Newcastle United defender Fabian Schar admits it was 'really hard' to see Florian Lejeune stricken by another serious injury, but insists that is not why they were beaten by Crystal Palace on Saturday.
Lejeune was stretchered off with a suspected ACL injury in his knee on Saturday, just months after returning from another serious knee injury he suffered during pre-season.
The Frenchman has been ruled out for the rest of the season and it is a huge blow for Newcastle, given the impact he has made on the side during 2019.
And Schar says Newcastle will miss Lejeune a lot between now and the end of the season but says they cannot use his injury as an excuse for Saturday's 1-0 defeat to Crystal Palace.
“It’s really hard to see Flo like this," the Swiss international told ChronicleLive.
"I was really sad in the moment when it happened. I don’t think we lost the game because of that, but it was a really bad moment for all of us.
"Nobody wants to see a player in that kind of position. We cannot say we lost the game because of that, but it was a big blow for everyone.
“It will obviously be a big blow for him. As a player, an injury is the worst thing you can have. He just came back from a long time out, and was playing so well after his last injury.
"He is a really important player for us, so we are all really sad to see him out again. We’re sad for him, and for the team. We will be missing him a lot."
Saturday's defeat to Palace saw Schar return to the side following a two-match suspension.
And although he was glad to be back in the side, he could not hide his frustration after the 1-0 defeat at St James' Park.
“It was hard to miss two games and not be able to help the team. But that’s football. Now I am back, and I was happy to be back in the team.
"We lost the game though, so I was really frustrated."
