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Newcastle United defender Sven Botman is set to make his injury comeback next week. The 24-year-old hasn’t played since March because of an ACL injury.
Botman initially suffered a partial ACL tear in September last year and opted for a non-surgical rehabilitation plan. He resumed playing in December but looked way off his best, eventually resulting in surgery three months later.
The Dutchman has gradually resumed training of late and is due to make a major step in his recovery. As per The Athletic, Botman is pencilled in to play for the under-21s against Chelsea at Whitley Park on Monday, December 16.
And depending on Botman’s progress, he could be back in first-team action before the New Year.
Asked for an update on Botman, head coach Eddie Howe said on Friday: “He’s doing well. The initial moments in training were very passive, making sure he didn’t do too many duels, working on his technical work, but now he’s fully training.
Newcastle United defender Sven Botman.Newcastle United defender Sven Botman.
Newcastle United defender Sven Botman. | Getty Images
“We’ve done a couple of XI vs XIs with him, he’s looked good, but he’s still a few weeks off playing competitively. He looks and feels good.
“It’s all about rhythm for Sven now and getting those game dynamics, the pitch geography back, things that he would normally do on auto pilot he needs to rediscover how to do it. It’s just been a big boost to have him in training. He’s a big guy, big presence and we’ve certainly missed him.”
Howe previously said it’d be a “bonus” to have Botman available before 2025.
He said: “Sven is making good progress and we hope that he can begin light training with us within the next few weeks but there's still a jump from training to playing so we still need to be patient with him again.
“If we see him before the end of the year that would be a bonus but we're probably looking at more January for him.”
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