Newcastle injury boost as three senior players return but another ruled out for season

Eddie Howe has revealed that Newcastle could welcome back three returning players when they face Burnley on Saturday afternoon. The Magpies have been forced to deal with plenty of injuries throughout the campaign but it seems they will be given a timely boost at Turf Moor this weekend.

Speaking in Friday’s press conference, Howe revealed that Miguel Almiron and Joelinton are back in training and could be in the frame to make the squad against Burnley. It is the same story for Nick Pope, who has been sidelined for much of the season after dislocating his shoulder in early December.

“We’ve had Miggy and Joelinton return to first-team training, we’ve also seen Nick Pope as well so it’s been a good week to have three senior players,” said Howe.

“Kieran Trippier lies slightly behind. He has been training by himself and will be back next week. He could be involved before the end of the season. We’ll see after today [if they will be fit to play against Burnley].

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It was not all positive news on the injury front, though, with Howe confirming that Fabian Schar is likely to be on the treatment table for the rest of the season. The defender was substituted at half-time during Newcastle’s recent win over Sheffield United with a hamstring injury, which was described by Howe as a minor problem.

“Fabian will miss a period of time out with a minor hamstring problem,” explained Howe. “He won’t play tomorrow and I doubt we will see him again until next season. We are lighter than we’d like to be in the centre-back area.

“Emil [Krafth] has played well in that position and did very well in the Carabao Cup tie at Manchester United. Alex [Murphy] has been impressive in training. I have been impressed with him, he has grown and developed. He had a little cameo last week so with Fabian’s injury, it maybe gives him an opportunity to come into the team and the same goes for Paul Dummett.”

Howe was also quizzed on Sandro Tonali, who was given a suspended two-month ban for betting breaches on Thursday. The ban will not be activated unless Tonali, who is already serving a 10-month suspension, commits any further breaches between now and the end of next season.

“I think it’s the right decision that the ban isn’t extended,” said Howe. “Sandro is working hard behind the scenes, he’s trained very well. As I’ve said many times, we are still supporting and helping him as he serves this time. He’s been very good, very consistent.

“I see a small fraction of his life, I see when he’s at the training ground and he’s a very good professional. He’s still relatively quiet within the group but that’s just his personality. He’s just focused on football and improving his game but you don’t necessarily see what’s going on under the surface.”