Newcastle United boss Rafa Benitez has revealed that the trio of Jonjo Shelvey, Yoshinori Muto and Jamaal Lascelles could all miss the clash with Bournemouth on Saturday.
All three players were hauled off around the half time mark in the 1-0 win over Watford last weekend as precautions, but it now been revealed that all three of them could miss this fixture at St James’ Park.
Benitez says that Muto and Shelvey have not trained with the squad at all leading up to this match, while Lascelles has taken part in training – but it would be “difficult” for him to feature.
#nufc boss Rafa Benitez on injuries: "Muto and Shelvey have not trained.
"Jamaal has had a training session but it will be difficult for him.
"All three could be out."— Lee Ryder (@lee_ryder) November 9, 2018
“Muto and Shelvey have not trained. Jamaal has had a training session but it will be difficult for him. All three could be out,” Benitez said, as quoted by Chronicle journalist Lee Ryder on his personal Twitter account.
OPINION
The fact that all three players could be out for this match will no doubt be a major blow to everyone involved with the club. Benitez no doubt wants to continue the momentum that the side created with their victory last week, but those efforts may now be hampered due to these rather large setbacks. However, Shelvey being absent would not be the end of the world for Newcastle – just take a look at how Ki Sung-Yueng performed last week, and minds will soon be put at rest. As for Lascelles, Benitez has a very capable replacement in the shape of Fabian Schar. Ayoze Perez will no doubt replace Muto if he is out, but it will remain to be seen whether he can replicate his performance against the Hornets. One goal is not going to suddenly win him back the hearts of the Newcastle fans – so he will certainly have a point to prove if he is selected on Saturday.
