Newcastle are now seriously worried about their ‘brilliant’ £35m player

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Newcastle United fans continue to receive mixed messages about Sven Botman, and the latest update is a worrying one.

The Magpies have been without the Dutch defender for almost two months now. He has not featured for Newcastle since the 8-0 win over Sheffield United when he scored his first goal for the club.

Botman has missed Newcastle’s 11 games since then due to a knee injury, and it remains unclear when he will be able to return.

There was some encouragement on Tuesday when the Athletic reported that it was hoped he would return to training soon after the international break. The 23-year-old has been resting in a bid to avoid surgery, as that would force him to miss an extended period of the season.

However, fresh insight from the Telegraph paints a more concerning picture.

Sven Botman is causing Newcastle to panic

According to the Telegraph, Newcastle are becoming more and more worried about Botman’s fitness.

They state that he is still not ready to return to training, as the club continue to hope he can avoid having surgery.

However, the most concerning thing that the Telegraph write is that if he does go under the knife, the £35million man could be out of action until February.

That would be an absolutely devastating blow, as Botman is probably our best centre-back. Jamaal Lascelles has played well in his absence, but we are certainly a worse side without the ‘brilliant‘ defender.

If Newcastle do end up losing Botman until February, there will be pressure on the club to sign a new centre-back in the January transfer window. That will be difficult, however, as there is already a need to bring in a centre-midfielder – and maybe even a forward.

Eddie Howe’s squad is taking a battering, and there are no signs of the injury problems going away. In Botman’s case, it could get worse.