Eddie Howe explains ‘slight injury’ for Newcastle United star Allan Saint-Maximin

Eddie Howe has revealed Allan Saint-Maximin picked up a “slight injury” in Newcastle United’s friendly win over Rayo Vallecano on Saturday.

The Frenchman played a full 90 minutes as goals from Sean Longstaff and Chris Wood sealed a 2-1 victory against the La Liga side.

But when leaving the field at the end, Saint-Maximin appeared to walk off a little gingerly - and Howe has confirmed he had suffered a knock.

However, the Magpies head coach is hopeful the issue will settle and not impact his involvement in Tuesday’s last 16 Carabao Cup tie against Bournemouth.

‘Slight’ Allan Saint-Maximin injury revealed

Howe said: “I think there is a slight injury, we’ll see today how he comes in. Obviously, after a game, things can be sore but they can settle quickly, so hopefully that’s the case.”

Saint-Maximin spoke to local media in Riyadh earlier this month, where he opened up on his frustration at spending the early part of the season on the sidelines with a hamstring problem.

Naturally, the 25-year-old is hoping for a strong second half to the campaign.

Saint-Maximin said: “It’s been a very difficult time for me because you can see I put in a lot of work during pre-season to be able to come back fit and to be the best I can.

“It was a very, very hard time for me mentally. I have my job in Newcastle but I always had in my mind the World Cup with the French team as well. When you start like this and after you get the injury, and you try everything to be able to come back but you know if you come back too early you can pick up a bigger injury.

“It was very, very difficult but I had the support of my family at that time. Now, I start to feel much better. I will not say the (World Cup) break came at a great time but I feel better, I work very hard during the break and it has given me even more days to recover. Now, I’m ready to give my best for the team.”