Sven Botman is set to end his nightmare injury spell before the end of the year, with a return fixture already pencilled in for the Dutchman.
The centre-back hasn’t played for nine months after going under the knife to fix a serious ACL injury, but returned to first-team training recently after completing a period of rehab.
It remains to be seen when the big man will be back in Eddie Howe’s XI as we enter a busy period of festive fixtures. However, a new report has revealed our plans to ease him back in via our Under-21 side.
According to The Athletic’s Chris Waugh, Botman has been pencilled in to play for our Under-21s next Monday (16th December) in their Premier League 2 clash with Chelsea at Whitley Park.
Howe and the Newcastle coaching staff have recently used the Under-21s to help Matt Targett and Lewis Miley ease their way back into full fitness, so it seems this is a wise step to ease the former Lille star back to competitive action after such a long period on the sidelines.
It will be the 24-year-old’s first appearance in a black and white shirt since the FA Cup exit at the hands of Manchester City back in March, where the giant defender appeared to aggravate a pre-existing knee issue that was handled so poorly by our medical team at the time.
Howe impressed by Botman in training
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Speaking about Botman’s comeback last week, Howe revealed that the Dutch international has been “looking good” following his return to training.
“He is doing well, the initial moments in training were passive but now he is fully training,” Howe said. “He is looking good in the 11v11s, he is still a few weeks off from playing competitively but he is looking good.
“It has been a big boost to have him training, he is a big guy and a big presence and we missed him.”
Botman’s return, similar to Sandro Tonali’s earlier this season, will be met with much excitement. Quite simply the club’s best centre-back when fully fit, Botman could not have come back at a better time for a Magpies side who have shipped seven goals in our last two league games.