Newcastle winger Harvey Barnes could face months on the sidelines as he awaits a specialist’s verdict on the foot injury he suffered at Sheffield United.
The 25-year-old limped out of Sunday’s 8-0 Premier League demolition game at Bramall Lane after just 12 minutes, with head coach Eddie Howe fearing he could miss a significant portion of the campaign due to possible surgery.
Asked if Barnes could be out for some time, Howe said: “Yes, we fear that will be the case. It’s difficult. “I don’t want to delay until we get confirmation from a specialist, but I think it will be months, not weeks.”
Update from Eddie Howe on the injury suffered by Harvey Barnes at Bramall Lane on Sunday.
“He has a foot injury, just below his toe, and I think it’s a pretty serious injury. We made scans and are now waiting for a specialist’s opinion on what’s next and… pic.twitter.com/BdaoD3dUfk
— Newcastle United (@NUFC) September 26, 2023
The England international, who joined the Magpies for £38m in the summer from Leicester, picked up the injury as he prepared to make the move to South Yorkshire and has since undergone scans.
Howe said: “This is an injury to the part of the foot just below the toe. I think this is a pretty serious injury. We scanned it, now we are waiting for a specialist’s opinion on what to do next, whether there will be an operation or not.
“I don’t think it was a tackle, I think it was just a push, a very unusual injury. I won’t go into technical detail because I’m not medically qualified for this, but yes, it’s very unusual.”
Any lengthy absence would be a blow to both the player who is desperate to establish himself on Tyneside (Sunday’s game was only his second start for his new club) and his employers, who invested heavily in his services during their latest spending spree. as they prepare for a season that will feature Champions League football for the first time in two decades.
Howe said: “He fell after the game because he knew it wasn’t the usual injury where you feel the muscle and think it might take a week or two.
“It was a bit of a tougher question and I think he probably feared the worst because he had no one around him and it was one of those arrangements that he knew wasn’t quite right.
“There is no doubt he will be disappointed because he really wanted to show his worth and his worth and Sunday provided the opportunity to do that. But whatever the injury, we will support him and we know he is a top-level player and still has a huge role to play.”
The disappointing news of Barnes’ injury comes as Newcastle turn their attention from a remarkable day against the Blades to the task of finding a way to beat treble winners Manchester City in the League Cup, the only honor Pep Guardiola’s men have not won in the last match. campaign.
A third round draw could hardly have presented the Magpies, who lost to Manchester United in last season’s final, a tougher task despite Guardiola hinting he could make significant changes given the injuries that have hit hard at his command.
However, Howe, who himself was left without the injured Joe Willock and Joelinton, as well as Barnes, refuses to accept the Spaniard.
He said: “Pep is a manager who has won so much and he hasn’t done it by giving every minute of every minute to try and achieve this success. I have no doubt that tomorrow we will see the best Manchester City.