howe could have to gamble earlier than expected on a man who appeared in 21 games in the top level last season, since Callum Wilson is still out due to injury.
Osula is aware that he was brought in to learn and develop behind Isak and Wilson at first, but after making a good impression in his lone Newcastle outing thus far, there will be more demand to see the summer recruit in a competitive environment.
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