Newcastle United defender Sven BotmanNewcastle United defender Sven Botman
Newcastle United defender Sven Botman | Getty Images
Sven Botman starts for Newcastle United’s under-21s against Chelsea at Whitley Park (kick-off 7pm).
It marks the Dutchman’s first appearance in nine months having battled back from an anterior cruciate ligament injury. It’s likely Botman will only play the first-half with the Magpies keen to manage the final part of his recovery carefully.
“He's been training consistently now for around four weeks but that was the plan,” Eddie Howe said on Friday. “We are taking medical advice and trying to follow the right protocols for the injury he's had to try and make sure we give him the best chance to stay fit.
“The plan is late December or early January, at the earliest, he will be available for us."
"It's what I've been thinking about the last seven months and it would mean a lot," Botman said previously. "Playing football is something I love to do and when you're injured for such a long time, you feel like you're standing still when other people are moving forward.
"I cannot wait for that moment when I'm back on the pitch and playing in our stadium with the team. I remember when I came back from rehab for my knee in November, which was around three months, so it should be even more amazing than that this time around."
Botman lines up in the same starting XI as Lewis Miley. Coincidentally, the 2-0 FA Cup quarter-final defeat at Manchester City on March 16 was the last time both players started a senior match for United.
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A back injury for Miley brought his breakthrough season to a premature end before a broken metatarsal ruled him out of the start of this campaign.
The 18-year-old was brought on as a late substitute in the Carabao Cup victory over Chelsea last month but has spent the last few weeks building up his match fitness and sharpness with the under-21s.
The visit of Chelsea is the under-21s’ final game of 2024. Diarmuid O'Carroll, who was appointed U21s lead coach in September, has lost just one of his five Premier League 2 matches in charge.
A victory tonight would take O’Carroll’s side up to fifth in the table, above Manchester United.
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