Newcastle United announced on Monday that Sven Botman (£4.9m) had undergone surgery on a facial fracture.
The Dutch defender was forced out of the Tyne-Wear derby at the weekend, having taken a blow to the face.
WHAT’S BOTMAN’S RECOVERY TIMELINE?
The Magpies say that Botman is “not expected to be sidelined for an extended period” and “hopes to be available again during the closing weeks of the season”.
While the club didn’t offer a return date, the Northern Echo are among the media outlets saying the Netherlands international is “expected to remain sidelined for most of April” and “return at some stage in May”.
That fits with the six-week (ish) timeline you’d usually associate with a facial fracture.
If true, that would put him out of Gameweeks 32-34. Newcastle could blank in the latter, of course, and double in Gameweek 33 instead.
DOES IT HELP THIAW?
In Gameweek 31, and for the first time in a Premier League game this season, Eddie Howe went without a recognised right-sided centre-half.
Instead, Botman was deployed on the right, which is not his usual side.
So, Botman’s absence – even if it’s a relatively short one – does clear a path for Malick Thiaw (£5.1m) to return.
The spanner in the works, however, is the looming comeback of Fabian Schar (£5.2m). He, on paper, is Thiaw’s main competition for the right-sided centre-back role.
This is what Eddie Howe said about Schar’s fitness last Friday:
“It will be after the internationals for Lewis [Miley]. We anticipate he will be back, hopefully, after the break. Fingers crossed, the same for Bruno [Guimaraes] and also for Fabian [Schar].” – Eddie Howe
Schar has been out for two months, so he may not be ready to start straight away. It’s also not clear from Howe’s comments if “after the break” means as immediately as Gameweek 32. Howe’s next pre-match presser, in over a fortnight’s time, will be worth paying attention to for Thiaw owners.
Probably as much as anyone else, Botman’s absence – however long it may be – really benefits fellow ‘leftie’ Dan Burn (£5.0m).
