In his press conference on Friday morning, Howe suggested that Botman would be part of the squad for Newcastle’s game against Manchester City at the Etihad.
However, the centre-half was nowhere to be seen as the Magpies’ winless league run at City’s home ground was extended to 22 matches via a 2-1 defeat.
Howe revealed Botman, who has been suffering with a back problem, had reported continued pain on Friday, hence his absence from the squad.
And while the Dutchman had been pencilled in for a possible appearance in Tuesday’s second leg with Qarabag, with Malick Thiaw unavailable because of suspension, Howe’s defensive plans for midweek are now up in the air.
“We thought he [Botman] was going to be available [on Friday], but he just didn’t feel 100 per cent right,” said Howe. “So, we didn’t want to take any chances with him. We hope he’ll be available on Tuesday, but that’s not 100 per cent clear currently.”
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Newcastle left the Etihad with a familiar feeling after Nico O’Reilly’s two first-half goals condemned them to yet another defeat at the stadium.
However, unlike in a number of their previous visits to Manchester City, they caused their opponents a series of problems, with Howe proud of his players’ efforts off the back of their midweek 5,000-mile round trip to Azerbaijan.
“It was a good effort from the lads, physically,” said the Newcastle boss. “It’s not just been a tough week, it’s been a tough run of fixtures for us.
“I think the big thing for me is that every time we enter the pitch, I want the players to empty and give everything in the pursuit of winning. I can’t ask any more physically from the players that that, that was us all out.
“I thought we played with a good style, a good clear plan. The players executed it pretty well, bar a couple of moments. The two goals, I don’t think we defended well enough, we made individual errors.
“But I thought we chased the game really well in the second half – it’s a really tough thing to do here, against this team. I’m pleased with the efforts that the players gave.”