‘He’s improving’: Eddie Howe admits 23-year-old Newcastle player could return from injury very soon

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It has been a bad week of injuries for Newcastle United, but there is at least some good news regarding Sven Botman.

The Magpies are going to be without Elliot Anderson for the next couple of months, while it remains unclear how long Alexander Isak and Jacob Murphy will be out of action for.

But one injured player is closing in on a comeback, with Eddie Howe providing a positive update regarding Sven Botman‘s fitness ahead of Newcastle’s game against Wolverhampton Wanderers.

The 23-year-old has not played for the Magpies since the 8-0 victory over Sheffield United. Jamaal Lascelles has taken his place at the back, with the captain performing brilliantly.

His performances have eased the pain of losing Botman to a knee injury, but it now sounds like the Dutchman is not too far away from returning to action.

Eddie Howe provides positive update on Sven Botman’s injury

Howe has spoke to the media ahead of Newcastle’s game against Wolves, and told reporters in attendance that he believes Botman could be back ‘pretty quickly’.

“Sven is improving,” he said.

“He’s out on the grass. He’s not trained with us yet.

“We’re hopeful we can get him back pretty quickly, but we have to be careful with the injury that he’s got.”

Botman is not a guaranteed starter for Newcastle now

It is excellent to hear that Botman is closing in on a return. However, given the fact he has not returned to training with his teammates yet would suggest he will once again be missing on Saturday.

But that is fine, because Lascelles is playing very well in his absence. In fact, it is his performances that mean Botman is no longer a guaranteed starter for Newcastle.

If Howe had every player fit, he would pick Botman to play centre-back. There is no denying that. But Lascelles has played so well as of late that the Newcastle manager must be tempted to keep the 29-year-old in the side even when Botman is fully fit.

It would perhaps be harsh on Lascelles to immediately demote him to the bench. He has given Howe a lot of food for thought, and it means the manager has a very difficult decision to make in the seemingly very near future.