Eddie Howe hints at new start for Newcastle United player

Lewis – who was left out of the club’s Premier League squad midway through last season due to injury – has only played seven minutes of Premier League football so far this season.

However, the 24-year-old left-back, signed from Norwich City in 2020, is now over his injury problems.

While Lewis, ordinarily, might have been loaned out this month, an injury to Matt Targett means he’s needed on Tyneside.

“Jamal's in a good place,” said United’s head coach. “When I first came in, he had injury problems. He had a problem with his pelvis where he went away and it got sorted.

“That was pivotal, because he wasn’t feeling himself in training, and in games, because he didn’t feel he execute physically what he wanted to do. He’s an incredible athlete, and now we’re seeing that in training, because he’s feeling a lot more himself.

“He’s trained very well, and become accustomed to our principles of play. He’s done a lot of work behind the scenes. I’d back him to produce some very good performances for us now, if given the opportunity.

"For me, there’s never been a doubt about the quality of player. He’s a player we really like.

“We have so many games ahead of us, a long season to come. Dan Burn, by his own admission, would probably want to be a centre-half, that would be his favoured position, but he’s doing really well at left-back for us.

“That only leaves us Jamal as a recognised left-back, with Paul Dummett coming back from injury, and Matt Targett injured.

"There’s no way I’d be letting Jamal out at this moment, even though, for his own career development, he might now be in a position where he’d be saying he wants to play regularly.

“You get these situations with players. There’s never one situation that suits everybody – there’s the team’s needs and his needs. But fundamental to it is that we like him as a player – and want his career to develop.”

Howe added: "Hopefully, he can achieve everything he wants to here.”