Newcastle United’s defender Sven Botman is facing an additional two-week absence, as confirmed by head coach Eddie Howe. Botman, who has been dealing with a knee injury, has already missed the last five matches and is expected to remain on the sidelines for at least the next four games as he continues his recovery. Howe, during his pre-match press conference, mentioned that Botman used the international break to work on his fitness. However, after Newcastle’s 4-0 victory over Crystal Palace on Saturday, Howe revealed that Botman has not yet resumed training, stating, “He was not close today. Obviously, I couldn’t say that yesterday [Friday], but he hasn’t trained yet, and he still has some progress to make. Hopefully, he’ll be back sooner rather than later, but he won’t be fit in the next couple of weeks.”

Due to this extended absence, Botman is likely to miss several upcoming fixtures, including the Champions League group stage match against Borussia Dortmund, as well as Premier League matches against Wolverhampton Wanderers and Arsenal, with a Carabao Cup trip to Manchester United sandwiched in between.

There had been optimism that Botman would return immediately after the international break, as he had previously posted on social media that he would be “Coming back stronger than ever.”

Newcastle is currently grappling with multiple injuries, including Joe Willock, who is nearing a return from a long-term absence, and Harvey Barnes, who is sidelined until 2024. Additionally, midfielder Sandro Tonali is facing a potential ban if found guilty of alleged illegal betting.