Steve Bruce answers 'million-dollar' Allan Saint-Maximin question at Newcastle United

The winger – who has made four substitute’s appearances since recovering from Covid-19 – is in line to start against Southampton this afternoon.

Newcastle, 16th in the Premier League and eight points above the relegation zone, have only won three games since Saint-Maximin’s last start on November 21.

Asked what kind of impact he hoped the 23-year-old would make, head coach Bruce said: “That’s always the million-dollar question. He was idle – I mean really idle, because he had to be – for eight weeks. He’s now had four (lots of) 30 minutes, so we hope he’s as good as he’s going to be. We hope he has the effect on the team that certainly he had when he first came to the club.

“It’s good to see him back fit, because certainly he’ll give us an edge, which he did do at the start of the season. Certainly we have missed him.”

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