Newcastle defender Florian Lejeune is edging closer to a return to first team action after recovering from a long term knee injury.
The Frenchman suffered the injury in pre-season training and is yet to feature for the Magpies this season having undergone rehabilitation for the injury, however he may not be too far away from a return to the first team.
Quoted by the Newcastle Chronicle after his pre-match press conference this week, Benitez revealed that the Frenchman has begun training with the first team once again, saying: "Florain Lejeune is getting closer and took part in the warm up with the team."
The news will come as a relief to the fans who have already seen their side concede 14 goals in 11 Premier League games so far this season. They're in desperate need of defensive reinforcements and after a promising debut season at St James' Park last campaign, fans will know exactly what they're getting with the return of Lejeune.
Benitez's men got their first win of the season on Saturday afternoon after an impressive 1-0 win over a high-flying Watford side, a win which has now lifted them out of the bottom three temporarily with Huddersfield and Fulham squaring off on Monday night.
It's a lift Newcastle needed after what has been a disastrous start to the season, and one piece of good news has now been followed by another given the news that Lejeune will be back in action on matchdays sooner rather than afterwards.