Newcastle boss Eddie Howe relishing return of injury-hit defender Sven Botman | OneFootball

Eddie Howe has welcomed “transformative signing” Sven Botman back to the Newcastle fold knowing only too well the frustration he has suffered during his time out of the game.

The 25-year-old Dutchman has made only six appearances all season, the most recent of them – and his first since February – as a substitute in last Saturday’s 3-0 Premier League win over Ipswich, because of a succession of knee injuries.

Botman underwent a minor surgical procedure in March to address his latest issue, but is now ready to challenge Dan Burn and Fabian Schar for a place in head coach Howe’s starting line-up once again.

Asked how big a part he can play for the club, Howe said: “For me, he was a transformative signing.

“He had a real effect on our backline. The season that we qualified for the Champions League, our defensive record was excellent. The back four was very consistent and he was a big part of that, so we’ve missed him.

“Dan and Fabi have been outstanding, they’ve been magnificent for us in his absence, I can’t praise those two players enough.

“But Sven has got qualities that we love.”

A cultured central defender, Botman has been limited to just 72 appearances in total for the club since his £32million arrival from Lille during the summer of 2022, and his return to action could hardly be more welcome with Sunday’s trip to Brighton one of four remaining fixtures in the fight for Champions League qualification.

Former Bournemouth defender Howe, whose own playing career was ended by a knee injury, can empathise with a man who has missed more than his fair share of football during his time in England to date.

He said: “Having spent a lot of time with Sven in the last couple of seasons, we’ve had some difficult conversations where he’s felt low, he’s been frustrated. That’s really difficult.

“I suffered a lot with injuries as a player, so I know exactly how all the players feel when they have a long-term injury, and then on the rare occasions these days when there are complications with an injury, how that frustration manifests itself with the player.

“It can be hugely negative, it can lead to a lot of internal mental struggles – I’m not talking about Sven here, I’m talking generally – and loneliness, really, because you’re excluded from the group, that isolation is never good.

“I think Sven has handled it really well. He’s an outstanding player. We’ve missed him massively and of course he’s a huge presence that all the other lads look to as well. He’s got a lot of respect within the group.

“And I just think technically we’ve missed him. He’s such a good ball-striker, he brings a lot of the opposite players on to the pitch with his big switches of play, which is his forte, really, so he’s got a lot of strengths that we’ve missed.”