Newcastle boss Eddie Howe fears that Fabian Schar may miss the rest of the season after suffering a serious hamstring injury.
Schar was withdrawn at half-time in Newcastle’s 5-1 win against Sheffield United last weekend but is now set for a lengthy spell on the sidelines.
The Swiss defender had been the only Newcastle player to start every Premier League and Champions League game this campaign.
‘Fabian will miss a period of time out with a minor hamstring problem,’ Howe confirmed at his pre-match press conference ahead of Newcastle’s game against Burnley.
‘He won’t play tomorrow and I doubt we will see him again until next season.’
The latest injury only adds to Howe’s centre-back woes, with Sven Botman Jamaal Lascelles already sidelined with serious injuries.
Emil Krafth and Paul Dummett may deputise alongside Dan Burn centrally, while Howe hinted he may call upon 19-year-old Alex Murphy who made a brief cameo last weekend.
At full-back, meanwhile, Kieran Tripper remains unavailable but could return from his calf injury against Brighton next week.
‘Kieran Trippier just lies slightly behind the other guys. he’s been away training with one our our physios. We anticipate he’ll be back next week to train hopefully,’ Howe said.
There was some positive news, however, for the Magpies, with Miguel Almiron, Joelinton and Nick Pope all returning to training and in contention to make the squad for the trip to Burnley.
Pope has not been seen since suffering a major shoulder in December last year, while Joelinton and Almiron have not featured since January and March respectively.
‘We’ve had Miggy return, we’ve had Joelinton return to training this week with the group, the same with Nick Pope as well,’ he said.
‘It’s been a really good week to have three big players back. We’ll see after today [if they’re available]. I’ve got to make the right decisions for them and the team. They have had significant injuries and so we have to get this call right.’
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