The Magpies midfielder has returned from Asian Cup duty with South Korea and is currently being assessed by the club’s medical staff.
As if Newcastle United fans hadn’t suffered enough recently, there has been yet another setback in the shape of Ki Sung-yueng returning to St James’ Park injured.
The 29-year-old suffered a hamstring injury on international duty with South Korea in the Asian Cup, coming off injured during the second half of their 1-0 win over the Philippines on January 7.
According to the Chronicle Live, Ki was initially expected to be sidelined for 10 days, but after returning to full training on Friday, he reportedly suffered a recurrence of the problem on Saturday.
As a result, the midfielder is now officially back on Tyneside, with the club’s medical staff assessing the injury, cue much anxiety over just how long he could potentially be ruled out for.
Such fears are not unfounded, given the club is already in the middle of a relegation dogfight and already have injury concerns in midfield, with Jonjo Shelvey and Mo Diame both missing from recent games.
Indeed, neither of those two players was involved in their 3-0 win over Cardiff City at the weekend, where manager Rafael Benitez opted to play Isaac Hayden alongside youngster Sean Longstaff in midfield.
Here is how some Newcastle fans reacted to the news on Twitter:
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