Newcastle United suffer fresh injury setback as key defender withdrawn from international squad

Newcastle United star Emil Krafth has been withdrawn from the Sweden squad for the upcoming international break after sustaining a ‘minor injury’ in his side’s 2-1 victory over Tottenham Hotspur at the weekend.

The 30-year-old, who has started all of the last three games for Newcastle, had been selected for his country’s upcoming Nations League games against Azerbaijan on September 5 and Estonia just three days later. Instead, Krafth will be replaced by Ludogorets Razgrad's Edvin Kurtulus in Jon Dahl Tomasson's national setup, as reported by The Chronicle.

Last weekend’s matchwinner Alexander Isak is likely to feature for Sweden in the coming days while Sandro Tonali, Martin Dubravka, Miguel Almiron, Bruno Guimaraes, Anthony Gordon, Nick Pope and Tino Livramento are also jetting off to represent their respective countries. 

Meanwhile, defensive duo Fabian Schar and Kieran Trippier both announced their retirement from international football ahead of this month’s break after achieving a combined total of 140 caps for Switzerland and England respectively.

Newcastle will be hoping Krafth has avoided any serious issue after a string of impressive performances in recent weeks, where he has provided vital cover following Schar’s red card against Southampton. 

Krafth missed almost the entirety of the 2022/23 campaign with an ACL injury but emerged as a key player towards the end of last season with 17 appearances as he helped out both at right back and centre back where needed.

The Magpies are currently without both Sven Botman and Jamaal Lascelles for several months due to long-term injuries that were sustained at the end of last season. Leaving Schar, Dan Burn, Lloyd Kelly and Alex Murphy as the only available centre back options heading into the game against Wolves.

Newcastle had prioritised strengthening the defence in the summer and were heavily linked with a move for Crystal Palace star Marc Guehi, but the long-running saga ultimately ended in defeat, with the Eagles turning down as many as four offers for the England international during the window.

New Chelsea defender Tosin Adarabioyo was also the subject of interest earlier in the window, following the expiration of his contract at Fulham.