Report: The behind the scenes reaction to Jamal Lewis returning for pre-season

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It’s been a pre-season to forget for Newcastle United’s Jamal Lewis.

The defender hasn’t played for the club since December last year, having suffered from injury and been dropped from Eddie Howe’s Premier League squad.

However, Howe’s decision didn’t mean it was the end for Lewis at St James’ Park. He was set to return for pre-season and be given a fresh chance to prove himself.

And that would have been the case had it not been for an injury at the worst possible time. The Magpies have played multiple friendlies in preparation of the new season, but Lewis is yet to play a single minute.

It will seriously have hindered Lewis’ chances of getting back in the Premier League squad, which is even more disappointing given the shape he returned in.

People behind the scenes were excited about Jamal Lewis

According to the Athletic, Lewis returned for pre-season in ‘great condition’ and with ‘renewed motivation’. They add that people behind the scenes were very excited about the 24-year-old following his return.

However, this summer hasn’t gone to plan at all. A muscle problem kept him out of action in Austria, where the most we saw of him was coming second in go-karting.

Lewis then travelled to Portugal, but didn’t feature against Burnley or Benfica. Instead we saw youngster Matty Bondswell play left-back, and he performed very well.

For Lewis, he will have been disappointed not to feature. This summer was his chance to reclaim his place in the Newcastle squad, having spent more than six months out of action.

Matt Targett will be the Magpies’ first choice left-back, but the role of backup is still up for grabs. There’s still time for Lewis to grab it, but the chance to get friendly minutes under his belt is passing him by. And that’s a real shame.

The defender has had a tough time since his £15million move, but the arrival of Howe can inspire change like it has done with so many Toon players. Lewis just needs to get fit, then he can hopefully prove he has what it takes to be a hit in black and white.

Fingers crossed he features on Friday or Saturday, where Newcastle face a friendly double header at St James’ Park.

After that the Premier League returns, and Lewis might struggle to get on the pitch.