Lascelles desperate to play his part in
JAMAAL Lascelles insists he has not given up on playing again for Newcastle United this season even though Steve Bruce believes his captain might miss the rest of the campaign.
Friday saw United head coach Bruce reveal the centre-back has suffered a foot injury, with checks to be carried out to determine whether Lascelles has a stress fracture.
The former Nottingham Forest man is now wearing a protective boot and Bruce admitted it does not look good with just six weeks of the season to go.
However, Lascelles told NUFC TV that he will do everything he can to play his part in United’s survival bid before the end of the season.
“With a stress fracture the bone could completely snap, and that’s not what I want to happen,” said the defender, who scored crucial goals against Wolves and Aston Villa recently.
“At the same time I am not going to rule out the last couple of games.
“Hopefully we are in a position where we are safe and I don’t need to force anything but if we are in a position where I am needed I will do everything I can from now until then to make myself available if needed.”
It is expected Lascelles, who has already missed 15 matches this season due to muscle issues and coronavirus, will miss a month.
Were Lascelles to fight back quicker than expected he could be involved in the last home game against Sheffield United and the last day of the season against Fulham.
Lascelles thought he had just suffered a knock against Spurs but things have taken an unfortunate turn since.
The centre-back managed to play the full 90 minutes in the 2-2 draw against Jose Mourinho’s side last week despite having a sore foot.
Newcastle were already a little light at centre-back, but Federico Fernandez is available again and Ciaran Clark could come back into the starting XI at Burnley today.
“With Fab Schar already out, it’s certainly a blow because it looked very innocuous but, unfortunately, the longer the week went on, the worse it got,” Bruce told reporters on Zoom. “He thought it was a knock.
“He’s probably going to be in a boot for a couple of weeks and we’ll see after that. I hope it’s not the end of the season but it could be.”
Nonetheless, Lascelles is confident both Fernandez and Clark can step into the breach successfully during his absence.
“They are both older than me and more experienced,” the 27-year-old added.
“To have them in this situation is fantastic. They have both been in similar situations before, not just at Newcastle but with their previous clubs, so they will know what it takes.
“They are quality players.”
Top goalscorer Callum Wilson is set to return to action after being struck with a hamstring injury in mid-february and, together with the returning
Allan Saint-maximin, Lascelles is confident the pair can drag United away from the bottom three.
“With Callum and Allan coming back in it gives the squad a big boost,” Lascelles added. “They can make a huge difference. Against Tottenham the other day I think it was the most chances we have created and if Callum had been on the pitch maybe we would have converted some of those chances to goals.
“That is what he offers and he has been fantastic for us all season. Now is a crucial time for him to be coming back in and helping us out.”