'Nearly there': Injured £25m Newcastle man provides update suggesting he is close to a return

Newcastle United have been without dynamic midfielder Joe Willock since the end of last season, but he's getting close to a return.

Joe Willock has been sorely missed since he picked up the first of two back-to-back injuries at the back end of last season.

The £25 million former Arsenal man's relentless energy has been a big miss, with many fans feeling that he could have been the difference to the Magpies' poor start to the season that saw them lose three games in a row.

Willock hasn't played for Newcastle since May

As Willock was recovering from the hamstring injury that kept him out of pre-season he picked up an injury to his achilles which means he's not been seen in action since he hobbled off the St. James' Park pitch against Brighton with just two more games to go in the season.

Eddie Howe had said last month that he expected Joe Willock to return to training after the international break and it seems his prediction was right with Willock posting a picture of his boots on his Instagram reel yesterday saying "Nearly there".

Joe Willock Instagram Reel

It now looks like Willock will make a return to action before the Christmas period which is ideal as the fixture list tends to get a bit wild around then.

Willock's return is now more important than ever

With Sandro Tonali set to be unavailable for a while, getting Joe Willock back ASAP is essential, but at the same time rushing him back and risking another injury wouldn't exactly be the best way to go.

Let's just hope he hasn't lost any pace after two pretty bad injuries.