Eddie Howe has revealed that Sven Botman is in contention to return for Newcastle at Tottenham this weekend.
The Dutch defender has been out since March with an ACL injury but could make the squad for tomorrow’s trip to North London. Botman has stepped up his recovery in recent weeks and has featured three times for the u-21 side as he gets up to speed.
Eddie Howe on Sven Botman:
“I always said Sven will be in and around the Christmas games, he has worked incredibly hard to get himself into a good condition, he has had three games, he is in and around my thoughts. I will have to make a decision on who best fits that position,… pic.twitter.com/z71NmN0aKw
— Newcastle United (@NUFC) January 3, 2025
He will aim to break back into a Newcastle side in fine form, with the Magpies on a run of four straight wins and clean sheets
Speaking at his pre-match press conference, Howe confirmed Botman is ‘in his thoughts’ for the clash.
“He’s worked incredibly hard to get himself in a good condition. He’s had three games, a lot of internal training as well. He’s certainly in and around my thoughts. I’ll have to make a decision on who I think best fits that position. Great to have Sven in and around and available again.
“We’ve taken longer than maybe we normally would have done through respect of the injury he had to try and make sure he has the best chance of staying fit and when he comes back, hitting the ground running, which is absolutely vital.
“I’ve got a decision to make in terms of team selection, but if Sven is in the squad it’s because he’s fit and available.”
Newcastle sit fifth in the Premier League table, three points outside the top four. Howe is expecting an ‘exciting’ game against a Spurs side who have struggled to keep pace with the Champions League contenders.
“I don’t know whether it will be a good game for us or not until afterwards. I think it will be an exciting game. I think they always are against Tottenham. We’ve historically had some good matches against them. Both teams have had their moments in those games. One thing for sure is, they’re not going to change their attacking approach. It’s been very effective for them in front of goal. You look at their numbers, it’s very good.”
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