The inside track on Newcastle United injury blow after midfielder ruled out for 12 weeks

Lewis Miley suffered a fractured metatarsal while doing some fitness work at the Newcastle training ground during the off-season, ruling him out for 12 weeks. The 18-year-old midfielder has missed all of pre-season and is facing at least another month on the sidelines as he recovers.

In the meantime, his older brother Jamie has been in and around the first-team during pre-season. The 20-year-old has featured heavily in The Magpies’ friendly matches and started the 4-0 win over Girona at St James’ Park on Friday evening.

When asked about his younger brother’s injury progress, Miley said: “He’s getting there, getting over it but it’s just one of those things in football and we give each other the support we need.”

Explaining what happened, he added: “I was running near him and I saw him and was like ‘oh my god what’s happened?’ I didn’t expect it to be as bad as it was but it’s one of those things, you’ve just got to pick each other up.” 

It comes after the younger Miley brother made 26 first-team appearances for Newcastle last season, becoming the club’s youngest-ever Premier League goalscorer in the process. Meanwhile, Jamie was sidelined nursing a knee injury that kept him out for around five months.

“Obviously I wasn’t playing because I had my knee injury so I was just in the stands watching [Lewis],” Miley added. “Like I said to him and my family, I can’t watch the games with anyone because I used to go watching as a fan but now it’s watching Lewy so it’s brilliant. 

“I knew he was very, very good but I think it took us all by surprise just how well he adapted to all of it because he’d just come back from a bad illness where he was out for quite a while. He’s adapted straight away.”

Jamie and Lewis also have another brother, Mason, progressing through Newcastle’s academy and another at Sunderland.  

“I’ve got Mason with the Under-16s and Layton at Sunderland as well,” he added. “I don’t know where [the football talent comes from] but it’s great yeah.

“We’re brothers but we’re best mates as well so we’re there to give each other support and tell each other when you need a little kick up the backside.”