Newcastle United manager Rafael Benitez has revealed his planned return date for centre back Florian Lejeune.
The Frenchman damaged his knee ligaments during pre-season and hasn’t been seen for the Magpies first team this campaign, but he is already back to full fitness.
Benitez provided an update: “He was playing with the U23s, 45 minutes and he did well,” he told the Chronicle on Friday. “He is training everyday, so he could be playing tomorrow but the problem we have is that we have too many centre-backs, and we don’t need to risk him.
“Maybe, it is a chance for him in the FA Cup because he is training normally,” he finished, referencing the clash with Blackburn Rovers on January 5.
OPINION
An FA Cup tie against a Championship side seems like the ideal opportunity to bring the 27-year-old back into the first team fold. Lejeune has been out for some time and, as Benitez says, he is well stocked at centre back at the moment so he doesn’t necessarily need to risk Lejeune in a league game. However, he needs to be integrated back into the team at some point and a cup game against lower league opposition would be perfect. Blackburn are a decent side, so he’ll still be getting a proper test, but it won’t be the same as coming up against Harry Kane or Sergio Aguero straight away after months out. Federico Fernandez and Fabian Schar have both impressed hugely since arriving on Tyneside in the summer, but captain Jamaal Lascelles has been below par this term so there could be a chance for Lejeune to win his old first team spot back in the second half of the season. Either way it’s good for the player to have a return date pencilled in for him to work towards.
