Newcastle United left-back Achraf Lazaar is unlikely to fill in for the injured Paul Dummett despite making a return, according to Newcastle Chronicle journalist Lee Ryder.
Dummett was forced off in Wales’ defeat to Denmark in the UEFA Nations League in mid week, which now means that Rafa Benitez will need to call upon Javier Manquillo, Kenedy or Lazaar to step in for him during his temporary absence.
However, the Chronicle journalist has wrote on the newspaper’s live blog [19/11, 11.32am] that even though the outcast has returned under Benitez after being previously ousted from senior side, the chances of him filling in for Dummett are very slim indeed.
OPINION
It is not a surprise that Ryder has said that Lazaar is unlikely to step in for Dummett during his injury – after all, he has not played many minutes in the Premier League since he arrived at St James’ Park. His lack of experience in the top-flight does not stand him in good stead, which why the likes of Kenedy are more likely to take his place. It is a shock that Lazaar has even returned to senior training in the first place – especially after he was relegated to playing in the reserves in an attempt to salvage his career at Newcastle. He is clearly not good enough to be playing for the first team, so Benitez is essentially handing him false hope by letting him train with the squad. Nevertheless, fingers crossed that Dummett’s injury is not too serious – and that he will be returning to action very soon.
