An injury expert has dropped a 'worrying' claim on Jamal Lewis, as he could now face a long spell on the sidelines at Newcastle United.

The Lowdown: Lewis injury

Speaking to the media last week (via The Chronicle), Eddie Howe revealed that the St. James' Park faithful 'don't expect' Lewis to be back 'for the foreseeable future', after admitting himself that his injury 'looks bad', and could be a 'hamstring problem'.

Nonetheless, it is not clear just how long he will be out for, although an injury expert has now given a likely timeframe.

The Latest: Could be 'eight weeks'

Speaking to Football Insider, injury expert Ben Dinnery, who runs the Premier Injuries site and has a background in both medicine and data analysis, has claimed that it is likely that Lewis has injured his hamstring, and suspects that he could now be out for up to 'eight weeks':

“The mechanism of injury was the acceleration phase of a sprint.

“He pulled up fairly sharply, which is a good indication that it is his hamstring.

“The worrying thing is you have varying degrees of strain. If it is a grade one, you would expect him to be back for the festive period.

“But the fact that Eddie Howe has said that he is out for the ‘foreseeable future’ means it’s probably more severe, maybe high-end grade two.

“If that is the case, it could be somewhere between four and eight weeks, so maybe after the winter break.”

The Verdict: Blow

It would certainly be a blow if the North East club are without Lewis for the next few weeks.

The Northern Ireland international has been a revelation under Howe, as he started their last four matches in the Premier League before his injury, where he was barely getting a look-in under Steve Bruce (Transfermarkt).

The former Burnley and AFC Bournemouth manager sung his praises before raising his concerns over his injury, claiming that Lewis has been 'excellent' in his athletic work, while former top-flight striker Noel Whelan has recently complemented the 'real energy' that he has to get up and down the left flank.

Nonetheless, with fixtures piling up during and after the hectic festive period, Howe will now find it more difficult to win games without Lewis in his team.

In other news, find out which 'exemplary' maestro NUFC have made a big offer for here!