Ryan Fraser is smiling again - thanks to a productive few days with the Scotland national team.
Two goals in two games helped bolster Scotland's World Cup hopes with strikes against Israel in a 1-1 draw and the Faroe Isles in a 4-0 victory at Hampden Park.
Fraser arrived in the Scotland camp under a bit of cloud after the 3-0 defeat at Brighton & Hove Albion.
But he bumped into two friendly faces in Steve Clarke and John Carver at the Scotland camp with the pair understood to have lifted the former Bournemouth man's spirits.
Both Carver and Clarke know how tough life can be at Newcastle when the chips are down and Fraser's expression said it all after the heavy loss on the South Coast before the international fixtures.
However, Fraser left the Scots' World Cup camp with a big smile on his face and is now geared up for Newcastle's important clash with Tottenham Hotspur at St James' Park.
Fraser - one of Newcastle's highest earners these days - is desperate to avoid a second relegation in the space of two seasons and knows he needs to keep his performances sharp ahead of the rescheduled Euro 2020 tournament this summer with his country.
Ahead of his departure from the Scotland camp, Fraser said: "I need to try to go back and play and do well and hopefully the manager picks me.
"I don't just want to come along; I want to be in the starting XI for that first game in the summer so I'll do everything I can."
