Newcastle's hopes of Champions League entry next season hinge on how quickly they can get Craig Bellamy off his training bike and back into first team action.

Newcastle, who blew the chance to open a three-point gap on rivals Chelsea with a nervy 1-1 draw against Fulham on Monday night, don't look the same side without Bellamy.

And Alan Shearer isn't the same player without the livewire Welsh wizard at his side.

The stuttering Geordies have won only one of their last eight games since Bellamy damaged his knee against Sunderland in February.

And apart from the second half of the game against Everton, which they won 6-2, Newcastle's campaign has faltered in the absence of their 15-goal marksman.

"I'm not going to say we're a one-man team but Craig's return would enhance our chances," confessed boss Bobby Robson. "We lacked a bit of penetration against Fulham and it's a frustrating period."

Robson is now wrestling with the dilemma of just how soon he can push his 22-year-old goalscorer into the final five-match run-in.

Robson runs the risk of losing Bellamy for months if he rushes him back - but he would love to have him available at Derby on Saturday, the remaining game the fourth-placed Geordies have in hand on Chelsea.

It's a delicate equation for the boss, who had hoped Bellamy would be on the bench at least for last week's trip to Aston Villa and also against Fulham. And Robson admits that the striker's continued non-appearance is a worry.

He said: "Everybody wants Craig to play but at the moment he is not even training. We are trying to look after his knee but because of that he can't run.

"He's very close. Ten days ago he was training as though he had never been away. But he suffered a reaction and we have restricted him to rest and bike work since.

"That's our worry. He's not fit for Premiership football. We must just hope that when he gets back in he can do well enough to put us in a winning position."

Newcastle's problems aren't helped by the fact that Carl Cort is still short of the form he showed before his lengthy injury lay-off. The £7m striker was brought off and Robson admitted: "I have stayed loyal to Carl but he had a disappointing night. He is fighting to recover what he can be."

* Robson is interested in Barcelona's Dutch defender Frank De Boer who is set to leave the Nou Camp in the summer.

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