Newcastle cautious over Owen injury scare
Michael Owen's groin problem will be closely monitored by Newcastle
as he attempts to avoid another bout of surgery.
The 27-year-old striker has been included in the squad for Sunday's
Premier League clash with West Ham at St James' Park six days after
limping off with a tight groin during the 1-0 defeat at
Derby.
That may allay fears that the England frontman needs an operation
to repair a hernia for now, with vital Euro 2008 qualifiers against
Estonia and Russia coming up next month.
However, Magpies manager Sam Allardyce admits it is a situation
which will have to be carefully managed to ensure Owen does not
succumb once again.
He said: 'When anybody gets anything where there is a slight
tightening, then it's the beginning of a warning sign to say you
need to make sure you find out what the problem is and then sort
the problem out.
'You would manage that area more cautiously than anything else, and
then take a view on a week-by-week basis and see how things
are.
'Hopefully, going into Sunday's game, he is okay. He has recovered
from Monday night's match because we brought him off sooner rather
than later, and we go from there.
'Hopefully he gets through Sunday's game with no more discomfort,
and if he does, we have to manage that from there on and see how we
go.'
Allardyce has been adamant all week that talk of surgery was
premature after the player's early exit at Pride Park.
A scan on Tuesday showed no lasting damage, but it came as a relief
when Owen was able to train today with no problems, although his
manager is taking nothing for granted in the longer term.
He said: 'We will be guided by the scan and that is not showing
that Michael needs an operation. He trained today and he is fit for
selection on Sunday.
'But that is not to say that persistent groin trouble will not turn
into a hernia, and if he does need an operation, we will decide
about it then.'
There was further good news on the injury front for Allardyce when
Owen's strike-partner Mark Viduka was passed fit after suffering a
hamstring injury in the 1-0 win over Wigan a fortnight ago.
The 31-year-old is included in the squad and will battle it out
with Owen, Obafemi Martins and Shola Ameobi for a place in the
starting line-up.
Allardyce said: 'It's a good option - Obafemi Martins is a good
option as well, and it's a difficult area for me because there is a
lot of frustration in Oba at the moment.
'The difficulty is playing Oba and Michael together, does that
disrupt the rest of the team? Maybe, and do I know them well enough
yet? No.'
Meanwhile, £5.8million summer signing Joey Barton can finally set
his sights on a competitive debut for the Magpies after returning
to training from a fractured metatarsal.
The 24-year-old is back in training and although he still has some
way to go before he reaches match fitness, his time is fast
approaching.
Allardyce said: 'He has started a little bit of football work on
his own, which is obviously very pleasing for him more than anybody
else.
'It's nice to get a feel of the ball and start kicking it
again.
'No doubt we will have to hold him back and make sure the medical
team push him along the right way and not do it too quickly.
'I think he is going to be okay. We just have to do every session
with him and if there is no discomfort in that area, then we will
push on a little bit further and a little bit further each
day.'
