Newcastle United centre-back Jamaal Lascelles has been ruled out of Saturday’s clash against Brighton, Rafa Benitez has confirmed.
The Toon mainstay – who has made 32 appearances in total this season – has been sidelined for the away trip to the Amex Stadium after suffering from a stomach problem this week.
Fellow centre-back Florian Lejeune still remains sidelined, while Miguel Almiron will also be missing for this weekend’s fixture.
“We have lost Lejeune and Almirón (to injury). We have also lost Lascelles, who has had a stomach illness all week,” Benitez said in his pre-match press conference, as relayed by the club’s Twitter account.
RB: “We have lost Lejeune and Almirón (to injury). We have also lost Lascelles, who has had a stomach illness all week.” #NUFC pic.twitter.com/kPOtnmU9UK
— Newcastle United FC (@NUFC) April 26, 2019
OPINION
Losing Lascelles will be quite the blow for Benitez this weekend. Seeing as he has already lost Lejeune to injury, a shake-up of his central defence is needed. Lascelles has been a rock in the back five this season, and he has been one of the key figures behind Newcastle’s recent success. He has had a few off-days this term, just like everyone does, but overall, he has been one of the most consistent defenders on the books alongside Fabian Schar. The two players starring alongside each other has been quite a sight to witness this season, and it is likely that we will see the same from them in the next campaign. That being said, Brighton are likely jumping for joy that a key player like Lascelles has been ruled out of the game. They are struggling for goals as it is, and the absence of the defender will obviously boost their chances of claiming all three points.