Newcastle United left-back Lewis Hall will not take part in full team training when preseason begins on July 7, as he continues recovering from foot surgery undergone in March.
Hall, 20, remained in Tyneside throughout the offseason to continue his rehabilitation, which has included a gradual return to aerobic work after 12 weeks of non-weight bearing. He confirmed the latest stage of his recovery in an interview with the club’s official website.
“It’s just gradually progressing,” Hall said. “I’ve just done 12 weeks non-weight bearing, which is obviously a long time, so to go from that to what I’m doing now is really good. It’s just about building slowly.”
The injury ended Hall’s breakout campaign and forced him to miss the Carabao Cup final at Wembley. He revealed that being unable to join his teammates for the 2-1 win over Liverpool marked his lowest moment.
“As soon as I was back here, got the cast off and the stitches out, I was straight in the chamber,” Hall said. “Every evening, my arms were dead! Then slowly started to integrate using my feet and my legs again.”
Although he will be present for the start of preseason at the club’s Benton base, Hall isn’t expected to be match-ready for Newcastle’s opening friendly against Celtic on July 19. However, he remains hopeful of featuring later in the schedule and being available for the season opener at Aston Villa.
“My aim is to be fit and ready to go for the first game of the season,” Hall said. “But to do that, I’d like to have a few pre-season games as well beforehand.”
Newcastle will also face Arsenal, the K-League All Stars, Tottenham, Espanyol, and Atletico Madrid during their summer run.