ST-MAXIMIN BACK AFTER COVID FIGHT

NEWCASTLE winger Allan Saint- Maximin is back on Tyneside as he continues to recover from the effects of Covid-19. The 23-year-old returned to France before Christmas after manager Steve Bruce revealed he was suffering from ‘long-term Covid’ and did not know when he would be able to play. But it’s understood Saint-Maximin (below) is back in the North East and will be monitored by the club’s medical staff. He last appeared on November 21 and will need to train properly before it is decided when he is ready to return to the first-team squad. He is likely to be missing for at least another two weeks. The £16million forward was among as many as 10 players who tested positive for the virus last month and Bruce revealed that two — Saint-Maximin and captain Jamaal Lascelles — were hit particularly hard. ‘If anybody needs reminding of how serious this is, then we have witnessed it,’ said Bruce. ‘We’ve had vomiting, sores, mouth ulcers, no smell, no taste.

Long-term Covid is something which you wouldn’t think possible in young, fit, athletes. ‘Unfortunately, it is. They go for a walk for half an hour and then they want to go back to bed. It’s as brutal as that.’ Bruce did not initially reveal the names of the players suffering most, but the club were later forced to confirm their identities after internet rumours circulated of Saint-Maximin and Lascelles being absent because of a bust-up with the head coach. Saint-Maximin used social media yesterday to tell supporters he was ‘fine’, just as he did before Christmas when he said: ‘I feel great. I have no problem, nothing. Not injured. No problem with the club, with Steve Bruce. I love this trainer a lot and he takes care of me. ‘I love the club, I love the fans.’ Lascelles, meanwhile, has now returned to full training ahead of tomorrow’s trip to Arsenal in the FA Cup third round.