HAD Chris Wood still been a Burnley player, he would be spending this afternoon with his feet up at home, with the Clarets’ scheduled game with Leicester having been postponed because of a Covid outbreak within Sean Dyche’s squad.

As it is, with the New Zealander having completed a £25m move to Newcastle United on Thursday morning, Wood will trot out at St James’ Park later today looking to secure the win over Watford that would lift his new employers above his old ones and out of the Premier League’s bottom three.

Any debut in the black-and-white shirt is a big one. For Wood, though, the stakes as he makes his Magpies bow could hardly be higher, and with a trip to Elland Road to take on Leeds coming up next weekend, it is no exaggeration to claim that the next seven days could well decide which league Newcastle’s latest signing is playing in next season.

“It’s very difficult to predict what’s going to happen and what’s going to be needed (in terms of a points total to stay up), so all we can do is focus on the next game and try to build some momentum in our season,” said Eddie Howe, ahead of today’s meeting with a Watford side that currently sit two points above the Magpies in the table, with a game in hand.

“We’re well aware that we’re going to need wins. We can’t survive on draws, that’s not going to be enough for us. So, in the short term, we’re very much looking at winning this game, building momentum and then later on in the season, we can look at the wider situation in a bit more depth. Now, it’s just about getting the process right and trying to win the match.”

Wood’s arrival should help in that respect, with the 30-year-old ready to fill the gap that was created by Callum Wilson’s calf injury.

Newcastle’s latest attacking recruit might have just three Premier League goals to his name this season, but he has reached double figures in each of the last four top-flight campaigns.

He is a proven performer at Premier League level, and his muscularity and aerial prowess mean he should be able to provide the kind of physical threat that the Magpies have arguably been lacking since the days when Andy Carroll when starting to hit his peak.

“We’re really pleased with the signing of Chris,” said Howe. “I think he’ll fit in really well to the team. He’s experienced and he’s ready to play. He’s done very well historically for Burnley, and he knows the Premier League.

“I think he gives us something a little bit different to what we have, and I think all of those qualities mixed together mean it’s a really powerful signing for us.

“I’ve never been shy of saying that I admire tall, physical strikers who can give you a platform to play. I’ve signed many down the years. He is different and last week (against Cambridge), when you look at the fact that we put 30 crosses into the box, I think we were crying out for someone with his strengths and qualities.”

In Wood and Kieran Trippier, Howe has been able to sign two players with extensive Premier League experience. Eventually, Newcastle’s new owners will be keen to target younger signings, with more scope for development. For now, though, securing Premier League survival in the next four-and-a-half months is the sole priority.

“When the takeover happened, there was understandably a lot of excitement about what might lie ahead,” said Howe. “But the immediate needs of the team, in our current situation, are maybe different to that initial expectation. It was my job to cut out a lot of the noise and just see what the team needed. That’s what I’ve tried to do, I’ve tried to make the best decisions for our current situation.

“The two players we’ve signed are ready to play, and I think that’s a crucial thing for us in our current situation. There’s nothing wrong with signing younger players, and players for the future, and I’ve done that historically for most of my management career. But there’s a time and a place for those types of signings, and with the current needs of my squad, I think the two guys we’ve signed are the right ones.”

Newcastle (probable, 4-2-3-1): Dubravka; Trippier, Schar, Lascelles, Ritchie; Shelvey, S Longstaff; Fraser, Joelinton, Saint-Maximin; Wood.