Newcastle United manager Eddie Howe has praised Emil Krafth ahead of the Magpies’ Carabao Cup trip to Manchester United.
The Newcastle defender has endured a lengthy spell on the sidelines. He had to undergo rehabilitation following an anterior cruciate ligament injury over a year ago.
Krafth has not played a competitive game for Newcastle since August 2022, the Carabao Cup win over against Tranmere Rovers where he suffered the injury.
At the time, the Sweden international was enjoying his best football to date under Howe at St James’ Park.
However, Krafth has since returned to training and has been playing for the Newcastle Under-21s as he builds up his fitness.
Last week, Howe named the 29-year-old in a matchday squad for the first time since August last year, making the bench against Wolves in the Premier League.
Now, with the last-16 Carabao Cup trip to Old Trafford looking, Howe has spoken about how Krafth has been faring on his journey back to the fold.
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“Very good (to have Emil back),” the Newcastle boss told the Magpies media team.
“He’s had a really good period of work. He’s worked incredibly hard with the physios and sports science team, doing everything that we’ve asked of him.
“I think he’s in a good place. He’s had development games to get the finishing touches to his sharpness so I think he looks really good at the moment and it’s great to have him back with us.”
Great news as Krafth looks to resume his Newcastle career – TBR View
It’s such a shame when a player suffers a long-term injury and doesn’t play for months, or in Krafth’s case, well over a year.
However, it looks like his journey back to the pitch is finally at the home straight. It’ll be an emotional moment when he returns to competitive action for Newcastle.
The £5million man will likely need a bit of time to get back to his best, but if anyone knows how best to manage a player’s fitness, it’s Howe.