Steve Bruce gives Newcastle United injury update as Dwight Gayle edges towards Magpies return

The 30-year-old frontman has been out since September with a knee injury, suffered in pre-season.

And Bruce has revealed he has high hopes the goalscorer – now out running at the club’s Benton training base – is not too far away from being available for selection.

"I’ve seen him running out on the grass,” Bruce told BBC Radio Newcastle.

"He's worked extremely hard to be there or thereabouts. We hope in the next two, three, four weeks, to have Dwight back will give us something else, because he was playing very well before he got injured, unfortunately.”

Elsewhere on the injury front, United will only be without long-term absentees Gayle, Martin Dubravka, Jonjo Shelvey and Matt Ritchie for Friday night’s Premier League trip to Southampton.

“Everyone is OK, everyone has trained all week,” said Bruce.

“We have had our fair share (of injuries). Dummy is OK, young (Sean) Longstaff is OK and Ciaran Clark, but we are without (Matt) Ritchie and (Jonjo) Shelvey.”

Meanwhile, Bruce believes defenders have to ‘wise up’ to the new rules of contact in the area.

Callum Wilson won a penalty against Everton on Sunday, called controversial by some, in what was the latest incident to be scrutinised since laws were tightened up and VAR introduced.

“With addition of VAR, if there is contact it looks as if it is a penalty. Contact and they're given,” said Bruce.

"That's the biggest change. Maybe that wasn't the case a few years ago.

“The Premier League has a certain physicality about and we don't want to lose that, otherwise we become like everyone else.

“You can't tackle, jump with arms in the air, can't block. The defenders have got to be a bit more clever these days.”

Southampton will be without their top-scorer Danny Ings for the clash at St Mary’s.

England frontman Ings suffered a knee injury in Sunday's 4-3 win over Aston Villa and is set to miss the next four to six weeks with the problem.