Newcastle coach Eddie Howe has vowed not to hand over within the race for European football amid a seemingly never-ending injury crisis.
Magpies boosted their hopes of a top-six finish after Saturday’s 4-3 victory over West Ham. With just 13 minutes left, they were losing 3-1.
But it got here at a value, as captain Jamaal Lascelles tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee, leading to an injury that would keep him sidelined for up to nine months.
Lascelles is Howe’s latest long-term victim, but as he prepared for Tuesday’s home clash with Everton, the top coach refused to hand over.
He said: “I always had the feeling that the season was alive, but of course you have to win games and the more you don’t win, the faster the season flies away.
“We know the quality of the league and we know how difficult it is to win consistently, but that is what we are striving for now.”
Lascelles’ misfortune is a large blow and comes lower than two weeks after fellow centre-back Sven Botman was ruled out for an identical period with an identical injury.
It’s the newest long-term injury blow to a club that has suffered greater than its justifiable share this season.
Goalkeeper Nick Pope – who remains to be on the bench – and frontman Jacob Murphy have dislocated shoulders, defender Dan Burn broke a bone in his back, Joelinton injured his hamstring, Joe Willock is sidelined for long periods with hamstring and Achilles injuries and striker Callum Wilson is currently recovering from pectoral muscle surgery.
Harvey Barnes, who scored twice as an alternative on Saturday to finally eliminate the Hammers, spent four-and-a-half months within the treatment room with a finger injury before returning to motion last month, while Emil Krafth, Matt Targett and Elliot Anderson were also suspended Sandro Tonali missed significant periods.
However, what has not modified is the mood inside a team that’s fighting to stay in European football against all odds, and that quality was very essential over the weekend.
Howe said: “I all the time say that a team is made up of the character of the players and you possibly can see that character stands out because without that we can be dead and buried and we would not have come back in the best way we did.
“The spirit remains to be there and that is crucial thing. If you could have the spirit, you could have a probability.
Everton’s Newcastle finished eighth within the table, five points behind sixth-placed Manchester United without the suspended Anthony Gordon and with doubts for Tino Livramento and Miguel Almiron, who limped off on the weekend with ankle and knee injuries respectively, but hoping Kieran Trippier will return from a calf problem.
Burn, Krafth or Paul Dummett could fill the void left by Lascelles in central defense with the summer acquisition of Lewis Hall, who has impressed in his recent appearances as an alternative, and can be a candidate to take over at left-back should Burn get the nod within the centre.
Credit : www.independent.co.uk
