Sven Botman drops a huge hint on social media that fans will love

Newcastle United have been aware since the end of last season that they'd be without defensive duo Jamaal Lascelles and Sven Botman until Christmas.

Both players went under the knife for ACL surgery within a month of each other which was set to rule them out of action for the rest of the year, hence Newcastle's desperate need for defensive reinforcements in the summer transfer window.

While Jamaal Lascelles has been pretty quiet since his operation, Sven Botman has posted a few progress updates on his social media.

The Dutch giant has posted something today that strongly hints that we could see Botman return sooner than we were expecting.

Screenshot/@svenbotman_ Instagram

Sven Botman is way ahead of schedule in his recovery

Posting on his Instagram reel, the 24-year-old snapped a photo of the Newcastle United training pitch with a caption saying "Back at it. Getting closer".

We've seen images of Botman in the gym already, but now it seems that he is back out on the grass which is a huge step in the recovery.

As great as it is to see Botman potentially heading back to full fitness well ahead of schedule, we should also be very cautious.

Newcastle should be very careful

Part of the issue last season was that the squad was so depleted that we had to rush players back early and they would just break down again.

Sven Botman is the prime example of that. He refused to go under the knife despite having knee troubles, tried to return to action and just made things worse.

Please handle him with cotton wool and kid gloves for now. I'm sure James Bunce will get him told. Although, if this Malick Thiaw deal doesn't come off, then crack the bloody whip and get him back to fitness for the 17th of August!